Good, but not THAT good

Rating: 8/10 (24 September 1999)

I was very surprised to see this film in the top 30 films of all time. Not least for the fact that it borrows from nearly every other sci-fi film ever made such as the imagery of Ridley Scott's Blade Runner and (vaguely) the plot of James Cameron's The Terminator, which are frankly, better films. The fascinating plot premise is wasted to a certain degree by the mind boggling plot and a never ending stream of psycho-babble that shows every sign of a film cramming in far too many ideas than it can handle. And then there's the lousy endingÂ… However for all these flaws The Matrix (particularly the last half hour) is very entertaining, getting by on that old trick: showmanship. It's absolutely stunning! SFX, from the mirror spreading on Neo's face, to the `flo-mo' camera shots, to that helicopter crash, are superb and are by far the most impressive of 1999's blockbusters. The Wachowski brothers direct with pace and flare and there are some very funny moments throughout (`Wooah'). Performances too, are good. Fishburne and newcomer, Moss (what a find!) shine and even Reeves is not half as wooden as usual. I was slightly disappointed, mainly due to script and after reading all the great reviews, perhaps I had set my hopes a little high. But The Matrix is by far the best summer SFX blockbuster this year. 8/10