Customer Reviews

Matrix Reloaded

5 star:		(315)
4 star:		(193)
3 star:		(125)
2 star:		(123)
1 star:		(167)

 

 

Warning - Spoilers ahead . . .

When I first saw the film, well, I didn't like it too much. It seemed to be over-packed with CGI Fight scenes and a storyline that didn't really mean anything. While Zion is under attack, Neo, Trinity, and Morpheus must find the keymaster to unlock the doors to the mainframe and end the war, thus freeing Zion.

This entire storyline, to me, seemed contrived, making the fight scenes seem meeningless, their overzealous and sometimes long running effects just becoming tiresome.

But, then I got it. Weeks after seeing it, it finally clicked.

They symbolism of these films is much deeper than the average action-movie viewer is usually given. Yes -- the entire "The One-Saves the world" storyline is meaningless, and that's the point. While paying too much attention to events within the computer-generated fantasy world of the Matrix, the real world, and Zion, fall into greater danger.

We are introduced to two 'french' characters, programs, which exist simply to experience life. While they are among the long list of villians in this piece, they are also the key to the story. They describe the situation in as much in the film, seeing our heroes as mere puppets in a meaningless plot, which, in fact, they are.

While are main characters are engaged in a meaningless task, struggling to achieve goal after goal in a virtual world, events of the real world are dire, and, just perhaps, if more attention were paid to the real-world events, perhaps the situation would not be so dire.

It is not until Neo discovers that his existance as 'the one' is simply another level of control set in place by the machines, that the entire struggle within the virtual world of the Matrix has no real meaning, only then does the truth come to light, just in time for this second chapter to come to a close.

Think about it, how many people do you know who obsess on politics, or sports, or their favorite television show, or even the Matrix itself? We engage in meaningless struggles to achieve goals that, in the end, really have no meaning but to feed our own ego.

A very profound statement to be made by an action film, that is, if the third and final installment draws this observation out.

As I see it, the value of this second episode is entirely dependent upon the content of the third chapter, but the potential is much greater than most people give it credit for.

Thank you for your time.

Few things can kill a movie series like success.

Just as George Lucas' "Star Wars" films have gotten increasingly unwatchable, the sequel to "The Matrix" already shows that success, money and hype have successfully insulated the Brothers Wachowski from criticism or even the ability for someone around them to question "why is this action sequence so long," "why is there a Mad Max rave scene with Morpheus totally acting out of character," "what is the point of the whole sequence with the Merovingian," or, most importantly, "why would you go two hours of nothing but action and then dump all this philosophy and obscure information on audiences in the final 10 minutes?"

It's especially frustrating because "The Matrix" had built up so much good will towards it that the brothers didn't need to pander to their audiences -- being just as smart as the first film wouldn't have been rejected by the audience, but instead, we get a vastly dumbed-down film that fails to wow, and certainly fails to elicit any enthusiasm for the third installment in the series.

There are worse films out there, but few that have so squandered their potential along the way.

Recommended only for the most diehard "Matrix" fans.

I'll admit nothing beats the feeling of watching the Matrix for the first time, and Reloaded doesn't compare with that feeling, however Matrix Reloaded warrants a repeat viewing and more viewings after that because the subtext of the film is nothing short of amazing. It's deep folks. And the anti-climax is in my opinion almost as shocking as the twenty minute mark into the first. Read into it, and you won't be disapointed. I can't wait until Revolutions.

I personally think that this is the sequel that stumps all sequels, packing a whallop and never letting you go. But this is one movie that fits each person differently. If you await the same "Bullet Time"-style action in the first one, you will be far from disappointed. If you lust for the intensely mind-warping science-fiction, there's even more in store for you. But there are people who think it's too chitty-chatty, too strenuous on their fragile, little attention spans, or too much of an effort for the Whachowskis to make a few extra bucks. Everyone will see at least one miniscule flaw, but other than that, "The Matrix Reloaded" is the biggest innovation in sci-fi action sequels since "T2".

It starts off with Neo dreaming of Trinity's death. This especially worries him now that the two of them are extra close. Things only get worse when it's realized that the machines threatening Zion are moving in closer and will threaten the city's survival if something isn't done in twelve hours (specifically if something isn't done by Neo, him being The One and all). You've probably heard that Agent Smith now has the ability to copy himself from anyone else in the Matrix. I won't tell you how (I hate spoilers as much as the next guy). I will say that it's an especially cool way to bring him back for the sequel, gining him much more power and presenting a seemingly unsurpassable conflict. There's an superbly done car chase thrown in near the end, plus a good look into the city of Zion and a lot of incredible secrets unveiled about the Matrix. I give it a missing star because there were just a few points in the plot I couldn't understand, but that is absolutely it.

I'm going to literally blast into the store the day "Reloaded" is released on DVD, and the ending literally makes me itch to see "Revolutions" in November. So pre-order "Reloaded" and it should tide you over until then. If you were told good things about this sequel, you were not misled. If you were told bad things, you were.

There's a slew of people out there that did not like this movie (I am not one of them, however) and I think I've discovered why: if you're looking for another movie just like the first Matrix, you're going to be disappointed. The Matrix was truly a mind-blowing movie in and of itself...the plotline, the effects, the fighting style. At the time, everything about it was different and completely unique. But you have to consider that that movie was the "introduction" to the world of the Matrix. That very small universe was bound to expand, and that is exectly what happens in Reloaded. Remember, it's not called "The Matrix Rehashed." Reloaded may suffer from a bit of a "middle child" syndrome, in that the concept is no longer new, but it provides no resolution at it's end either. We are introduced to so many new charaters and locales, which can be a little disconcerting at first. But let me break some of the more major points down here:

Zion: Why do people hate these scenes so much? No doubt many had already formed a picture in their mind of what the city would look like, and it probably just didn't fit in with their image. Ultimately, I think their visit to Zion was necessary though. You need to actually see the people that these characters are fighting to save. On the whole though? The Zion scenes take up so little time in the whole of the movie, who cares really?

The fight scenes: The Burly Brawl IS a bit over the top...but that's what it's supposed to be. Admittedly, I was ready for it to be over, but it was still a special effects feat. Everything else is very much in keeping with the first movie.

The car chase: Some people thought it dragged on...I thought it was mezmerizing. The effects were truly extraordinary and the concept of why the freeway is so dangerous to our heroes make it all that much more exciting. What's a true action movie without a big car chase? This one puts all others to shame.

The big "talk": Ah yes, Neo's infamous conversation with the architect of the Matrix. Is it dry? Like a desert. Is it completely confusing the first time through? Completely. Is the rhetoric a bit puffed-up and imposing? Definitely. Is it helpful to watch the DVD with the subtitles on? Absolutely. I've watched it multiple times and I still feel like I'm missing something. I guess you either get it or you don't.

You cannot take a movie like this too seriously. If you do, it suddenly becomes pretentious and annoying. But it IS just a movie, and should be taken as such. Sure, there's some potentially serious philosophical points, namely the power of choice and the power of love. And heck, that makes for some good conversation fodder. But lets get right down to it: this movie is pure eye candy, that happens to have a decent storyline and an attractive, talented cast to boot. As a side note, the second DVD has some worthy extras, especially the documentary about the making of the big car chase, and the MTV Movie Awards snippet is hysterical as well.

Bottom line: If you're looking for more of the first movie, you're setting yourself up for disappointment. Viewing for pure entertaiment? Watch on!

It's almost a rule of thumb that a sequel is not as good as the original. There are of course exceptions to this--although I disagree with the vast majority of reviewers, and do *not* find "Godfather II" to be a superior film to the original, or indeed even *as* good, but that's an article for another time--but in the main, it holds true. Even for tripe like "George of the Jungle" and "Inspector Gadget," the drop-off is usually noticible.

And so it is with "The Matrix Reloaded," alas. There are interesting ideas in this film, and good connective tissue between it and the first movie, but in the main, I have to say it bored me. To say the film moves in fits and starts doesn't begin to state the case. I was actually stunned by the alternation of long, expository scenes where one character (or much more rarely, two) sounds off at length about the nature of reality, the validity of the matrix, and the whichness of what. Characters sit and talk (lecture is probably the more accurate term.) Characters stand and talk. Characters talk talk talk. Then there's hyperkinetic action. Somehow, one hopes that these two extremes would be better melded, but one hopes in vain in this particular film.

These scenes alternate with equally lengthy action sequences, some of which are enjoyable, but others of which were, honestly, for me pretty dull. The fight sequence on the freeway, which got huge amounts of press, was for me stultifyingly boring. After 5 minutes (it goes on for nearly 20!), I was looking at my watch. It wasn't that the stunts were bad; it's just that the plot didn't *move at all* while we're watching this lengthy monument to action sequences. And while I honestly enjoyed another sequence with Neo in the palace of a character called the Merovingian, even *that* one went on too long. Honestly, the whipsawing of the movie between "nothin' but lecturing" and "nothin' but fightin'" got old for me.

I gave this movie 3 stars primarily because, as disappointing as it is, it is still vastly superior to most of the science fiction/action film crud that comes flooding out of Hollywood every year. Compare this film to, say, "Eraser," or "The Punisher," and it rises by at least one star in the rankings.

I'm so sorry to strongly disagree with the bad reviews here. C'mon people, this a science fiction movie, WHAT did you expect? Realism? Go get a Discovery Channel DVD then!! If you ever saw the first episode of The Matrix, you may remember that the movie is about an UNREAL WORLD, where every single natural rule can be broken by the "ONE" (that's Neo). This is a GREAT science fiction movie, for those who didn't like it, well, they obviously didn't like Superman, Batman, Star Wars and Spiderman either, right? So, you people ARE NOT into Science Fiction. I don't like romantic movies, so I keep myself away of those kind, and you can imagine that obviously, my review about a romantic movie will always be useless.

Ok, so i've been patiently sitting through these "reviews" of this movie, and I'm seeing a growing trend: a severe misappreciation of this film. people, for crying out loud, it is the MIDDLE movie. therefore, the expectations should be lowered somewhat. Also, I'm sick of people complaning that the "mystery" is gone from the movie. You want mystery, go watch a MYSTERY movie. it seems pointless to come to an action movie and walk away disappointed because the mystery surrounding the first one is gone! ANd of course, there is the infamous ZION scene. OH NO. the screen is showing an event that probably goes on in 100,000 diffeerent locations across the US on any given night. but funny, i don't hear a general outcry to shut those raves down! If people feel like being hypocrites, they should at least be intelligent about it. Lastly, there seems to be a great deal of complaint directed towards Keanu Reeves. Granted, he blows as an actor. But i must say that i didn't really go into Reloaded looking for Oscar performances. I went for the action, and for the numerous, and usually well thought out plot twists. NOT TO SEE AN OSCAR WINNING PERFORMANCE. Oh, and one last little thing that's annoying me. Some of my more intelligent friends claim that the film tries too hard with its philosophy, and fails miserably. More specifically, they refer to it as "lite" philosophy, claiming that the ideas really arent that revolutionary, or even that interesting. I seem to be constantly explaining to them that such a process is necessary to make the philosophy accessable to the general public. But at the bottom of it all, it's an entertaining action movie with excellent special effects. For those to wrapped up in themselve to appreciate, i have only pity.

What a shame that this second release in the Matrix trilogy couldn't continue to deliver on the manic and original fun of the first. To be honest, I only watched the first hour, I was so bored by the weird semi-religious nonsense and the tiresome delivery of pompous dialog and the repetitious stunts that I never developed enough interest to see the rest of the movie.

Only for the true devotee.

I'd heard that this sequel wasn't as good as the original, so I went into with what I thought were sufficiently lowered expectations. I wasn't expecting anything brilliant.. just some cool special effects, a couple of neat ideas, and some brainless entertainment.

As it turns out, however, "Matrix Reloaded" doesn't even achieve that minimal level of entertainment. If you enjoy endless action sequences that look completely unreal (CGI animation) then you might like this movie, because that's basically all that it is. The characters fly around, stop bullets, jump from car to car on busy freeways, make enigmatic statements about freedom of choice, kick each other, make endless references to the Prophecy, fight some more, blow things up, more enigmatic statements, more CGI animation, more bullets, and then finally it ends.. by which time you've wasted almost 2 and a half hours of your life, waiting for something interesting to happen.

There's no real story here, nothing to care about, nothing even remotely geniune or authentic; it's just a lot of noise.