A Terrible Disappointment

Rating: Null/10 (15 November 2003)

I just saw Revolutions. My love affair with the Matrix that began in 1999 is now over. The Wachowski brothers have followed the George Lucas formula for movie trilogies: (1) Great first movie (2) In the 2nd movie, deconstruct the premises and change the "truths" in the first movie. (3) In the 3rd movie, continue to change the premise of the original movie to the point that the 3rd movie is unrecognizable to someone who has only viewed the first movie.
While the special-effects were draw-dropping, I feel like I didn't see any character development from the main characters. I also didn't see the relationships develop further. I've seen the first two movies 6 times at the theaters, and countless times on the DVD's I own. I own the Animatrix and have read nearly all of the online material.
It seems like the main story line became an after-thought. The resolution of the conflict with the machines was unsatisfying. The main love story was terminated very uneventfully. The minor characters became the featured players in "Revolutions", which is sad. How did Morpheus react to Neo's and Trinity's death? How was his belief in the Oracle altered, or reinforced? What was the future of Morpheus and Niobe's relationship?
The end of the movie was fitting in that the people I could have cared least for had the featured roles. I'm sure that there was a reason for the people acting like machines and the machines acting like people, but I don't understand it in the context of the first movie, still my favorite of all time.
I felt a deep sense of loss when I left the theater. My gut feeling is that the Wachowski brothers had tired of the main characters and just dumped them all unceremoniously. I agree with them. Now, I don't care about the Matrix either.