Rating: 8/10
Review date: May 15, 2003
A much anticipated sequel to the 1999 box office hit (The Matrix), which took the world by storm partly due to the deep philosophical content with a bunch of ultra-cool kung-fu fighting and rip-roaring action scenes is finally here.
The story picks up where Neo (having discovered his true abilities and expanded upon them) continues to battle the machines alongside Morpheus and Trinity to free the human race from enslavement. Meanwhile the machines have discovered the location of Zion (the human�s last remaining city) and are drilling their way into it. Lots of philosophy and ass-kicking actions follows�
The first thing that came out of my mouth when the credits begin to roll is �WOW!� This movie is simply amazing in everything that it has to offer. The actions are not as revolutionary as the original Matrix which introduced the �bullet time� effect but I certainly love the slow motion shots and the fighting scenes.
The highway car chase scene that is shown in the trailer is long and spectacular (just the way I hope it would be) with special effects thrown into the foray that really satisfy my appetite.
Another excellent scene is the �Burly Brawl� fight that had been previewed in the trailer where Neo is fighting a lot (and I literally mean a lot) of Agent Smiths. These two scenes simply blow me away even though they might not be the best car chase and fighting scenes ever filmed, however what matters is the aesthetical and audio enjoyment (the soundtrack is also quite nice with the right tune in certain scenes) that the audience would surely experience and appreciate at the same time.
There is one thing that bugs me slightly though, some new characters were introduced this time around and they all suffer from one problem, just like the recently released X-Men 2. They were not given enough screen time to perform or even gain enough sympathy from the audience but I digress by hoping that more will be revealed in the third movie, Matrix Revolutions. I certainly would have loved to see more of Niobe kicking ass and I was kind of disappointed that the Twins were not given more scenes to perform in.
However, I can let this issue rest because supposedly they will play a bigger role in Revolutions. The Wachowski brothers also released a multi-platform game called �Enter the Matrix� which apparently has Niobe and Ghost as the lead characters. This game also includes almost an hour of live action footage that will expand more on the story to make sure that fans will understand more of the events that transpired in Reloaded from Niobe and Ghost�s point of view.
Lambert Wilson as the Merovingian is pretty good with his tinge of French accent and bourgeoisie look; I dig his argument very much as well but then I won�t spoil anything important here.
The lovely Monica Bellucci who stars as Persephone (Merovingian�s wife) was also solid in her acting although I believe that her role is somehow too minimized.
Randall Duk Kim as the Keymaker looks kind of �cute and funny� as someone who holds the key to the heart of the Matrix.
A new operator called Link (Harold Perrineau Jr.) was also introduced in the Nebuchadnezzar since Tank and Dozer were killed by Cypher in the original movie. He is equipped with one liners guaranteed to crack a few cheap laughs from the audience; I will be looking forward to see more of him in the future.
Perhaps the main problem with the character development is that the running time should have been extended to at least 3 hours thus providing ample time to fill the characters with some additional backgrounds. But then that�s just me and I do appreciate the Wachowski brothers� point of view in which they must have their own special reasons on deciding that the movie shouldn�t be any longer than what it is.
Sadly to say, not a lot of character development is seen in the existing characters such as Neo and Morpheus. Morpheus is still a firm believer in the prophecy while Neo is still looking for a purpose although their acting is as solid as it was in the first movie.
The Matrix Reloaded is a worthy follow-up to its predecessor with bigger, badder and meaner enemies to prevent Neo from saving the human race. Couple that with a bowl of �philosophical soup� splattered all over the movie alongside the famous mind-blowing and heart-stopping action scenes that led to the success of the original Matrix to find out what Reloaded is all about. Interested so far? You damned well be!
But then, it�s certainly too bad that Reloaded ends with a cliffhanger but don�t feel bad, stick around after the credits to be entertained to a short trailer for Matrix Revolutions which will be released on November 5th.
Ultimately, Matrix Reloaded is just the center piece of the Matrix trilogy which improved on the original in all the aspects so don�t judge it too hard if you don�t like it somehow (although I seriously doubt anyone would actually dislike it). Always remember that you can always try to digest the movie�s philosophy, I can guarantee that it will keep you busy while waiting for Revolutions if you are the impatient type (like me).
*Trivia*
For those who had watched the Animatrix, you will certainly appreciate the reference to �A Kid�s Story� and �The Final Flight of the Osiris�.
The 1.4-mile, three-lane loop highway was built specifically for the chase scene on the decommissioned Alameda Point Navy Base. The chase sequence took almost three months to shoot and the highway itself destroyed after filming.
The role of "Seraph" was originally written specifically for Jet Li. When Li declined, the role was then changed to a female and offered to Michelle Yeoh, who turned it down due to scheduling conflicts.
The special effects cost $100 million U.S.
The Burly Brawl fighting sequence took 27 days to shoot.
Martial arts training for the lead actors started in November 2000 and lasted 8 months.
General Motors donated 300 cars for use in the production of the movie. All 300 were wrecked by the end.
Memorable quote: �We can never see past a choice we don�t understand.�
-Gloria Foster as the Oracle-
(c) Martin Taidy 2003