Great action, but too inconsistently entertaining.

Rating: Null/10 (4 October 2003)

** 1/2 out of ****
If I were to review The Matrix Reloaded based purely on its action, this would be an easy *** 1/2, maybe ****. But there's a story here, tons of filler in-between the martial arts battles and car chases, and rather than pushing forward the momentum, it actually drags the film down. Hard to believe a plot about the surviving human race duking it out with their A.I. "masters" could turn out so boring, but there you go.
When we last left off, Neo (Keanu Reeves) had proven himself to be The One destined to free the human race from the Matrix, an artificial intelligence that has most of the population unknowingly trapped in a dream world. Those who escaped the fantasy settled to a city called Zion, where they're in preparation for a war against the invading machines.
Neo still has his doubts, but none are shared by his lover and companion, Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss), nor Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne), the man who discovered him. But Neo, curious to discover what further action he should take, heads into the virtual world to search for the Oracle, who tells him to search for the Keymaker. Meanwhile, Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving), formerly one of the Matrix's prime enforcers, has become a rogue program, slowly taking over the system with an interesting reproducing technique.
For me, the original The Matrix hasn't held up so well over the years. I still argue that movie failed to achieve its potential, given such a rich and fascinating premise (which wasn't fulfilled here, either)(this series exists for the action, through and through), and its action sequences were somewhat overrated, similar styles having been accomplished (albeit with less slick and polish) from earlier Hong Kong pictures. That, and Dark City (a movie which The Matrix borrowed from) beat it to the punch with the concept of memory manipulation.
But the movie succeeded enough to at least make me look forward to the prospect of a sequel and that's where Reloaded comes in. And unfortunately, as fun as the plot may sound, too much of it is shaky and pretentious. That philosophy would be presented as a major theme is not unexpected, but for it to come across as so dull and uninteresting makes its inclusion heavy-handed. The scene where Neo, Morpheus, and Trinity debate with the Merovingian drags for far too long. Unless these characters have something truly interesting or vital to say, they should shut up and get moving (in case these people forgot, there is a countdown to the possible destruction of the only remaining human city).
Too much of this series is easy to rag on. In the virtual world, the Zion humans too easily bring attention to themselves with their tight, dark attire and sunglasses. The Matrix is capable of manipulating the virtual environment (like blocking the exits in a building with brick walls, which is what happened in the original), but rarely does so even when its use would prove helpful in defeating Neo (and such further obstacles would have made the action even more fun). The film's lead and hero, Neo, is played by Keanu Reeves, whose acting skills are dubious (to be fair, he has improved over the years and it's not as if though co-stars Carrie-Anne Moss and Laurence Fishburne are any better here).
But complain as I might, the action saves Reloaded and makes this otherwise strictly mediocre film worth watching. The most popular setpiece appears to be the highway chase, a fourteen-minute long spectacle that, for the most part, lives up to its reputation. It's not the best chase ever (Terminator 3 boasted an even more frenetic and exciting setpiece and Raiders of the Lost Ark still has the most rousing on-screen chase), but it is one hell of a thrill ride. Coupled with the preceding martial arts battle set in the castle, the non-stop fun lasts about twenty minutes.
Not since the Indiana Jones trilogy has a movie delivered non-stop creative and thrilling action for such a long period of time (In Raiders, it was the combo of the snake pit, Indy's battle with the giant Nazi, and the truck chase; in Temple of Doom, it was Indy's battle with the Thugee cult, the mine cart chase, and the bridge setpiece; in Last Crusade, the desert shootout and tank chase), though the more recent Terminator 3 definitely has Reloaded beat on all counts.
Best of all is Neo's battle with the Agent Smiths (played deliciously by Hugo Weaving, who remains the most consistent bright spot in the series), who quickly grow in numbers and have our superhero surround from all sides and angles. The sequence is a total blast and one of the more entertaining fight scenes I've seen all year (though, once again, the Terminator vs. Terminatrix jamboree in T3 has it beat). All of Reloaded's action put together adds to about thirty or so minutes, not even a fourth of its running time, but the quality of it is enough for me to recommend the film, even if most of the rest of it is a bit of a bore.