Revolutionarily awesome.

Rating: 10/10 (16 September 2005)

I still remember the first time I saw The Matrix. It was a Thursday afternoon (the day it came out) and my family went to see a movie. I didn't particularly want to see The Matrix but I was fine with it. And when I came out I was absolutely blown away. The obvious feature is the action, which was inspired by Chinese Kung Fu movies, with a bit of a tweak. The other obvious feature is its "bullet time". It was the first movie to use it and immediately influenced other movies. But what is truly brilliant about this movie is the concept. It takes an old, cheesy idea like "the chosen one," and makes it cool. And once you've seen it a few times, over a few years, you start to understand the philosophy and hidden meanings. From things as simple as "Neo" being an anagram of "one" to larger concepts like imprisonment and even racism (machines to humans).
Overall, The Matrix is a revolutionary, action packed, sci-fi, fun, philosophical, brilliant movie with a hint of comedy. It is well sequenced, well acted, and brilliantly scripted. Whether you like movies for deep stories and meanings, or you just like awesome action sequences, this is the movie for you.