A mangled classic

Rating: 4/10 (15 May 2003)

I really wanted to love this movie. I hoped that against cliche it might outdo the original, ala X-Men. This was always going to be tough as unlike X-Men the bar set by 'The Matrix' was so high. But I never expected 'Reloaded' to fall so far short. Somehow, and to my amazement, the Wachowski Brothers, Joel Silver and Warner's have managed to create a film that I found less entertaining than X2.
In an attempt to outdo the first film in terms of action and spectacle, the Wachowski Brothers have created a story that collapses under the weight of dull and at times impenetrable dialogue between cliched and seemingly irrelevant characters for which the viewer feels no or little connection. The intimate grandeur and intricate clarity of 'The Matrix' is sorely missing from 'Reloaded'.
Part of the problem here is that this is the 'middle' of three movies and they were not planned as one story from the beginning. The second and third exist because of the success of the first, a movie designed for maximum impact and as standalone entertainment. 'Reloaded' and 'Revolutions' are movies driven by the 'franchise factor' rather than by the art of storytelling. The makers have done an analysis of what made the first successful and have tried to integrate as much of these elements as they can to maximise its earning capacity. This has resulted in a mangled story and the debasement of a modern classic.