The Matrix: Reloaded (2003)

Written and Directed by The Brothers Wachowski
Starring Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Laurence Fishburne and Monica Bellucci
138 mins / Warner Bros. / Rated R

Bellucci....ah....

It's the kind of movie that you should see in the theater, to be entranced by the spectacle of it all. Eye candy - that's pretty much the only way you're going to describe it. There's a lot of pseudo-philosophy that tries to pass itself off as something more. Hey brothers, just because you take the work of forty different philosophers and meld them together - doesn't mean you have a comprehensive ideological system. The ideas about choice and reality are certainly interesting, but coupled with the fakeries of The Matrix and the computer programs, it's mostly just a jumbled mess. That doesn't mean it's not enjoyable, just jumbled.

You don't go to a movie like The Matrix for it's philosophical leanings, that's simply icing on the cake. Most movies of this ilk not only don't look as good, but the dialogue and plot are usually preposterous. At least Reloaded proves to be a noodle scratcher.

The CGI and does look great and at times, I couldn't tell the difference between reality and computer - a number of CGI shots passed my glance.) Nonetheless, there are some false moments. The CGI Neo during the "burly brawl" is a bit rubbery, his face contorted into an unnatural, corpse like look.

Something else was a little strange. Roy Jones Jr, boxer extraordinaire, had a bigger part then I would have given any professional athlete, much less one that isn't exactly the world's best actor.

Freeway chase

The freeway chase is worth the price of admission alone. I know people use that phrase quite liberally, but in this case it's true. It's pulse pounding and great fun to watch. I found myself with my jaw dropped open, literally smiling the whole time. As comparison, for the rest of the movie, I was sitting impressed, but it just never affected me the same way that this scene did. The Freeway chase was directed by Second Unit Director David Ellis, director of the infamously crappy Final Destination 2. Of course, the highlight of that film was the amazing car crash sequence at the beginning of the film. It stands along with the scenes in Bullit, Ronin and The French Connection as the best chase scenes in filmdom.

The dance scene. The dance scene. If you've seen the movie, then you know what I'm talking about. And although I though I hated it as I sat there in the theater, waiting for all the action to start, in the past few days, the sequence grew on me. I understand it. I downright like it. The slow motion pan of the gyrating bodies is the only view of the organic in the films. It's warm and in direct opposition to an otherwise cold world.

Movie Grade: B+