Different, but Good

Rating: 9/10 (18 May 2003)

Why are you reading this review? If it is to decide whether or not you are going to go see Matrix: Reloaded, then your decision is already made. It is simply up to you to understand it.
If you've already seen this movie, then my opinion on it will matter very little to you. Clearly this is the sort of movie that people develop very strong, specific feelings for, and that effect makes my opinion, as Smith would say, irrelevant.
Nevertheless, here they are. I thought this movie was very good. The first question most people ask who have not seen this movie is, "Was it better than the first?" I invariably answer, "It was different." I think that is an accurate assessment.
The stunt scenes were fantastic, if you like that sort of thing. Personally, the high octane Kung Fu scenes make me giddy, so I loved large chunks of this movie. My girlfriend thought they were long and tedious -- who you are will dictate how you feel about this movie.
The plot was a surprise. I was expecting a continuation of the previous story. It's not. I was pleasantly surprised by the imagination shown by the Wachowski brothers. Although, I must admit, the Kung Fu was enough to make me happy.
This movie is not as concise and neat as the first movie. The pacing, dialogue, storyline and acting are all better in the first movie. That does not make this one inferior necessarily, as the action and scale of this movie were far more epic.
It is certainly not a masterpiece. Very few movies are. I do believe it will make you think, and if you got a charge out of the Kung Fu from the first movie, you'll appreciate large portions of this one. But does any of that really matter? You're going to go see it because... well, as I said, that is for you to understand.