This did have a lot to live up to

Rating: 7/10 (10 April 2009)

This is based on the Ultimate 10-Disc Set. This one suffers from several things, noticeably. The first shares traits with the original Star Wars... the main one in this comparison being that they were both the beginning of a trilogy, whilst being fully able to be taken as the entire story. Lucas managed to complete his series of three to the satisfaction of viewers... in part because all had been set up in the initial movie, things didn't get too much more complex and difficult to understand with the following two(don't get me wrong, I find Episodes IV and V to be excellent). The Wachowski brothers did not. This adds layers and facets that the one before it did not... quite possibly simply because it was already so packed, and it still pulled that off. Thus, the attempt here is to successfully integrate these new aspects, as well as top that one. And this entire epic tale was to be closed in less than four and a half combined hours. There was not enough time and the high expectations may not exactly have helped. Where the philosophy was smooth and neither stuck out nor came off as pretentious when this franchise began, it sadly moves in the wrong direction here. Similarly, the dialog just does not reach the same level, and there are downright poor lines herein. Some of the humor does work, other bits come off as being silly. The pacing is not spot-on, but uneven. The plot is good, and develops reasonably. The acting still tends to be in the positive end of the spectrum. The action is still mind-blowing, and it does expand the scope... I do not believe there has ever been anything like the freeway scene before, or that thus far, a similar one has been done. The cinematography is still stunning, and the inspiration and mix still astound. There are memorable sequences, and the choreography and execution for martial arts and shootouts alike are excellent. The music and sound are amazing. Editing is sharp. The effects are incredible. The new cast-members aren't bad at all. To anyone wondering... no, you do not "need" to watch The Animatrix, nor play Enter the Matrix. Yes, they tell you more, but one can appreciate and "get" all the films without those. What they do is put things in perspective and give more details on certain events and characters, nothing that is required. The ideas and food for thought of this are interesting, it is the presentation that is bothersome. There is moderately strong language, in relatively mild amounts. There is next to no nudity, but sexuality is present once, and very obviously hinted at, as well. This comes with a text introduction(the same one as on the others), by the writer-directors, to the commentary tracks: One with philosophers who enjoyed these, Dr. Cornel West & Ken Wilder, and one of critics who didn't care for them, Todd McCarthy, John Powers & David Thompson. They are worth listening to. The double DVD holds well-done featurettes. I recommend this to fans of the concept and/or science fiction. Just be aware that this isn't as great. 7/10