"Mind-Blowing"

Rating: 9/10 (1 April 1999)

After Keanu's last romp as a Cyberpunk in Johnny What's-His-Name who would have thought he'd ever be able to redeem himself in that type of role again? Well, the Wachowski brothers obviously did. Granted, the term "Cyberpunk" has a tendency to turn people off since it's been dragged through the mud thanks to the internet but what the Wachowski brothers have done is put a slightly different spin on the genre. Though many of the plot devices used in The Matrix are easily referenced from other movies, they are presented in a slightly different fashion that breathes new life into them.
The special effects are used effectively and don't overpower the viewer. The sound effects, on the other hand, are loud - almost too loud. The sound effects were a bit overdone in my opinion. Sound should be used to accentuate the visuals, not drown it out. In several instances the sound got a bit too chaotic and made it hard to concentrate on the film.
The action scenes are some of the most inspired martial arts this side of Hong Kong cinema. The use of wires and a majority of the slow-motion shots were done exceptionally well. Because the Wachowski brothers are notorious for extreme closeups, some of the action scenes aren't always framed properly and the amazing choreography doesn't give the audience the full impact (sorry for the pun). The director of photography, for some odd reason, had scenes with people dressed in black fighting in extremely dark interior spaces which, oddly enough, makes it difficult to see what was going on.
But these are only minor gripes for a movie that stands as 1999's first Sci-Fi/Action hit for the year.
**** out of *****