Movie Review by Nigel A. Messenger
Starring: Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving
Directors: Andy Wachowski, Larry Wachowski
The original MATRIX released in 1999 wasn’t just a sci-fi classic, it was a movie landmark. The martial arts wire fighting scenes eventually became the norm for films from other genres and the CGI slow-mo bullet dodging has been copied again and again. For a long time films using those techniques were referred to as using Matrix style effects.
It goes without saying that any further MATRIX movies would have to be perfect in their use of these type of action sequences. No faults at all – a sequel to THE MATRIX must outdo its imitators. And it does – by a mile! THE MATRIX RELOADED is everything my expectations demanded, its special effects, its action sequences and its concepts. Everything is there, Neo (Keanu Reeves), is fully aware of his powers, he is unquestionably ‘the one’, he can see THE MATRIX for what it is and can fully utilise the extremes that this special status allows him, flying through the air like Superman, stopping sprays of machine gun rounds mid-air and fighting hordes of Agent Smiths single handed.
But THE MATRIX RELOADED isn’t just Neo. Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss), Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) and other new characters all play their respective roles with equal cool and style.
I’m not even going to try to tell you the storyline here for fear of giving anything away. This movie masterpiece should be enjoyed from scratch, in its raw form without reviewers plot spoilers or critics who can’t suspend their disbelief pulling it apart.
I will tell you this, Zion’s existence is in danger, all viewers should sit all the way through the end credits so they can see the trailer for THE MATRIX REVOLUTIONS due to be released in November 2003 and there is a huge cliffhanger at the end of the movie so in effect it’s like watching half a film – you have to see the rest in THE MATRIX REVOLUTIONS.
