Great Super Climactic Sight and Sound Except...

Rating: 9/10 (14 July 2009)

Spoilers
I believe I have seen the Matrix all the way through, one time, even though I own it. I watched the start of the movie, and Neo taking the red pill many times. However, I've have seen the climax of this movie about 300 times. This climax is very inspirational and almost as powerful as the dramatic climax of the "Five By Five" episode of the vampire TV show, "Angel" A character spawned from the "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"). The IMDb user rating for the Matrix (8.9 stars) is identical to the IMDb rating for that "Five By Five" episode of Angel. When I want to feel good, I watch that "Five By Five" episode of Angel climax coupled with "The Matrix" climax about 3 times every week and never get tired of either one.
I saw the plot similar to the Matrix in an earlier little known & thought provoking movie starring WWE's "Roudy Roddy Piper" called "They Live". Therefore, the Matrix plot did not surprise me much or make me think. It seemed like the plot "set up" was copied from that other movie. This movie "sets up" that in the future, humans go through life serving creatures from outer space that enslaved us and use our energy. The enslavers keep us energetic by giving humans a false vision of the world achieved through a computer program called "The Matrix".
There are a small handful of humans aware of this. They live in a ship and are led by Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) and Trinity (Carry Anne Moss). They seek "The One". "The One" has been for-told to have mental strength to overcome the controlling forces in the Matrix like Agent Smith. The find/contact Neo Anderson (Keuanu Reeves). They show him the truth about the real world, and explain the power needed to overcome the Matrix and train him. They even suspect he is "The One". Agent Smith an agent of the Matrix programming is more powerful than any human. Neo's has difficulty accepting this reality and he does not take to Morpheus' training.
In real life, Trinity and Morpheus have rescued Neo from the enslavement existence that most humans have and keep him alive on their ship. However, one of his crew Cypher tries to kill Neo in real life and fails to kill him, due to others intervening. Agent Smith the powerful agent of the Matrix program, has always kept the Matrix in tack. No one ever survived a confrontation with Agent Smith.
The Enslaving creatures find out about the ship and begin to charge through the ocean toward an attack on that ship. At this moment, Neo is killed by Mr. Smith in the Matrix and in real life Neo's heart stops. Also at that moment, Morpheus is shocked, and says, "it can't be" as he watches all hope for the human race die with Neo.
As Neo lies dead in the ship, Trinity tell his dead body that she is not afraid. Trinity says she has been told by the Oracle, that she would fall in love with "The One". She says she now realizes she loves Neo. Therefore, he is the one. She kisses his dead mouth. Miraculously, he begins breathing again. She says "Get up." Neo immediately arises in the Matrix to the shock of Mr. Smith and his friends, but they immediately fire a hail of bullets at Neo.
A split second before the numerous gun shots, Neo softly says "No".
As the bullets fly, Neo's "No" makes the bullets slow down, then stop in mid air, and then makes them fall harmlessly to the ground. The music hits a powerful crescendo climax as Morpheus is in awe of this power, and says what everyone watching realizes: "He Is The One!" Neo then easily annihilates Mr. Smith and afterward, we see all of the Matrix bend at Neo's will. Neo looks at Mr Smith's co-horts and they run. He comes out of the Matrix & somehow disbands the enslaving metallic creatures who have attacked their ship. Then Neo telephones the enslaving creatures and tells them, that he will show all humans enslaved in the Matrix a new world and they will free themselves.
Aside from having seen a similar plot "Set Up" in "They Live", the only real problem I had with this tremendous movie was that when the climactic music is played and the words "He is the one", is heard, we then look at Mr Smith and friends in a shot of green and white computer numbers forming their persons. I know it had to be done for the sake of the story, but it did not fit with the inspirational climactic music and the awesomeness of this scene. This is a minuscule flaw in something very inspirational. When looking to feel good, I usually play the "Neo Is The One" chapter of the Matrix to the end of the movie.