Matrix Reloaded

Year: 2003

Grade: A

Country: USA

Director: Wachowski

Review

this is what hollywood is good for. one must respect the production that went into making this film (actually this film and the final were made together so just consider them one production). it’s comparable to building a skyscraper – an amazing number of sets (and these are small sets we’re talking about – inside zion, the freeway, the museum sequence, etc.), a staggering amount of digital and physical effects, thousands of people from actors to production designers to computer geeks to sound people to…all collaborating to build this epic film. just as a technical achievement i am in awe. however, that’s not what impressed me the most….all that was just the means to the end. great films are about much more than displaying their technical prowess…citizen kane isn’t just about showing what film can do, it’s about telling a great story using film as a medium. to me, the matrix does this. cornell west referred to the depth this film has and that’s precisely what makes it such a good film – on the one level it’s an amazing technical achievement, on the next level all that technical mastery goes towards a thoroughly enjoying roller coaster ride, and on several levels beyond that the film manages to be a great love story, a great parable of our times, a great philosophical journey, a great testament to the human spirit and on and on. there’s seemingly no end to what can be read into this movie. they could have trimmed a few minutes of fat, but not much more than that…the beginning provided a good ramping up period and the action sequences were so exciting that trimming them, although logical, wouldn’t have made my id happy. besides, with as much cerebral stuff as is presented throughout (especially near the end) we need a counterbalance. it’s cut in a fine enough place for my taste…it’s got me wondering what lies ahead.