Great Expectations

Rating: 8/10 (16 May 2003)

First of all, I should state that I'm a big Matrix fan (like most of the reviewers here, I suppose) so I may be a little prejudiced for that matter.
Truth is that "Matrix Reloaded" didn't come up to my expectations. I believe that all this "hype" that preceded its release, raise my expectations too high. I'm not saying that "Matrix Reloaded" is a bad, or even an average, movie. No. Absolutely not, definately not. I enjoyed it very much. It just that, IMHO, it can't compete to the original. Sure, the action scenes and visual effects are more complicated and more breathtaking than in the original movie, but these were only a part of the original's success. (Gaeta's work in visual cinematography and bullet-time worth many oscars, that's for sure.) I got the feeling that most actions scenes were there because the audience expected them to be, and not because the plot "demanded" them in order to evolve - a tottaly different approach from the original "Matrix", where every action scene had its purpose. The thought of Wachowski Bros saying "the story in this chapter goes too slow, let's put an action scene here and here" crossed my mind several times. So is the story the problem? No. There were many interesting answers and even more interesting (new) questions. The plot by itself evolves nicely. In my opinion, the problem lies in the fact that "Matrix Reloaded" action scenes and plot don't mix as they should. I give it 8 out of 10.