Part of what promises to be an amazing story...

Rating: 10/10 (18 April 1999)

For pure entertainment value and a film that left me wanting more, this is it! Be warned that I'm not going to examine The Matrix on a metaphysical level, or compare it directly to anything as some people have done. I went in with no preconceptions or expectations, and obviously walked out more satisfied than many who did.
I'll discuss the plot line of the Matrix down further, but for now I will say the only problem I had with any character was Reeves' "whoa". This, combined with his accent, can't help but remind you a little of two guys in bright clothing having excellent adventures in a phone booth.
Reeves plays very well the hacker suddenly exposed to the truth, adapting to his environment with the ease of those enamored of information technology. He hungers for knowledge, seeks the truth, and wants answers to his questions. He doesn't receive all the answers, but he knows his battle with the AI society of the Matrix will bring him closer.
Fishburne is great as the enigmatic Morpheus. At first complex, his simple belief that Neo is The One pushes him on in his quest, and we see his simple dedication to humanity evident in the pains he goes through to protect Zion.
Carrie Anne Moss is excellent as Trinity. (I have to say that "Dodge this" was one of the cooler moments for me in the film - yeah shallow I know). She does the kick a** female with a confident, yet fragile femininity that she only exposes in humanity's hour of need.
Hugo Weaving. What can you say? As a proud Aussie, I am completely satisfied with his performance as the spine-chilling Agent Smith. A lot of people I talked to were really annoyed by his accent, but I felt that it suited an AI program attempting to fit into a human society and develop human traits. His icy, blank faced portrayal of Agent Smith (with Agent Jones and Agent Brown), really carried the uncaring authority figure of the Matrix into the human world.
Weaving, along with other Australian/New Zealand actors (Matt Doran as "Mouse", Belinda McClory as "Switch", and Julian Arahanga as "Apo", along with the agents and a host of extras) gave good background to the other characters, even though their roles were short lived. Hopefully we will see a lot more local talent in upcoming features (Star Wars Episode II, Mission Impossible II).
Joe Pantoliano makes a great Cypher - the disillusioned follower of Morpheus.
The parts of Tank and Dozer were ably played by Marcus Chong and Ray Anthony Parker, as the only two "real humans" we saw in the whole film. You see in Tank and Dozer a happier, more positive attitude, having been born in the human outpost of Zion, and believing implicitly with Morpheus that Neo is The One.
The special effects strength were nothing short of unique, with the combination of Hong Kong wire cradles combined with unreal, "computer generated" settings and wardrobe, and slow-mo "moment in time" multi-camera techniques. That is all I have to say on the matter, because they have to be seen to be believed.
I have a problem with people who knocked the film. Most of their reasoning probably stems from the fact that they are addicted to their own flavour of sci-fi (and there is NOTHING wrong with that), or expect high philosophy every time they walk into a cinema. I accept that there were parts that they didn't like, but I feel that rather than trying an all-encompassing tale told from start to finish, the Wachowski Brothers were showing us a small, but important part of the world of the Matrix.
Everyone who has watched a sci-fi feature film knows that in no real way can the director(s) give us the entire history of their unique world in 3 hours or less. The Star Trek movies, for instance, have whole series' to back them up before they hit the big screen. Conversely, "Dark City" stood alone, and people who didn't like it often said that "not enough was explained" (as they did with the Matrix), or compared it to other, better established series/films. Was everyone disappointed with "Star Wars" when it was first released? NO! They went in, saw a good film with simple plot ideas and characters, got their money's worth and walked out. I think somewhere along the line we just got too fussy, and we forget that it's a movie - entertainment for a couple of hours.
I had no preconceptions that this movie would give me the history or end of the world. I say honestly went in to the cinema looking for a story on "lotsa guns and kicking heads", not to mention the unique special effects. I was pleasantly surprised.
The concept of the Matrix running our lives was an important part of the film. I accepted this, but did NOT wait for some quasi-religious justification to develop from this. It was simply a fact taken into account by Morpheus and his disciples when combating the Matrix in their search for "The One". It was no character's task to analyse this on a metaphysical level - their task was to begin destruction of the Matrix, and this was all that the Directing and Editing crew could fit into this movie time frame.
There is room for sequels here, (like others, I want to see Zion) and I hope that it will again be the Wachowski brothers at the helm, to continue their vision in the style to which we have become accustomed. The Matrix gets 10/10.