*** Official "THE MATRIX RELOADED" Review Thread (1 Viewer)

[Diallo B]

'Twas a great movie.

Those that will get it will get it. Those that don't wont.

Period.

djb

 

[Travis_S]

To keep it short - I loved it.
Even the much debated Zion scenes felt right to me. Although they could have trimmed some of the rave scene.
I loved the direction the story took at the end.
The action was pure visual masturbation, but I loved it anyway.
My complaints are that the Architect talked way too fast and I could vaguely comprehend what he was saying. This is something I hope to catch when I see it again.
I also wanted to see more of Agent Smith, because Hugo Weaving is just awesome.
The ending was a little too abrupt, it almost reminded me of an ending of an episode of "24".
Rating - Well I'm going to have to see this again so I can give a concrete rating but right now it's somewhere between ***1/2 and **** out of ****

 

[MikeRS]

:star: :star: :star: 1/2


I thought it was okay.

The Wachowski's modus operandi is actually quite similar to Lucas in the sense they are mixing low brow (Kung Fu-anime vs Pulp-B-movie serials) with high brow (philosophy, myth). What I really got off on was how the MATRIX RELOADED worked in terms of furthering the mythological aspect (right down to Neo's confrontation with the FATHER) and the philosophy angle (this time, they meditate on free will vs. fate). I really enjoyed that on a fun, pop level. While not deep, it's actually quite interesting how they craft their narrative package.

But the action spectacle and Kung Fu bored me silly. Harry Knowles is dead on about the lack of imagination and failure to branch out with the possibilities the Matrix provides for these confrontations. I specifically detested the Neo fight with Merovingian's goons. The Freeway chase was just okay (Tension wasn't at all time high, which hurts it). Trinity and the Keymaker on the bike, was the best moment of the set-piece for sure.

-There are some bad and awkward moments (Morpheous' speech at Zion is godawful, and believe the hype about the sex-rave). But Zion wasn't as terrible as some have said. In fact, I quite liked Neo's talk with Councillor Hamann.

-Mervingian rocked. I enjoyed every minute with Monica Bellucci (and was that her for a split sec in the Revolution's trailer. In red ).

-Burly Brawl was pretty trippy, but only when Neo grabed the pole. While it really is a complete show-off moment, I do have a plausible reason for why Neo didn't fly off right from the start:

He's curious. He thought this dude was destroyed. Why run away when Smith shows up again mysteriously. This is an important event. And he probably didn't think it was going to be as big a challenge or such a hassle. Once he realized it was a stalemate...... Seeya....I've got other things to take care of. Make's sense to me.

-The real problem people are going to have with this film is the same problem the original film had. Weak emotional involvement with the characters. THE MATRIX suffered from it too, but because it was blessed with the primal awakening/hero's journey of Neo, it was so easy for an audience to relate to. People forget this! Neo was a perfect audience surrogate, and this created an illusion of emotional depth, the original film never had. RELOADED isn't really that far away from THE MATRIX on an emotional level----- They are both not stellar on this level.

Btw, What's so complicated about this film that you need to see it twice to grasp what is going. I can underestand seeing it again to smooth over rough spots, but it's not complicated. Don't believe that hype.

 

[Troy_M]

OK....believe me fans when I say this....you cannot and will not be able to name a movie more awesome in scope and action than this movie.....I loved every minute of this movie....this is a moviegoers dream come true. I was hyped about this movie before I saw it and then multiple negative reviews calmed my personal hype down.This movie blew my lowered and hyped expectations away...and like many people are starting to realize.....you won't fully appreciate this thing until the 3rd matrix comes out. I have never been in a theater where people were clapping and screaming for joy like in this movie....it is a virtual roller coaster ride that is beautifully filmed. I can't get the images out of my head. To all those who are skeptical about this movie....don't listen to the negative reviews...go see it for yourself and witness the awesomeness(if that is a word). My friends and I are going to see this again this weekend...if possible...I would have sat through it 3 times in a row(it is that awesome).The fight scene with the 100 agents is worth the price of admission itself
I could go on and on about how great this movie is....but I will sum it up like this: I totally disagree with some of the reviews that say this movie doesn't have the mystery element like the first one...They crammed so much into this movie that repeat viewings are a must and that makes this movie my most anticipated dvd release ever. You cannot truly rate this movie without seeing Revolutions(I believe that movie is going to create a new appreciation for Reloaded). There are so many mysteries in this movie that I can hardly wait to have them revealed. This is the greatest action movie ever made....and this is not my opinion...it is a fact.....you have never witnessed anything like it.This is now my favorite action/sci-fi movie of all time...by far.

 

[Troy_M]

BTW...MikeRS...I completely agree with your theory on the burly brawl. Neo thought he could take Smith out..but he soon realized this guy(s)wasn't going anywhere...so he took off. Awesome...this movie is just awesome.

 

[Dan Rudolph]

We had a 10pm showing here an d I was there. Camped out all last night to get tickets as well.

In my opinion, this movie really knocked it out of the park. Some people have complained it's all action, no substance. I just don't see where this complaint comes from. At least, it has no less substance than the first movie.

Others have complained about philosophical mumbo-jumbo that doesn't make sense, btu I understood it just fine. I have no formal philosophy backgroubd. My knowledge comes entirely from reading books about pop culture such as The Philosophy of Star Trek. I agree with Ebert that's it's pop philosophy and sounds deeper than it is, but this is hardly a strike against it. Anything else would have required a philosophy background and lost 80% of the audience.

I've also seen complaints that there's too much talkign when there shoudl be special-effects. If you don't like dialog that goes beyond one-liners, I'd suggest 2 Fast 2 Furious.

One valid complaint is the the characters are too cool. Essentially, you can't identify with them easily. However, you can idolize them, and I believe the movie works quite well with this approach. Also, the new character Link is easy to identify with as he's just an ordinary guy brought in to replace Tank, who died because he held out for too much money.

I'm not going to lie and say this is the most meaningful movie ever or that it has the best plot or snappiest dialogue, but these elements are all fairly decent. What sends it over the top is the spectacle. While I won't spoil any particular sequences, I will say all other movies this summer have a lot to live up to. The audience actually cheered for at least six seperate effects.

Now, for the bad. Most of you will be glad to hear it doesn't have anything to do with the movie. THe guy sitting behind me was a huge asshole. Before the movie and all through the trailers I had to listen to him complain abotu a co-worker. The entirety of his complaint seemed to be that the guy was gay. Then he started talking about SARS and spent a few minutes mocking Asians. He was also talking about normal stuff but seemed to be one of those people who can't speak without shouting. Durignt he movie he kept talkign about what he was seeing despite repeated requests from his girlfriend and myself that he shut the hell up. Also, he kept kicking my seat. Any tips for dealing with these people?

 

[John^Lal]

Matrix Reloaded :star: :star: :star: out of 5
thought it was good, though not great. i don't think it's a movie i will buy when it comes out on DVD, unless third one is better.
The Matrix was much more gritty, lifelike, easier to relate to. no real suspense in this one like the first (thankfully to our knowledge of Revolutions)
Scene i disliked the most...the Rave scene after Morpheus speaks in the "TEMPLE"?!?! (i never thought i'd ever see a rave in a temple)
EDIT:well it's now 1pm and i have a bit more time to say what i want to without sleep getting in the way.
I have a feeling that the wachowsky brothers never got themselves a formal education in film.
The neo vs all the smiths fight scene after he spoke to the oracle actually surprised me with a good feeling of delight when he jumped/flew away. the whole "superman" thing didn't excite me all that much when i saw it in the trailers, it actually disappointed me, but when he flew away, i actually felt like "wow, that was a cool scene"
the car chase scene...the only thing i don't like about that was about every car that crased had to at least flip in some way giving it a 'gone in 60 seconds/fast and the furious feeling'.
also, when neo went to save trinity...doing the superman thing, i don't think it made sense that he was killing so many people (see all those cars flying about and buildings being all smased up as he flew? just to save one person...it kinda goes against the rule of sacrafice.
oh yeah, all the star wars esque things in that movie kinda cracked me up too...especially neo being in a coma when the movie ends being like han solo being in that frozen thing.

 

[Lee L]

So everyone got out around 12:35. After we watched the 13 minutes worth of previews and the green WB Studios intro finished the film caught on fire. I mean it had to be planned it was timed perfectly.

blew out the center channel and we missed the next 5-10 minutes of dialog, at least it was relatively easy to deciher what was going on. This movie will make a mighty demo when it is out on DVD that is for sure.

I give this movie :star: :star: :star: :star: :star: out of 5

I had lowered my expectations a little or at least been afraid of what the movie had become after reading the other reviews and after buying the soundtrack in which none of the songs really grabbed me like the first one did but in the end, all my expectations were well exceeded. There is so much to take in in this movie if you just let it come to you that it is amazing.

 

[Chris Rock]

The key to enjoying this movie is an open mind. If you insist on the movie meeting your pre-conceived notions, you will be disappointed. Just reading the complaints above is proof of that. I enjoyed the movie, but 20 minutes into the movie, I had to divorce myself from my expectations, because they were way off.

The scenes inside the Matrix were unlike anything I've ever seen.

I am glad I stayed through the credits to see the first trailer for Matrix Revolutions.

 

[David Lawson]

Ron Epstein hits the nail on the head when he says that The Matrix series is the Star Wars for a new generation. Unfortunately, Reloaded borrows a few too many pages from the Star Wars playbook, including deliberate passages of insufferable dialogue which attempt to make the audience confuse obscurity for depth, and CGI action sequences which serve the same narrative purpose as the Pod Race, none at all. The rave sequence might as well be Endor, while I'm making comparisons.

The main difference is that the Star Wars series requires you to turn off your brain, whereas Reloaded can't decide if it wants it on or off.

Acting on the whole is wooden (not to be confused with subtle); Niobe and Locke, in particular, give uninspired performances to uninspired characters. Link, at least, fills the role of Funny Black Man well, and I'm glad they humanized him (to an extent) in the sequences with his girlfriend/wife. The fight sequences feel uninspired as well, and I'm amused by some of the attempts above to justify their placement in the film. The highway sequence, while a marvel to behold, does not fit. The nearest phone is on the freeway? Please.

I didn't have very high hopes for this sequel due to the pre-release rumors about it expanding on the philosophical concepts, which were rather elementary to begin with, though that didn't stop them from overanalyzing and overexplaining everything to the MTV Generation. I at least expected to be entertained by the visuals and choreography, but even that bored me; Monica Bellucci's gait was the most mesmerizing thing in the film. I don't feel that I need to see it again, either, because I'm quite sure that I didn't miss much, if anything, of substance on the first viewing.

 

[Tino]

A sequel that surpasses the original in almost all areas. The action scenes were nothing short of spectacular and the Matrix mythology was smartly advanced.
A great time at the movies.

Highly recommended! :star::star::star:1/2

 

[Jeff Kleist]

WARNING: No offense to anyone, this is more of a general rant triggered by reviews here and around the net (no spoilers)

Typical. It's just like Buffy is right now. The people who complain that "it's depressing, there's too much talking, it's too dark, blah blah blah blah blah"

Those who thought it was terrible, I agree that the temple was overlong. I got the point 30 seconds in out of 2 minutes, but that's a minor nitpick.

An epic film in 2 parts,AGAIN drawing my Buffy parallels. You're bitching before it's over. THIS IS NOT A STANDALONE FILM. THIS IS PART 1 OF 2! If you can't wrap your head around the philosophical parts, well, I'm sorry to hear that. I believe there's a recommended reading list on TheMatrix.com.

You're all going to be going "oh crap, I guess I was wrong" come November, when you look at the 2 films together.

The film brilliantly ties together the 2 elements of plot and story. Taking the forced small scale of the first and blowing it out to the epic proportions. This film is NOT like the first, which probably also dissapoints many. No cute one liners, it's not supposed to be a "fun" movie.

The next reason why people are going to be dissapointed: For most, The original Matrix was the first time they'd ever seen quality Hong Kong fight choreography. 4 years later, and 25 badly done pretenders to HK action (Equilibrium is the only one that got it right) later, it's old hat. Therefore you go in expecting something you never saw before, and instead you get a gigantic evolution of what you had before. But because it's not brand spanking new to you, you're not looking at how it's pulled off, how the fight is structured instead of what you're not getting.
Hong Kong action is a ballet, and is choreographed like one. Appriciate it like one.

 

[Joseph Young]

The Matrix Reloaded will polarize audiences in the same way that Speilberg's A.I. polarized audiences.

It was not as universally god-awful bad as some people here are saying. It all comes down to personal expectation. The fans who wanted to see the sequel follow a set path and could not accept the notion of the film obstinantly defying their expectations, are coming away feeling disgusted and cheated.

A list of pros and cons, for those who don't like to wade through abstruse elocution. I'm focusing on the cons just to let you know I'm not entirely TEH BIAS.

**Major Spoilers Below**

Pros:
* Genuine performances, not wooden. A lot of compassion between Neo and Trinity. Link's character is great.
* More interested in ideas than in style -- and in this particular element, superior to the original.
* The freeway chase is masterfully executed, and worth the price of admission.
* The Wachowskis have taken their franchise in a new direction, something bound to enrage the fans obsessed with 'badass.' The writing is ponderous, confusing (even for me) at times, but this is a script that is asking the audience to think. This is a film that needs to soak in after several viewings, it's not 'instant gratification cinema.'

Cons:
* Rave sequence unnecessarily long. The sex scene is well directed but interspersed with the slow motion rave, it's a music video.
* The Burly Brawl was for it's own sake -- not the plot's. Should have been trimmed by at least several minutes.
* As much as I like Link and his family, their protracted scenes were unnecessary (unless there's something in Revolutions that hinges on it).
* The council scene was way too "Phantom Menace" for me.
* Bain's possession -- supposedly a pivotal issue in the third film, was barely touched upon. Since this revelation framed the cliffhanger ending, it should have been explored more completely.
* The Architect's speech was not as colloquial as it should have been, given its place near the end of the film. Not necessarily a bad thing, but it grinds the film to a dead halt.
* Overall, this film reminded me of A.I. A shaggy dog story with a lot of unanswered questions and loose ends. Time with tell if they are all tied up or just left to dangle.

I enjoyed it a lot. A lot about this flawed film was a big "f*** you" to fanboys everywhere, and for that I give it major, major props.

:star::star::star: out of 4 stars

~joseph

 

[Hunter P]

This movie rocked. In the first movie, we saw effects that were revolutionary. Here, we don't have the same element of surprise. Still, the effects impress with their style and excution. Why punch a guy when you can do it upside-down and backwards?

A couple of thoughts I didn't see mentioned before:

-They have some really good sunglasses in the Matrix. They don't fly off no matter how many times your face is hit with a fist, foot or pole.

-With all of these personified "programs" and talks of taking out the master computer, I was expecting Tron to come out of one of those doors to help Neo fight.

 

[JasenP]

I have to say I was annoyed that the bits of story only served to fill in the blank spots between expensive fight/chase scenes.

. Then the filmmakers had the nerve to try and save the plot by having the architect spout gobbeldy gook that was supposed to have some sort of deep meaning. BULLOCKS! This was only one example of rushed and lazy storytelling


A very big disappointment...

 

[Randall Z]

Overall, I really enjoyed the movie.

I didn't think it was too slow. I really enjoyed the dialogue (even if I didn't understand all of it), and found the action sequences to be top notch.

I too found the temple scene to be overdone.

Some things that also bothered me were things that I felt were obvious thefts from other movies:


The opening scene was just like the opening scene in the 1st Matrix. Trinity beats up some cops and jumps out a window.

The control tower on Zion looked like the interface in Minority report.

The gate guards looked like the mechanical lifting suits that ripley wore in Aliens.

The scene where the agent is driving the truck and cuts off trinity on the bike looked like something out of T2.




These are minor gripes though. After leaving the theater, I found this film more engrossing than the first and feel that it added to my overall enjoyment of the series.

8.5/10

 

[ErichH]

Way To Go Jeff
I agree - why people expect some magic BJ from this film is beyond me as well.
It's a movie and a great story - let it take you where it will and don't put so much pressure on your self when you go see it.
I always say to my friends that these films cost millions to make and we get to see it for under 10 bucks. It's a great deal.
Later they let us keep a copy for 16.00 bucks. A greater deal!

Eric

 

[Jeff Kleist]

Jasen, normally I'd respond in the discussions thread, but it needs to be said here. WARNING EXTREME SPOILERS:

It was not gobbledy gook, it was very clear

Neo is given a choice: Go back to the Matrix, complete his mission and accept his destiny: to continue the cycle the machines had set up where Zion is created, destroyed and rebuilt as a method of distraction for the rebellious types, or to go back to the Matrix and save the woman he loves.

Neo doesn't like the idea of pre-determination, but he's still fated to bring about the end of Zion. And it would happen again, the SIXTH time, except for Smith. Smith is the unpredicted X-Factor, and by infecting Neo with something he put in the guy's blood after taking his body, he's given neo real-world superpowers

(not based on any spoilers) He wants to kill Neo, but Neo is also his key to taking control of the Machine empire. So he's been playing his pawn closer and closer to his goal, after which (he believes) he'll finish him off.

 

[Lou Sytsma]

The more time passes the more this movie impresses me.

 

[Dave Campbell]

The Marrix Reload is fantastic!

I was a little worried after the hype and bad reviews.
However it seem that was just movie studios doing what movie studios do, and jealous Star War fans

It was a visual feast and it was funny how the audience (including myself) tried hard to keep up with the philosophical dialog.
It answers some questions and provokes more, especially - how are they going to top this?

I was so blown away with the highway scene I kept thinking of this review

Now I'll leave it to the philosophy majors to deconstruct the Matrix