The Matrix: Reloaded

December 11, 2004

Rated: R Runtime: 138 min Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

The Matrix is widely regarded as one of the absolute best movies of all time by virtually anyone who has ever carried a PDA. The unique mixture of action, martial arts and sci-fi also made it a huge hit with young males in general. With an almost fanatical following, the sequels have experienced a level of hype and anticipation usually reserved for Star Wars movies.

The Matrix: Reloaded is the first of two planned sequels to be released. If you have not seen the original movie, you really need to prior to seeing Reloaded. Without the backstory, you’ll be quite lost as to what is going on. The sequel really just jumps right in where the previous movie left off. Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss and Laurence Fishburne all return to reprise their roles of Neo, Trinity and Morpheus respectively. There are some new characters, but the movie doesn’t really pause to introduce them. You’ll find out what you need to know about each as the story moves along.

The first movie was quite groundbreaking especially in terms of special effects and action. The sequel has some huge shoes to fill. In terms of action and effects, it may actually succeed. Digital effects and wire work is again used quite effectively, and the Wachowski brothers once again succeeded in putting many sequences on screen that will leave you with your chin on the floor wondering how they did that. The freeway chase scene is one of those you’re going to see used to sell many home theater systems as a demo when the DVD is released.

As expected the effects were spectacular and with Yuen Wo Ping doing the choreography the fight scenes also lived up to expectations. But what about the story? We wont spoil anything, so we can’t say much, but it basically picks up where the original left off. As one of the bad guys remarked, Neo has skills. But the Matrix is fighting back with upgraded agents in the Matrix and hundreds of thousands of sentinels are digging toward Zion. We get to see the city of Zion and meet a lot more humans. This is accompanied by lots of really deep philosophical double speak dialogue.

We give the movie 5 stars because the action sequences and effects absolutely must be seen on the big screen. However, The Matrix: Reloaded does have some slow spots, one of which we like to call “the first third of the movie”. The scenes in Zion almost lost us, and the movie is not quite as good as the original in our opinion for that reason. But once the action starts, this film is one hell of a ride.

The Matrix: Reloaded