Disappointed, but it's worth the ticket price.

Rating: 7/10 (19 May 2003)

Big disappointment, independently from the doubt that you could give the Wachos because of a sequel we know little about, The Matrix: Reloaded doesn't meet the expectations. On its own, it is a great action movie, one that anyone loving that style would appreciate above average level. But reality does matter in this world, and Matrix has created such a cult and expectations, that one cannot watch this movie and say "that was exactly the sequel I had expected".

Half the fights are pointless, given the context and the characters involved, the key information is given well after a ton of useless context-building information, between two "damn-already-5-minutes-passed-quick-let's-Kung-Fu-around-because-we've-got- film-to-use" fights: the meeeting with the Merovingian, the Architect or the Oracle are important moments where someone talks too much diluting the key information. There's a strong feeling that the non-action scenes were inserted to explain the plot (again) to some retarded pea-brained teenager, the other half inserted to please some hip-producer-whisperer gurus: the dance scene, the love scene, Morpheus vs. Lock, the kid Neo saved in the Animatrix's episode "Kid's story", Monica Bellucci's completely pointless role, and others. On top of that, given the thin scenario, another disappointment is the absence of surprise in special effects. These and the plot where the great innovations of Matrix. The Matrix: Reloaded does not have these. It becomes, at best, a very good action-Kung-Fu-sci-Fi movie attempting at being credible. I have felt the same impression when, after seeing the great "Alien" (low-budget, innovating directions and a solid scenario), I had to be disappointed by Aliens (too much budget, no surprise and a transparent scenario). Even if "Revolutions" will develop a new dimension revealed at the end of "Reloaded", I feel like I've been sold "The Matrix 1.5, new super-plus formula with more hormones, **LIGHT** (no calories, no soul). Too much teasing. I really start to wonder if a sequel was necessary, given the great innovation brought by the very good Comics and Animatrix series organised around the Matrix theme. Again, a great action movie. Nothing new. Don't expect too much or the disappointment will hit you hard. And be patient: stay until the end of the titles, it's worth waiting the extra minutes.