The Matrix Reloaded

⭐ 7.0/10

(Originally written by Tim)

I wanted to rewatch the sequels before Resurrections, and luckily I had a plane ride to burn. I remember this movie being really bad, and the first 40 minutes or so is incredibly boring. What in the world made the Wachowskis think that after making one of the best movies of all time that the beginning of the sequel should focus on the politics of Zion, the last human city? It is so bizarre, like they completely don't understand what makes the first movie good? I don't know, they are the geniuses and not me, but my goodness what were they thinking.

That being said, the second half of the movie is a thrill ride. It becomes non-stop action with incredible set piece one after another, and some truly artistic shots in the middle of these varied fight scenes. Its really impressive, even if the goal behind the fighting is unclear. Again, the point of the first Matrix is not all the cool fighting, that's just a cherry on top of a perfect idea. This movie doesn't care about any of that, and for a couple moments it made me not care either.

It ends on a cliffhanger, and I started the next one and doubt I will finish it, because that one is truly bad. The standout scene for me is the first chat with the Oracle, since that is the real core of these movies. It gets a bit heavy handed with talk around free will and choices, to the point where it feels like the same thing is repeated over and over again, but at least they tried for a bit. Everything with the architect is unintelligble, and what should be climatic reveals become so confusing and hard to understand its silly. Seriously, find the architect monologue online, its like me in 4th grade using a thesaurus to replace every word in my sentences with one that sounds smarter.

I remember during my first watching my favourite fight was the multi-Smith fight, but it does not hold up well at all, looks like a video game. The fight scene on the highway, on the other hand, is an all timer, and easily the best part of this movie. Morpheus duel-wielding a gun and a samurai sword is the peak.