Matrix Overloaded

Rating: 7/10 (8 June 2003)

Let me begin by saying that the Matrix was a revolutionary film that viewers will continue to look back and marvel at years from now, much in the same way the impact Star Wars had on its contemporaries in 1977, -- and could easily (and in hindsight should probably have been) a one-time stand alone film. Of course with all of the hype and money surrounding the original's runaway success, you knew that the Hollywood money machine would not let this goldmine pass quietly.
To the actual review: on balance, not a terrible film -- but that is quite an underwhelming endorsement when compared to the original, and that frankly that IS the dilemma of the sequel -- how do you re-invent the "Matrix experience"? Neo fighting 100 Agent Smiths is cool eye candy, but that shouldn't be the answer - more techno, CGI tricks to marvel at is NOT the answer. Should we then expect Neo to fight 1,000 or 1,000,000 Agent Smiths in the final film to "up the ante"? Which brings me back to the point about the Matrix experience: something novel to the uninitiated, an entire new world with nearly endless possibilities -- but underlying this hope, a sense of impending doom. It's hard to bring the audience to that same level of "newness" once you've been introduced.
*** MINOR SPOILER ALERT ***
That is not to say that Reloaded was doomed from the beginning - this is not an acceptable excuse, it is a mandate that the original producers should have taken to heart -- particularly within the context that the audience now expects to be "wowed" the way they did the first time. By this measure, the film was a disappointment -- again, techno-tricks ain't the solution in and of itself. The story needed much more development, the plot needed to be much deeper. The whole Zion scene was a huge let-down, most of the leaders of the resistance were very one dimensional particularly when measured against Morpheus - note: developing strong characters can actually complement the existing ones if done properly, but no thought or effort was made to do so. The whole "Wizard of Oz" and the two door scene was a major cop-out in my opinion and frankly didn't make much sense.
In the end, the bitter irony of the film is simply this: the message of the film, "humanity fighting against technology run amok" underscores the weakness of the sequel: "a story fighting against technology run amok"