A great movie, but a bad sequel.

Rating: 8/10 (22 May 2003)

Matrix. In fifty years, people will look back at this film and say that it was the first movie of the 21st century. By now, it's so big that it has stopped being a mere science-fiction flick, and has become a cultural phenomenon rapidly growing into a subculture on its own. Combining some of the artistically most interesting aspects of pop culture - Philip K. Dicks science fiction, John Woos blood opera, the unique visual style of Animes such as Ghost in the Shell, and William Gibsons cyberpunk aesthetics, to name a few - into a breathtaking two hour ride, it can be safely said that it influenced whomever saw it, as the massive amount of 'matrixesque' action flicks that came out since then shows.
And now, Matrix 2 has been released.
Wrong. Matrix: Reloaded has been released.
I've heard many dissapointed voices stating that the movie is "too shallow", "too deep", "too unspectacular", "a pure FX flick", and so on. Many of these complaints stem from our usual attitude towards sequels: When a second part of a movie is announced, we expect the same film with a stronger budget and a weaker plot. Reloaded doesn't fit this scheme.
What made Matrix so great? In one phrase, I'd say it was its sleek looks, its cool action, its twisty plot, and its mind-boggling environment - the Matrix itself.
Comparing the two movies, we quickly realize that, while we still have plenty of 'cool' scenes, a big part of the movies aesthetics concentrate on the more 'gritty' feeling of the real world, as we saw it on board of Morpheus' ship in part one. There is still lots of action, but instead of gun ballets, the emphasis is shifted towards hand-to-hand combat. The plot, while still full of surprises, does not focus so much on a single person discovering the true nature of the world he lives in, but instead rises to a 'bigger' scale. Trying not to spoil anything, I'll say that the environment of this plot isn't comparable to part one. There, the Matrix was still the main characters 'home', which he gradually left, now, it's a place he visits sometimes, a backdrop for his further actions.
Thus, Reloaded is, while still in the frame of the franchise, not directly comparable to Matrix, part one. Don't try, or you'll inevitably be dissapointed, because some aspect you held dearly have doubtlessly been moved out of the spotlight.
All this does however not tell you how good or bad the movie Matrix: Reloaded is.
Well, the dialogue is average at best and wooden at average. The special effects are, while very well executed, just not as breathtaking as those in part one. For once, the old lie seems to hold true: It's not how much you have, it's what you do with it. Also, there is no complete 'wow' moment such as the legendary lobby scene in part one.
The plots scope, which tries to encompass what can only be described as two separate worlds, is getting blurry from time to time, leaving the audience either puzzled or losing its connection to the actors, which raises another point: The acting. Excluding the brilliant Laurence Fishburne and Hugo Weaving, the cast consists of average actors. They just don't manage to make you truly, *truly* believe they are who they claim to be.
Yet, Reloaded is an awesome movie.
As with Matrix, one has to realize that Reloaded doesn't only rely on actors or dialogue to transport the plot, but also and primarily on its pictures. Every scene, every carefully picked camera angle, is filled to the brim with metaphors and symbols; nothing that would not help to emphasize the main motives of the movie. This is what makes Reloaded a piece of art: The sheer richness of its metaphorical vocabulary and the virtuosity with which the Wachowskis use every device, as weak as it may seem individually, at their disposal to further it into a truly incredible variety. This variety is however also what makes the film difficult and at times confusing, especially since it ends with a true cliffhanger, not solving the questions it poses - at least until fall.
All in all, I can understand why people dislike Matrix: Reloaded, yet, one has to admit it being a good movie. I prefer the first part because of its more stringent plot, but will definetly watch Reloaded again. And again. And again.