Although not great on its own, The Matrix Reloaded is an important piece of something much bigger.

Rating: Null/10 (6 June 2003)

The sequel to The Matrix has been criticized extensively. But those people who seem to think they're philosophy experts, filmmakers, and professional movie critics seem to be lacking common sense and a little background.
The plot line, while being somewhat original, is derived from philosophy dating to Plato's "The Republic," and continuing with many others (Descartes, Chuang-Tsu, Vasishtha, etc.). Essentially, it is a story of a false reality, one created by futuristic, autonomous machines. Throw aside all the techno stuff and you're left with the Cave story (from The Republic), in which Plato asserts that humans' realities can be manipulated, as from the day we are born we know nothing but that which is presented to us. Beyond that, The Matrix's plot is one that is a bit over-complicated, with too many side characters, which distracts us from the real messages of the story. So if you're having a tough time interpreting the movie, I wouldn't worry about it, as it's probably not as deep as you might have suspected. And in addition to the underlying philosophy, the character relationships add a whole different dimension to the movie, although they seem to go overlooked (it is sci-fi, i guess). Anyway, this movie is one of three, and they really have to be looked at in their entirety, not independently of each other.

In terms of the film's quality, we all know that, for one, Keanu Reeves is a horrible actor. Indeed, one doesn't go see The Matrix for the acting. But the Wachowski brothers did revolutionize special effects, and they were soon copied pretty much by everybody. And when some people complain that the sequel's use of the first movie's techniques is trite, just remember that it was theirs to begin with, and it was the rest of the entertainment industry that ruined it. But nonetheless, there are no serious flaws in the filmmaking, except for some long action sequences (but then again, it is an action movie, so suck it up).
And to all those who complain about the ending, honestly, have some patience. It would be a shame if otherwise good movies would have to come up with hackneyed resolutions to appease people who can't wait for the sequel (ever seen LOTR? There's no ending, and that's OK). This movie isn't epic, or revolutionary, or anything; but the whole series just might be, so just wait.