It was even worse the second time...

Rating: 1/10 (9 June 2003)

I was able to see this movie in comfort for a second go round. I have to say that it was worth what I paid for it.... nothing.
Funny how so many of these people think this movie is 'mindblowing' because it discusses philosophical concepts. Unfortunately the story line is an excuse to force great sounding round concepts into a square plot.
Somehow the machines found Zion, perhaps the Palestinians alerted them (Get it? That's a deep, subtle reference too.) Long boring emotional speeches using optimistic euphamisms only spoken from Hollywood. Throw in plot twist and the most superficial coverage of characters I have ever seen. If you want character development, this is definitely not your movie. In fact, I'd say this movie regresses and you know (and think) even less of the characters that you saw in the first, especially Trinity and especially Morpheus, who was most compelling and is now reduced to Sideshow Bob.
The movie continues to CGI graphics up the wazoo, which makes you wonder (1) if the matrix is nothing but a mind game, why did Neo have to fly for miles just to get to the 'action scene' -- why not be there instantly, and (2) why the heck doesn't Neo just fly away every time he gets in trouble because we know he can't 'beat them' by just handfighting with everyone. Ridiculous. This isn't deep, it's Hollywood fx to keep the kiddies happy and the video game commercials rolling.
Part three: Some ridiculous interlude with a Frenchman and two cool looking dudes. Why this had to be in the film probably had a lot more to do with current events than ingenuity. I had no idea why Persephone's character mattered at all and how much she gave up 'for a kiss.' It was a poor excuse to throw in something that seemed clever along with a line I'm sure the Wachowski's were yukking up saying 'we GOTTA stick this line in somewhere because it's too good to waste!!!'
OK, part three. This could have been somewhat interesting but by this point, who cares? The part with the oracle and the creator were slightly interesting but also more blockheaded philosphy. The first matrix was interesting because we didn't know what it was. This film tries to capture the same sensation but instead throws existentialist questions at us all at one time, giving us the same thought provoking self analysis of the universe as we heard when the students were smoking pot in "Animal House."
End of movie throws in a plot twist with Agent Smith... yes, we know where this is going now in the finale. It's like a TV episode of Star Trek TNG. Why the sidekick was in the movie at the beginning and end is beyond me because he played no part and was just annoying. Yes, we do know what will happen in Part III -- the issue of Morpheus' ex-girlfriend (how riveting, I could't care less because we never saw any exchange or development of it in this movie), more of Neo and Trinity's growing lust (oops, love, but I didn't see any of that did you?), more fights with a more powerful agent smith (coming to Playstation IV), and some more incomprehensible dialogue with the designer of the matrix (which made some sense but the choices were not correct, predictable, as are this movie.)
So what are we left with? A movie that tries so hard to be clever with subtle references that it misses the mark on the most important part of the movie -- a comprehensible plot that flows, character development, a good script, and a cohesive and compelling story. Choice is an illusion if you feel compelled to see this movie, however, given the detailed reviews one might say that this is a rental at best and part 3 is irrelevant already... the Matrix is a movie that never should have had a sequel but with the moneymaking potential we may have a dozen...