George Lucas would be proud.

Rating: 3/10 (15 May 2003)

Science-fiction type special effects laden film is released and makes a bajillion dollars. Filmmakers/Producers decide that more money can be bled from this stone and make new installments, bogged down by soggy, oozingly pretentious storylines, muddled by an uneasy balancing act of overly complicated plot details and overly cheesy emotional baggage. Not to mention a barrage of special effects shots that leaves the audience feeling as though they stumbled into the Final Fantasy film.
Up until a few hours ago, this previous paragraph encapsulated Episodes I and II for me. Now...enter the Matrix. Reloaded that is.
A few of the problems with Reloaded (possible Spoilers herein:)
1. Action for the sake of action. The only reason for Agent Smith's newfound ability to multiply himself was so that Neo could fight a whole bunch of Agent Smiths. It had no real bearing on the plot whatsoever. Fun to watch? Sure. But ultimately nothing more than eye candy.
2. The battle between script and direction. Reloaded can't seem to make up it's mind as to what it's more impressed with: It's good old fashioned butt whoopin' or the deep philosophical questions it believes itself to be asking. The result: A movie that, when it is whoopin' butt, reminds itself to start being brilliant again. And that, when it is being "brilliant", has to remind itself to whoop more butt.
3. Zion. Nothing original about this place or its inhabitants. During the primal celebrations, I felt as though they had stolen unused footage of "Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome". During the council hearings, I kept waiting for Luke Skywalker to run in with an orange jumpsuit, ready to mess up some imperial forces.
In short, Reloaded takes your $7.50 and gives nothing in return. If you feel like venturing off to a worthwhile sequel, go see X2.