The Matrix Reloaded (2003)

Director: The Wachowski Siblings

Cast: Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, Colin Chou

Country: United States / Australia

Rating: R

Run Time: 138 minutes

Even though The Matrix Trilogy consists of three films, the series is truly split into two parts. When the Wachowski Siblings set out to make their Matrix trilogy, the two had to deliver a successful Matrix Part One before they could be guaranteed a Part Two or Three. Therefore, when The Matrix blew up in 1999 and set a new precedent for action filmmaking in Hollywood, two sequels were obviously commissioned. These sequels, The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, were shot back to back and released within the same year, 2003. However, both of these sequels featured numerous new characters and a grander storyline previously unexplored in the small scaled The Matrix. Even though The Matrix introduced us to a post-apocalyptic world run by sentinels, The Matrix Reloaded and Revolutions were the films that directly dealt with the issue head on. The Wachowskis essentially crafted a focused and small scaled Part One that led into two large scaled Parts Two and Three shot at the same time. Therefore, I have always viewed the two sequels as being separate from the original for this reason.

However, many other movie fans view the sequels as being separate from the original because...well, they hate them. The Matrix sequels are notorious amongst movie buffs as being inferior and unnecessary in comparison to their amazing predecessor. The general consensus is that the sequels favor special effects and plot over the focused character work of The Matrix. Personally, I also think that the sequels' choice to dive head first into the heavy themes teased at in the original alienated audiences as well. Action is fun and all for audiences, but not so much so when you have to listen to heavy conversations about predestination, artificial intelligence, and causality. 

Is there anything more awesome than leaping out a window firing guns?

I remember seeing The Matrix Reloaded at midnight with my dad when I was in the 5th grade in 2003. Even though I probably didn't fully understand what was happening, I can tell you that the action scenes blew my mind as a kid. I don't know if my childhood history with the film clouds my opinion, but I think that The Matrix Reloaded is an ambitious sequel that falters in parts but mostly succeeds. Even after 10 or so viewings of The Matrix Reloaded, I still find myself picking up on ideas that I previously forgot the film explored. Regardless of how good or bad you think the sequels are, the fact that the films jog your brain after each viewing is a testament to their lasting value. Therefore, I have decided to revisit these two massive and complex sequels in order to determine my opinion on them once and for all. Also, I am going to go into mild spoilers for the two films. 

The film begins six months after the events of the first film. Neo (Keanu Reeves) and friends continue their rebellion against the machines in both the Matrix and the real world. The machines have begun to drill into the human city of Zion in order to attack the humans back for freeing so many minds from the Matrix. When Neo speaks with the Oracle for help, she tells him to locate a Key Maker who can lead them to the source of the machines within the Matrix. However, Neo's journey for the source of the machines is complicated thanks to the likes of antagonists Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving) and The Merovingian (Lambert Wilson). 

The Matrix Reloaded heavily expands upon the mythology of the first installment by introducing numerous new characters and tackling a large scale story hinted at in The Matrix. If anything, The Matrix Reloaded is one of the biggest sequels ever next to The Chronicles of Riddick in terms of expanding upon the mythos and scale of the small scaled original film. The film also dives deeper into themes of artificial intelligence, identity, reality, predestination, creation, religion, and causality dealt within The Matrix. However, Reloaded and its sequel devote entire scenes and conversations to discussing such themes. Therefore, modern audiences may find themselves bored and distant from such complex scenes that come in between slam bam action set pieces that please the eyes. The Wachowskis clearly took advantage of The Matrix's success and decided to go full philosophical and intellectual with their sequels. When I look back on the Matrix sequels, I almost can't believe that a studio like Warner Bros. funded such deep and complex R rated action films.

"Surprised, Mr. Anderson?"

While ambitious and positively epic, The Matrix Reloaded bites off more than it or its audience can chew. The film relies so heavily on plot, and a weird one at that, that it leaves its characters in the dust at points. The sequel also incorporates such a massive amount of sub-plots that it becomes difficult to keep track of them all even after all of these years of viewing the film. You've got the threat of the duplicating Agent Smiths, the Smith induced Bane character who wants to kill Neo within the real world, the threat of the machines' imminate attack on Zion, Neo's journey for the source of the machines, Neo's desperation to stop his visions from coming true, the tension between Morpheus and Commander Lock, to even the stories of the littlest of supporting characters like Link or Kid. Because everyone has a story of their own amidst the grand scheme of things, it becomes a lot to take in for only a two hour film. And while I love the ambitious nature of Reloaded and find some of its sub-plots to be truly riveting, the film's ambition turns it into a somewhat bloated epic that lacks The Matrix's tight focus.

Even though the film features far too many characters for its own good, I still enjoy some of them. My personal favorite is the Oracle's bodyguard, Seraph. Not only does Seraph have a great character design and purpose within the film's narrative, but he is even played by Hong Kong action star Collin Chou (Flash Point). Chou does a great job with his few minutes in the film and even takes on Neo in a great one on one fight a top several wooden tables. I also love the design of The Twins, two of the Merovigians henchmen who have the ability to turn into ghosts in order to phase through walls and to heal themselves. Other character highlights include the stern Commander Lock (Harry Lennix, Man of Steel) who will do anything to protect Zion, the cold but sexy Persephone (Monica Bellucci, Brotherhood of the Wolf), and the kind and helpful Key Maker (Randall Duk Kim, The Replacement Killers). Returning franchise characters Neo, Trinity, Morpheus, The Oracle, and Agent Smith are all well played by their respective actors; especially Laurence Fishburne (Death Wish II) who turns in an incredibly emotional and physical performance.

Praise the action movie gods.

It's no surprise that The Matrix Reloaded's strongest aspect is its fantastic action sequences. The Wachowskis and choreographer Yuen Woo Ping (Kill Bill, The Grandmaster) up the ante by delivering the kind of bigger and crazier set pieces you expect in a sequel. Reloaded showcases fist fights, car chases, and gun fights galore. The melee fights in the film are uniformly perfect, ranging from a massive brawl between Neo and numerous Agent Smiths to a small one on one fight between Morpheus and Agent Johnson (Daniel Bernhardt, John Wick) atop a moving 18 wheeler. The epic car chase in the middle of the film stands as the biggest and longest set piece in the entire franchise. Filmed entirely on a newly constructed freeway specifically for the film, the Wachowskis deliver a grand and massive cavalcade of vehicular destruction.

I especially adore the Vampire Chateau fight between Neo and The Merovigian's henchmen set to music by Rob Dougan. The sequence features pitch perfect camera work, excellent editing, and stunning fight choreography. The sequel's many action sequences are made all the better by composer Don Davis' score. Davis continues to expand upon the musical themes heard in the first installment by upping the ante and delivering a broader and grander score. Additional tracks by Rob Dougan and Juno Reactor are just as fantastic as Davis' musical themes. I truly could go on and on about Reloaded's exquisite action scenes and how I have watched some of them well over twenty times. But I will leave these few short words to express my adoration and obsession with them. When Yuen Woo Ping is the fight choreographer and Bill Pope is the cinematographer, a film's action scenes are going to look damn good.

Unfortunately, I have to fault Reloaded for its terrible incorporation of CGI during a few shots of the burly brawl between Neo and Smith. While most of the film's fight sequences feature real stunt men performing real stunts, the burly brawl between Neo and Smith requires up to 100 actors to be seen on screen at once. Therefore, some of the characters are rendered entirely with computer animation for a few choice shots in order to deliver complex moments of fight choreography. Much like Guillermo Del Toro's Blade II, The Matrix Reloaded shoots itself in the foot with these painfully obvious moments of computer graphics. It doesn't help either when the Wachowskis cut from a shot of a CG Keanu Reeves to a shot of the real Keanu Reeves within the same fight sequence. The jarring difference between computer graphics and human actors pulls the audience out of the filmic experience whenever it is apparent in the film. And believe me, it is extremely apparent when the characters in the film look like something out of an early 2000's PlayStation 2 video game.

"Well that's a neat trick."

Entertainment Weekly declared The Matrix Reloaded the 25th worst movie sequel of all time in 2007. Their paragraph on the film directly attacks the film's rave sequence and mocks it as a Lenny Kravitz music video. In all honesty, how can this be the one thing that Entertainment Weekly wrote about? Did they not see the amazing action scenes, brave storytelling, and incredible ambition that I saw? Yes, I admit that Reloaded is a somewhat bloated epic that falters from poor CGI and heavy reliance on plot. But I find that its positives greatly outweigh its negatives. I adore The Matrix Reloaded warts and all. It's an incredibly entertaining and massive science fiction epic that I have been watching for more than 10 years now and hope to continue revisiting for as long as I live. Tune in next time for the finale that movie fans hate more than The Matrix Reloaded...The Matrix Revolutions!

Rating: 8/10 - Haters be damned. The Matrix Reloaded has everything I love about an R rated blockbuster.

Franchise:
The Matrix (dir. The Wachowski Siblings, 1999)
The Matrix Reloaded (dir. The Wachowski Siblings, 2003)
The Matrix Revolutions (dir. The Wachowski Siblings, 2003)