A visual feast, better than the original

Rating: 9/10 (12 May 2003)

NO SPOILERS - THE STORY IS SECONDARY ANYWAY ...
If I could use one word to describe the film, I would have that surfer fish-dude from SpongeBob say, "Aww-uh-uh-uh-uh-Su-uh-uh-uh-uhm!!!"
Matrix:Reloaded is much more than its predecessor, and in one way a bit less. Much much more in terms of beautifully choreographed sensory overload, and more in the depth to the story of man vs. machine, but less in that the element of mystery is gone, the story is quite literal and the reality/unreality head-trippiness of the first film is no more. This is no longer a voyage of discovery for our protagonist, but a mission to save one's beloved and perhaps save a people.
Forget the TIME review and all that you've heard or read, the film will exceed your expectations unless you are a total sensory overloaded 14-year-old computer-gaming geek. Action action action - get ready to hold on to your seat. The best special effects ever, and the green palette of the film used perfectly. Stunning fight and chase sequences, amazingly realized expressions of Neo's now massive power within the Matrix. Every performance is more assured, the logic of the story more propulsive and less ponderous (except for the strange Shakespearian cadence to Lawrence Fishburne's Morpheus - what is up with that speaking style? Who made this fine actor do that?). You will want to see this film at least one more time, to feel the rush of riding this thrilling roller coaster again. Probably not since the first Star Wars came out in '77 will people see the same film so many times.
I'll reveal no story details, because, frankly, they don't matter much - the plot points were laid out in the first film, and this story is a natural continuation of the storyline, and it perfectly sets up the final installment of the trilogy Matrix:Revolution which comes out in November (but one does wonder where all those underground dwellers get their food and take showers). Reloaded is mostly fight sequences with mythology becoming a stronger strain to the story. I can almost predict the final line to the third film Revolution will be from Terry Gilliam's Brasil, "'Ere I am, the ghost in the machine." Ponder that theme for a second and you get the drift of where they're taking the story. But love and power is at the heart of Reloaded, with a mix of earnestness and deception thrown in for spice.
It is all about the visceral in this film - movement movement movement, which starts with a dream and ends with us wondering what is real and what is real-real, with the "real" Neo doing something that defies the laws of physics - and sets our minds wondering, how deep does the illusion go? In the meantime we get a visual feast and stunts so spectacular and fight sequences so creative, it's no wonder actress Carrie-Anne Moss broke her leg. The film will stand the test of time as a work of art for its visuals, and the mish-mash of themes and character archetypes we've seen in countless other science fiction films and in novels that populate Reloaded have the chance to coalesce into something terrific for Revolution - if the brothers can pull it off. They have raised the bar very high indeed for Revolution with Reloaded. Will our characters live a hell a thousand times over or will renegade programs do more than survive and/or serve themselves?
Don't bother looking for clues to what's in the story before the film opens, better to let it wash over you when you do finally strap in for the wild ride - you will not be disappointed. And I really didn't think the first one was all that great. Reloaded is better than Matrix. Much better.