Great Sci-Fi World; Dull Characters

Rating: Null/10 (18 January 2001)

Grade: B+
The Matrix presents one of the most complex and intriguing science fiction worlds to hit the screen. Part nightmarish nuclear wasteland, part computer generated fantasy land, the premise generates endless questions and speculation. This good film never becomes great, because it lacks the essentials that any genre of film needs to succeed. We don't care about these characters and the resolution of the story is so flimsy and full of holes, it betrays the groundwork laid in the first half of the film.
SPOILER Warning: Since The Matrix involves revelations and surprises from the very beginning, most of the discussion that follows is a spoiler. If you have not seen the movie yet, do not read further.
There is a lot to commend in this movie. The special effects are excellent, both the virtual reality scenes, which have people effortlessly doing stunts that would wear Arnold Schwarzenegger out; and the `real-world,' the hideous robots and nuclear wasteland.

While most movies insult your intelligence, this one really makes you work. The best part of seeing the film is spending the first 30 minutes trying to guess what is happening and what the whole thing is about. It bombards you with bizarre scenes that only make sense when you get the full story 30 minutes later.
Also, this is one of the few movies to make good use of computer technology as a subject. Usually Hollywood tries to`dummy down' the technology to a level where non-computer literate viewers will follow it. Tron, You Have Mail and the very ridiculous `cutting edge' program in Disclosure, where you get to see a computer image of yourself retrieving a file folder from a cabinet, are examples.
Many people have pointed out that The Matrix is not original; it borrows elements from other movies and books (Dark City and Tron to name two, I also saw a lot of similarity to The Terminator, which involved an expected hero who could dismantle the evil empire's `matrix'). This is no problem, as long as the film put these elements together in a way that was worth watching.
After setting up a brilliant premise, the film falls into an unimaginative, flat story line. SPOILERS FOLLOW- The rebels must now destroy the matrix and set mankind free. It is obvious that the writers of this film didn't think that far ahead. How `The One' can defeat the matrix is a question so completely ignored that it screams at us for the rest of the movie. It seems that once Neo believes he is The One, his mere presence will cause the matrix to melt away. If this is an intellectual drop from the earlier level of the film, the way in which Neo finds out he is the one is a plunge to rock bottom. Being kissed by a fellow cyber warrior (Carrie-Anne Moss)? Is this Snow White or something?
The second half of the film is full of hanging questions that undermine the story:

We never believe that mankind will be better off by waking up from the happy delusion of the matrix and realizing they are in plastic bubbles in a nuclear wasteland. The movie seems to assume that freedom is good and captivity is bad, even if freedom is a living hell.

It is not clear why these guys enter the matrix so often. They seem to do it only because it makes for better action scenes. You would think they would defeat this thing in the `real' world, the nuclear wasteland where the actual matrix computer is.

Instead of an ending, they have given us a clear springboard for a sequel. We are still in the matrix when this thing ends, so what is the rebel goal?

The net effect of these unanswered questions, and the acting and scripting, is that I didn't much care about the characters. First, I didn't much like Neo; Second, I still didn't know what he was supposed to be as `The One'; and third, I wasn't sure that unplugging the matrix would be a good idea. The Matrix was such an intelligent and well-crafted film that I felt like I should have enjoyed it more. The visuals and premise were so impressive that I was still thinking about them days later. But characters and acting are essential to any film, no matter how good the rest of the stuff is.