Matrix:Revolutions Review !!WARNING SPOILERS!!

Miscellaneous Topics
#1

For anyone who doesn’t know a “spoiler” is when a review gives away some of the secrets of the piece reviewed. If you don’t want that, stop reading this ! :slight_smile:

Review Begins…

Matrix Revolutions: The Greatest Story Over-Told.

I must admit, I was intrigued when the Wachowski brothers released the animated matrix prequel “The Animatrix.” It clearly reversed roles and cast the humans as the original aggressors against the machine intelligences and the architects of their own destruction. This appealed to my leftist instincts and left me actively wondering why they had made this moral twist.

Alas, the end of the third and final film, Matrix: Revolutions, makes it painfully obvious. Stretched out in cross-position, the finale of this story is Neo goes back into the matrix to face his evil-opposite the now virus-like Agent Smith. And how does he defeat him? By allowing Smith to win, thus, in his death, opening a path for the great machine intelligence into which he is also connected to come into the world and wipe away all the evil.

Just in case we MISSED it, the Mouse character (always a “true believer” in “the one”), on seeing that the war is over and the machines have turned around and are going home announces for all to hear “He’s SAVED us!”

Oh and incase you missed THAT, we get to see Neo’s body carted off on a suspiciously altar-like platform by the great Machine Intelligence and a holy electronic glow surrounding him to let us know he is ascending.

COME ON!!! I’ve only see this story about 3600 times. By reducing their man v. machine epic to yet another twisted Gospel the Warchowski brothers have reduced their story to the most trivally mundane and left me feeling I wasted 6 hours of my life getting to this point :frowning:

And the Animatrix? In case it wasn’t obvious, thats the Original Sin. Can’t be saved without an Original Sin you know.

sigh I really think they just ran out of story material after the first film and so stole the most obvious story they could. They should have quit with the first film which, while far from perfect, at least wasn’t mundane.

In the words of my to-be-preisted wife: “Lame!”

In its defense the movie does have lots of beautiful 3D animation and other digital effects. Its somewhat ironic that the commercial my movie theater showed before the picture featured a stunt-driver because, if this movie has any long term significance, its to signal the death of the stunt man as a profession. It has become so cheap and so easy to do it all on computers that its not worth risking a human for.

Maybe thats the ultimate man v. machine story that the Wachowski brothers missed.

#2

Must… stay… focused… >:(
… must not… read… spoilers… >:(

I’m seeing it tonight. :smiley:

#3

Hi
I saw it last night too, I think for a conclusion to a story it’s alright, it’s good fun for a few hours. The problem is that the first film in particular raised questions, so everyone spent time thinking about them and talking to their mates about it, which wrapped you up in the whole thing. The trouble with an ending is that it’s exactly that, and ending, what do we have to talk about now?, it’s over?, so we are no longer envolved. Hence it not seeming so enthrawling, thats my theory anyway, but i’m no story expert :). I liked it, but not as much as 1 or 2.

Now waiting for RoTK

Endolf

#4

[quote]if this movie has any long term significance, its to signal the death of the stunt man as a profession. It has become so cheap and so easy to do it all on computers that its not worth risking a human for.
[/quote]
You should have stayed for the credits

“…and this year’s oscar for longest credits ever in any movie goes to…Matrix Revolutions!” :slight_smile: (looks like they included everyone)

IIRC stunt-men outnumbered every other type of staff - except carpenters, interestingly enough :).

There were of course a lot of 3D animators, and perhaps they were split between different teams so that it seems there were fewer than there were. I’m afraid I wasn’t paying that much attention, so… :slight_smile:

#5

[quote]

Well that might be YOUR problem. Mine is that I effectively spent all day on an airplane just to land someplace I had already been more times then I can count.

Thats the let down and disappointment, that I could’ve saved the $50 bucks and just gone to church with my wife and heard the same story :frowning:

Unoriginal, unimaginative and a heck of a let down after such a long build up.

#6

$50 ???, find another cinema mate :), I had to pay £6.30 for the last one (about 9 dollars), and considered that expensive for a cinema ticket, £5 ($7.50) is more reasonable

:slight_smile:

And on the problem front, it’s on of many problems I have :slight_smile:

Endolf

#7

I’ll vouch for that :slight_smile:

Kev

#8

[quote]$50 ???, find another cinema mate :), I had to pay £6.30 for the last one (about 9 dollars), and considered that expensive for a cinema ticket, £5 ($7.50) is more reasonable
[/quote]
Damn close to $15.00 a ticket for prime time in the US now (but the theatres ARE excellent) x2 (Reloaded/Revolutions) + $20.00 for the Animatrix DVD == $50

#9

In the middle of the movie I was trying to recall some messiah/prophet blind… :smiley:

Now I WANT to see a Dragon Ball Z movie.
It’s possible!! ;D

Rafael

#10
  • FAN BOY ALERT ON *

I loved it. Ok, so it’s not the most original story out there. I’m fine with that. We already concluded that Neo was god like in the first movie. So it should end the way it did does not suprise me in the least. I think that the Wachowski brothers were able to tell it in a manner that was effective and fun.

I really feel that Reloaded and Revolutions fell under the weight of the first movie where you were discovering this world along with Neo. You were a participant in the story. The last 2 movies had you watching from the sidelines, cheering the good guys on.

All in all, I think that the W Bros gave us another trillogy to look at over and over again for years to come.

Now! Bring on ROTK!

-ChrisM

BTW, Notice that my pic over there has me against a circuit board with an otherworldly glow as well. Bits bow down before me!

#11

I loved it!

But I really don’t see what Reloaded has to do with Revolutions. The only thing they had in common was the growing power/numbers of Smith, and perhaps that the Megn… Mov^H^Hev… Frenchman was in both… And they both had “minor” parts in this one.
A great number of subplots (and even major plots, such as the iterative nature of the matrix) from Reloaded was just ignored for Revolutions.

But as I said, I still loved it. And I loved Reloaded as well. They’re not on par with the original Matrix, but they’re definitly great movies.

Oh, and there was boobies. =D

#12

[quote]Oh, and there was boobies. =D
[/quote]
The whole cinema cheered when those first came on, i’m assuming your talking about the french blokes lady friend? :slight_smile:

Endolf

#13

Yes.

pure art

#14

Yeah, thats how bored I was… I found myself staring at them trying to figure out how much they had to “push her up” to get that shot.

And I’m sorry Chris, but if I wanted to see the passion, I’d get a GOOD passion-play out, like Last Temptation or even J C Superstar.

Reducing the whole thing to a passion play IMO just showed an amazing void of creative story thought.

The original Matrix was interesting because it went to new places. Revolutions was almost like the magician showing you the wires and saying “See! Fooled You! Its not magic at all, just the same old everyday stuff.”

Frankly, I think Revolutions detracted from and to some degree ruined The Matrix.

Jeff

#15

I have to admit though, it did leave me with one thought I find highly amusing.

I wonder how many fan boy kiddies out there who are gonna rave about this film cause they think they are suppsoed to will realize that the Wachowski brothers tricked them into doing something they absolutely refused to do for their parents…

… go to church!

#16

… the difference being that the church claims that their story is the truth, and even make some rather nasty threats. :wink:

It’s a good story and all (jebus/neo/superman), I just don’t like how christians have chosen to tell it.

But let’s not turn this into a religious flamewar.
drops thread, calls System.gc()

#17

Well… I’m jewish. My wife is on the path to be a VERY liberal episcopal priest. So my perspective is at least UNUSUAL on all this.

As I said somewhere else, I have no intention of getting into a debate on the truth or fiction of the traditional christain belief system. But the fact that the great revelation of the story of The Matrix turns out to be a by-the-numbers telling of the passion just annoys me as hackneyd and imagination-less story telling.

#18

I kinda like that bit, to be honest.

It starts out new and facinating, then it ties back into one of the greatest myths (or truths if you prefer) ever… it gets very epic, if slightly predictable.

They probably could’ve been a tad more subtle, though.

#19

Jeff - Enjoy the beauty of a sunrise for the beauty of a sunrise, not for the light refracting off the atmosphere in a cyclical pattern that happens over and over and over again :slight_smile:

I KNOW what the story is. Fine. They wrapped it up with superhero powers and technobabble. Fantastic!

I loved it :slight_smile:

-Chris

#20

Hi
Thats the best i’ve heard it put for aaaaages :slight_smile:

Endolf