Year of Release: 2003
Director: Lana Wachowski, Lilly Wachowski
Starring: Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Laurence Fishburne, Hugo Weaving, Harold Perrineau, Lambert Wilson, Monica Belluci, Gloria Foster, Jade Pinkett Smith, Collin Chou, Harry Lennix, Anthony Zerbe, Helmut Bakaitis, Gina Torres, Nona Gaye, Essie Davis
Genre: Action, Sci-Fi
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 5
Watch it on Amazon
Synopsis and Review:
The immense success of "The Matrix", obviously generated curiosity about the following project for the Wachowski siblings. They decided to tackle direct sequels to the project that placed them on the map. The film takes place after the occurrences of the first installment, with Neo, Trinity and Morpheus, tracking and liberating more people from the machine slavery, and bringing them to Zion. They're also on a quest to understand how Neo can defeat the ruling of the machine world, and finally liberate the human race. Their quest leads them to the Oracle, who informs them that they have to resort to another dubious character, by the name of the Merovingian, who holds in his power someone who can make their quest successful. In this odyssey, they come across a mighty opponent, in the shape of Agent Smith, seemingly destroyed by Neo in the previous installment, but who manages to return, and multiply himself easily. His intent is solely to thwart Neo's plans and overcome him at any cost.
What made "The Matrix" such a fresh take on the sci-fi genre, was its interesting mix of styles and sources, making it a film that had the right amount of visual style, humor and ultimately a universe of its own. There was also a deft usage of the right amount of visual effects that did not topple the architecture and essence of the storytelling. This balance, was indeed lost in the sequels, which were shot back to back. The directors had a vast amount of resources at hand, and made the narrative more centered on gratuitously showcasing the pyrotechnics that visual effects can provide, as opposed to making the narrative move further and in richer directions. The story does try to define the canvas in which these characters operate, but it's almost a footnote, in an otherwise crammed film, filled with artificially looking set pieces, some of which showcase some very poorly rendered 3D work. It's a sad waste of a lot of the talent involved in this vast production, but the film does manage to showcase a bit more of a promising (even if it's bleak) universe, and it features some impressive stunt work, which even if it doesn't qualify as good storytelling, is nonetheless a testament to the vision and talent of the professionals who orchestrated some of the sequences. A disappointing effort from a very interesting team of directors.
What made "The Matrix" such a fresh take on the sci-fi genre, was its interesting mix of styles and sources, making it a film that had the right amount of visual style, humor and ultimately a universe of its own. There was also a deft usage of the right amount of visual effects that did not topple the architecture and essence of the storytelling. This balance, was indeed lost in the sequels, which were shot back to back. The directors had a vast amount of resources at hand, and made the narrative more centered on gratuitously showcasing the pyrotechnics that visual effects can provide, as opposed to making the narrative move further and in richer directions. The story does try to define the canvas in which these characters operate, but it's almost a footnote, in an otherwise crammed film, filled with artificially looking set pieces, some of which showcase some very poorly rendered 3D work. It's a sad waste of a lot of the talent involved in this vast production, but the film does manage to showcase a bit more of a promising (even if it's bleak) universe, and it features some impressive stunt work, which even if it doesn't qualify as good storytelling, is nonetheless a testament to the vision and talent of the professionals who orchestrated some of the sequences. A disappointing effort from a very interesting team of directors.
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