Hey folks, Harry here with the first two MATRIX REVOLUTIONS film reviews... This time, unfortunately... that JohnnyComeLately NEAL CUMPSTON, just couldn't get it together this time. But never fear... we have two that did crack the MATRIX and got out with their opinions. Don't worry, they don't spoil it for us, and they're both very very positive... so put on your happy face and countdown these last few moments till you're either shaking your head in aggravation or trembling with elation. Here's Ack...
Harry
Just got back from a screening in New York City of Matrix Revolutions.
Don't want to give away anything...... but-
First off I loved the first and was disappointed by the second. I found Reloaded confusing and boring. The big chase scene at the end was good, but it looked like computer animation. I didn't like how at the end of the first one Neo had the ability to stop bullets and fight in slow motion.... so what do the baddies do in the second one..... they shoot at him and try to beat him with kung fu.
This one starts off exactly where the second ends. It lags for the first fifteen minutes or so. It is a continuation of the second- a lot of boring talk about confusing plot points. Then it goes crazy right until the end. All of the characters are great. The plot great. Effects are stunning. There is a big fight in the middle that, in my opinion is the best ever seen on screen.
They should have taken Reloaded, cut it down to twenty minutes and just added this to the beginning of this film.
See this movie- It's f-ing great!
ACK
Ok, and now we have this...
Harry--
Thanks to a friend within the large corporate behemoth known as TimeWarner, I was able to a screening of “Matrix Revolutions” last night in New York City.
So that you know where I stand in terms of my opinions on the first two films in the trilogy, let me say that I really liked the original film which seemed fresh and original when it first arrived on the scene. “Matrix Reloaded,” while entertaining, seemed bloated and over-hyped and left me feeling sort of blasé about sitting through a third chapter.
If “The Matrix” was the brain of the series and “Matrix Reloaded” the fat that should have (in hindsight) been trimmed from the trilogy, then “Matrix Revolutions” is pure lean and mean muscle that serves up an astounding finale. It’s a sci-fi lover’s wet dream.
This movie delivers on the promise of the original film in a way “Matrix Reloaded” didn’t. The Wachowskis have thrown everything they have at the screen and, wouldn’t you know, it works. The film has enormous action sequences chock-full of “Holy Shit!” moments that make the freeway chase in the second film seem tiny and insignificant in comparison, yet even with these bigger set pieces the movie manages (rather surprisingly) to elevate the human drama in a way most FX-driven movies seem unable to do.
There’s a real sense that something important is at stake here and the battle between good and evil/man and machine reaches an epic scale that other genre filmmakers will be hard-pressed to top – some of the imagery the artists involved have conjured up is truly astounding. But it’s not just about state-of-the-art effects. Characters are forever changed. Lives are lost, including that of a major player. Humanity is on the verge of extinction. The film wears its bloody heart on its sleeve, making this the most human “Matrix” of them all.
The film jumps right into its story without a recap of the previous chapter. We’re right where we were when we left off at the end of “Reloaded” and the Wachowski brothers assume you’re up to speed on the story details. Right away things are noticeably better than “Reloaded.” The pacing is better than in the last film. The performances are less stiff than before and the story more engaging. The transition to a new actress in the role of the Oracle is seamless and she’s terrific. Jada Pinkett Smith gets a chance to shine with a bigger, more important role than last time. The music roars in easily the best score of the three films. The battle in Zion is incredible and complex and full of human struggle. An epic fight in the skies during the finale plays like the ultimate “Superman” movie, backed by full orchestra and choir.
Is it big? Is it over-the-top? Fuck, yeah! What else do you expect? It earns its place among other visionary sci-fi films of recent decades and you can expect big boxoffice and huge DVD sales to follow.
Yeah, some of the dialogue is grandiose and borderline cheesy. But the pretentious atmosphere that nearly sunk “Reloaded” for me is gone and the tone is more in sync with that of the original.
A side note: film snobs will predictably turn up their noses and complain that they haven’t been served a plate of delicate character moments we all enjoy in other smaller, character-driven films (I say this knowing a few in attendance felt the action overwhelmed the characters). I would disagree and also say they’re missing the point. This is a postmodern take on the classic struggle between good and evil told with kick-ass comic book artistry and a style uniquely its own. It exists in and of itself and, if you accept the rules and conventions the filmmakers have laid out within the universe they’ve created, you will be rewarded. It doesn’t hurt if you go into it expecting to see a big-budget commercial action film.
How does it end? Obviously I won’t tell, except to say that it’s satisfying, not entirely as expected, and a few cynics in the crowd might find reason to smirk. But overall this is a far better film than the chapter that preceded it and it delivers a rousing finale to a pretty amazing trilogy. Can't wait to see it again.
Thanks,
CarpalTunnelDude
Ok, so... are these 'agents' of the Matrix infecting our Zion free world with their rhetoric about the coolest and the best... or is MATRIX REVOLUTIONS really an asskicking monstrosity of cosmic levels? Well, personally... I'm hoping it is an asskicking monstrosity of cosmic levels. I'd really get a kick out that. BTW - is this year, the year of Blind Heroes? DAREDEVIL, ONCE UPON A TIME IN MEXICO and MATRIX REVOLUTIONS... and of course with what Peter did... RETURN OF THE KING.... I've said too much. Anyway, that's all for now...
But Wait... There's More.... Beware... this time there are spoilers... lots of them...
It has been determined that the following review is complete and total BULLSHIT!
Howdy Harry and company, I managed to squeeze into a sneak peek of The Matrix Revolutions here in Chicago. We weren't told going in what the movie was, only that it was a studio film for release before the years end.
I loved the Matrix and hated Reloaded. I figured that since Reloaded and Revolutions were shot together the final chapter would be more like its brother than its father. The Watchowski's have knocked one out of the park, and not even Reloaded sitting in the stands knocking the ball away can keep this trilogy from being remembered as the masterpiece Revolutions has insured it will be.
A quick synopsis to get the ball rolling:
Agent Smith is steadily spreading through the Matrix, absorbing humans and ruining the machine's power supply in the process. Neo is making back door deals with the machines, while Trinity and Morpheus are contacting the Oracle, and the rest of Zion is preparing for the inevitable onslaught of sentinels only 12 hours away. Before Neo faces Smith he has to find his way through the buffer world, where the code is translated and controlled into the Matrix, which only one man has access to: The Keymaker. The Keymaker of course bit it in Reloaded so the Oracle sends Trinity, Seraph, and Morpheus to crash the Merovingian's party where they intend to use Persephone to persuade the Merovingian to set Neo free. Recall the kiss Neo gave Persephone in Reloaded, it comes into play here.
All of the above is setup within the first 20 minutes of the movie, what happens in each instance and what results I will not ruin here. All I feel the need to say regarding plot is that what you thought you knew about the matrix, even given what the Architect and Oracle revealed: its wrong. Simply, totally, wrong, and you'll be smiling every time the brothers Wachowski pull open another curtain. The answer to "What is the Matrix?" is finally revealed here. A Matrix inside of a Matrix? Luckily for us the Wachowski's are better than that.
I found it interesting that the action was hyped so much for Reloaded, but little was revealed or publicized about Revolutions' sequences. Revolutions is the movie Reloaded should have been. The passion is back, the intensity of the action sequences, even exceeds the first Matrix. The Burly Brawl is useless compared to the final Neo vs Smith fight. They fight on the ground, in the trenches, in the skies, I can still feel the impacts: little impresses me in movies these days, expect this sequence to be ripped off and cannibalized for the next decade.
I was looking forward to the destruction of Zion, those raving Zionites had it coming and I was rooting for those slippery Sentinels going in. That changed fairly quickly, I felt for Zion, they actually feel like real people this time around (especially ironic given what is revealed 3/4ths the way through) and my heart was racing as the sentinels ripped Zion apart bit by bit. Incredible sequence (intercut through most of the last half) that builds and builds, completely relentless.
The movie doesn't give you a chance to breath, I
couldn't be happier that the Wachowski's brought this
train back online, they couldn't have ended this
trilogy any better. After Reloaded I figured the
Matrix would live on, while the trilogy would be
forgotten, Revolutions secured this trilogy's place in
film history.
That's it for now...
