Rapid Review: The Matrix Revolutions (2003)

“Why, Mr. Anderson? Why, why? Why do you do it? Why, why get up? Why keep fighting? Do you believe you’re fighting… for something? For more than your survival? Can you tell me what it is? Do you even know? Is it freedom? Or truth? Perhaps peace? Could it be for love? Illusions, Mr. Anderson. Vagaries of perception. Temporary constructs of a feeble human intellect trying desperately to justify an existence that is without meaning or purpose.” 
Agent Smith

SYNOPSIS: The human city of Zion defends itself against the massive invasion of the machines as Neo fights to end the war at another front while also opposing the rogue Agent Smith. – via IMDB

So many complaints about this movie. So many. Now, neither of these sequels reached the heights of the original film, let’s not deny that, but they were alright. However, you all know what complaints I had with Reloaded, and there were many. As for Revolutions? I thought it was actually really entertaining, and a pretty good way to end the trilogy, even though there were some loose ends. I liked the fighting scenes in here more (they didn’t look as “soft”), I enjoyed the story more (there actually was more of a point to what was going on), and I liked the fact that there wasn’t such a massive sexual component in here (it was so unnecessary in Reloaded). The story also seemed tighter and flowed better. I wish that this final movie had been more of an equal to the original one, but I honestly do not think for one second that it deserves the hate that is spouted at it. It was entertaining, shot well, looked good, had Keanu Reeves in it, some wicked outfits and decent effects, so it had everything an action movie needed. It is not good as a standalone film, as I intensely doubt that anyone could have made heads of tails out of what was going on without the backing of the previous two films, and that is fine. That final fight between Agent Smith and Neo was simply fantastic, and I really loved the look when they were fighting each other with that green backdrop of windows. I could not find a gif of it anywhere, but it really looked good. The score was still a little too techno, but less in your face as the last one. I honestly loved Trinity and Neo together, and I still lament the fact that more time was not spent developing their relationship more to give it more bite than it has. I was riveted by the story, and it had ups and downs, of course, but it was concluding one hell of a story, and I think that the Wachowskis handled it relatively well. If you haven’t watched the Matrix movies in a while, I would highly recommend taking the time and doing a marathon of them!

Rapid Review: The Matrix Reloaded (2003)

“Choice is an illusion created between those with power and those without.” 
– Merovingian

SYNOPSIS: Neo and the rebel leaders estimate that they have 72 hours until 250,000 probes discover Zion and destroy it and its inhabitants. During this, Neo must decide how he can save Trinity from a dark fate in his dreams. – via IMDB

I get that this is regarded as the better of the two sequels, but I am not so sure about that, to be honest. For one… there is just so much CGI. And not like a lot of movies, where there is CGI and you can forgive it, this is just in excess and in your face all the time. Reloaded just looks so fake in so many places, and that is highly disappointing. Especially after the last phenomenal piece of cinema we got, this is just a step down. I was not a fan of the heavy techno soundtrack, and there was just far too large a sexual component to this movie than there needed to be. Also, there were many scenes laced throughout here that were unnecessary and time consuming. A complaint my fiancé had was that the fight scenes all looked “soft” – nobody seemed to be getting into a real fight, things were too gentle and relied on a lot of low gravity and nothing really happening, but fists constantly being swung, you get what he means? What I did like though were those two creepy white albino twin things. They were interesting, and I thoroughly enjoyed the way they fought and morphed and moved. Something I have always wished about the Matrix movies is that they had focused just a little more on the relationship between Neo and Trinity, making it more real and understandable for us. Instead, their love story is something that just happened, no real introduction, no real fleshing out of it, always making it feel slightly less important than it needs to be. I really liked the keymaker, too. The storyline with Agent Smith is actually really cool, and there is so much that can happen from there. Also, the Seraph was incredibly entertaining, definitely a character that I thoroughly enjoy. I need to mention, you know my cape fetish? I have a thing for jackets, too (think my Peter Bishop jacket obsessions). Well, Neo only just has the most badass jackets when he goes into the Matrix. I mean wow. Long, flowy, amazing… yes. I love it. I do. Alright, alright. Moving back to the movie, Reloaded is well worth the watch, continues to tell us more about the story and what is happening since Neo has come to save them all, and is pretty good, though it falls far short of its predecessor, something you cannot but compare it to.

Rapid Review: The Matrix (1999)

“What is real? How do you define ‘real’? If you’re talking about what you can feel, what you can smell, what you can taste and see, then ‘real’ is simply electrical signals interpreted by your brain.”
– Morpheus

SYNOPSIS: During the year 1999, a man named Thomas Anderson (also known as Neo), lives an ordinary life. A software techie by day and a computer hacker by night, he sits alone at home by his monitor, waiting for a sign, a signal – from what or whom he doesn’t know – until one night, a mysterious woman named Trinity seeks him out and introduces him to that faceless character he has been waiting for: Morpheus. A messiah of sorts, Morpheus presents Neo with the truth about his world by shedding light on the dark secrets that have troubled him for so long. – via IMDB

I’ve actually been itching to rewatch these for a while now, and there was no better time to do it than when the trilogy went on sale recently from my favourite online retailer. Whoop! It was time. I talked my fiancé into it (surprisingly easy) and we were off on our adventure. Wow! This movie is great! Totally understandable why it is so loved. It is just plain down super cool. The effects are amazing, especially if you are looking at the release date, the actors all worked together to pull of something different, unique, awesome, and they did it properly. This is one of those instances where Keanu Reeves just nailed it. You all know I am a fan, through the good times and the bad. His portrayal of Neo was just perfect – he didn’t believe too fast, he went along with it in a sense (as Morpheus cleverly likened it to a man accepting what he sees because he believes he is in a dream) and watching how he changed was well worth it. His interactions with Fisburne’s Morpheus and Moss’s Trinity were so good. He grew attached to these people, to their hopes and dreams, he took them on. Let’s not even forget about Hugo Weaving and his wickedly strange and creepy Agent Smith. He fitted that role and worked it fantastically. The Matrix is famous for some of the most revolutionary action sequences of all time (we have all seen that bullet time back bend dodge of Neo and jump up slow motion kick of Trinity in so many places since, and it is the one thing we all remember about the movie years later, even if the other details have faded). There is humour to the film, but it is dark and used sparingly, making it all the more effective. I thoroughly enjoyed the soundtrack (Zombie and Manson??? Heaven I tell you!) and I think it all worked very well. I am a big fan of the story and how it was implemented – slowly but surely you are given all the information, it isn’t all dumped on you at once, though there is still a lot of information to process. The Matrix is shot well, and it is easy to get sucked in and lost in the story that you are given. The Wachowskis created a gem when they gave us this film, and even after all these years it’s a great, innovative watch. Highly recommended for sure!