Matrix Revolutions
Here's a personal review I wrote last year, cut and pasted here for posterity...
I can't believe the raves I'm reading on aintitcoolnews.com pertaining to 'REVOLUTIONS'! I saw the film myself before logging on to see what others thought of it, and I was completely shocked. Of course everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but the reviews here (Quint, Harry) are so favorable
to a movie that had many, many obvious flaws. Before I continue, let me just state that "I LOVE THE MATRIX!" I love the thought provoking themes, the tone, the characters. I even made excuses for 'RELOADED' when others were shredding it. But 'REVOLUTIONS' gave me nothing to defend in what should have been one of my favorite film serials. Okay, where do I begin?
I was almost-- no,wait-- really embarrassed by the dialogue, which made no attempts at being original. It's not a good sign when you can guess,verbatim, what a character will say before it leaves their lips. I wasn't looking for Mamet-styled dialogue, but the exchange between characters was just uninspired.
And the "some things never/do change" quote that Morpheus and Niobe use countless times, now makes me cringe. It's no wonder they broke up; boring, repetitive conversation.
The pacing of the film, which I believe is a price to pay if you want to enjoy a "thinking man's" action film, was severly unbalanced. Most scenes, dialogue-laden and action, were overdrawn. The theater where I saw the film was packed (on a Wednesday at 2pm!), and there were several times the audience shared several collective restless fidgets (that's not candy from the snackbar). Something the Brothers W. should know by now, is SUBTEXT. Instead of Neo walking around asking questions, try having the questions come up during a scene where the characters may already be involved in another situation, something to hold the viewers interest while the obligatory exposition is being relayed (and I don't mean baking cookies). Easy-to-follow-geek-friendly example: Darth Vader and Luke are in a duel to the death on Bespin, all the while revealing the ultimate truth that Vader is Luke's father; a perfect scene, right? Now imagine that same scene if Luke and Vader were just standing in a room together and the same information was revealed? It's not nearly as exciting or entertaining or memorable. Get the idea? There are countless ways Neo could have learned the ultimate truth, besides minute after minute of exposition filmed in coma-inducing settings.
Probably the most obvious ailment afflicting this film was the lack of screen time the main characters shared. Neo, Trinity, and Morpheus were the heroes that drew me to this series more than anything else. I enjoy contemplating the philosophy of the Matrix, but moreover, I enjoy seeing how these characters deal with that philosophy. In 'REVOLUTIONS', what I saw was Neo stuck in limbo, then off- camera "meditating", then flying a ship. Trinity had some fair moments on screen, until they killed her off. That was the film-makers' decision, which I respect, however, the scene was geared to inflict even more pain into Neo, which it did; Until he forgot all about it for the remainder of the film. I felt a loss because she was a great character, but I didn't so much feel Neo's loss because I couldn't be conviced that they were truly in love. The sex scene in 'RELOADED' didn't do it for me, I guess. Getting back to topic though, Morpheus was the most neglected character in the entire movie. I know you remember how regal and intelligent he came off in the original 'The Matrix' when he spoke of his belief in "The One" and his passion for the future. Do you remember the Morpheus I'm speaking of? I think everyone else forgot. Instead he was demoted to the rank of ensign co-pilot for Niobe. At the end of "RELOADED", Morpheus had been put through Hell (again), having his ship destroyed and being told that Neo was not "The One" he thought he was. I could not wait for the final installment to see Morpheus deal with his world being turned upside down. Instead, he just flew around the tunnels upside down, with Niobe barking orders. The shaky camera really added to the intensity, don't you think?What a waste of great pathos. The battle for Zion was entertaining, but would have been great if some of the principle characters could have been there to add some emotional weight. Did you really honestly care what Link's wife and her friend were up to? I would have cared more if we had gotten to know them before the camera followed them around for ten minutes. If the final battle between Smith and Neo hadn't been so drawn out, Link's wife could have possibly gotten top billing. If that doesn't bother you, you must be watching 'The Matrix' films for a different reason.
Which brings me to my next argument...If it's the special effects that you paid to see, then... "Congratulations! You are the big winner!" By now though, CG should be a byproduct of a story that SHOULDN'T steal the thunder of the ACTUAL story! Don't make excuses for this movie by saying that the effects were "Awesome!", hence the movie was "Awesome!" In the not-too-distant future (next Tuesday), those same effects will look so commonplace. Then how will you describe the film?
I don't want to cover the ambiguous ending in too much detail. I had hoped for some RESOLUTION by
watching 'REVOLUTIONS'. Isn't that what most of us had paid to see? An ending? A bookend to a
fantastic voyage? No, you get a big "THE END" followed by a "boing" sound when a question mark suddenly pops up on the screen ala 'Flash Gordon' (this actually only happened in my subconscious mind; or did it?).The thought of another 'Matrix' film is disheartening at this point.
I really hope those of you that thought 'REVOLUTIONS' was "GREAT!" will mull over what "was" and
what "could have been" (Phantom Menace de ja vu). I don't think time will wear well on this last installment of 'The Matrix'. I really am a 'Matrix' geek like most of you, and that is why I am really, really disappointed. Unless someone can convince me (sans insults) otherwise, I have lost hope in much the same way Morpheus did when his ship blew up and he magically turned into Mr. Sulu from Star Trek.
Justin had fun writing this at 9:35 PM
0 comments
I can't believe the raves I'm reading on aintitcoolnews.com pertaining to 'REVOLUTIONS'! I saw the film myself before logging on to see what others thought of it, and I was completely shocked. Of course everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but the reviews here (Quint, Harry) are so favorable
to a movie that had many, many obvious flaws. Before I continue, let me just state that "I LOVE THE MATRIX!" I love the thought provoking themes, the tone, the characters. I even made excuses for 'RELOADED' when others were shredding it. But 'REVOLUTIONS' gave me nothing to defend in what should have been one of my favorite film serials. Okay, where do I begin?
I was almost-- no,wait-- really embarrassed by the dialogue, which made no attempts at being original. It's not a good sign when you can guess,verbatim, what a character will say before it leaves their lips. I wasn't looking for Mamet-styled dialogue, but the exchange between characters was just uninspired.
And the "some things never/do change" quote that Morpheus and Niobe use countless times, now makes me cringe. It's no wonder they broke up; boring, repetitive conversation.
The pacing of the film, which I believe is a price to pay if you want to enjoy a "thinking man's" action film, was severly unbalanced. Most scenes, dialogue-laden and action, were overdrawn. The theater where I saw the film was packed (on a Wednesday at 2pm!), and there were several times the audience shared several collective restless fidgets (that's not candy from the snackbar). Something the Brothers W. should know by now, is SUBTEXT. Instead of Neo walking around asking questions, try having the questions come up during a scene where the characters may already be involved in another situation, something to hold the viewers interest while the obligatory exposition is being relayed (and I don't mean baking cookies). Easy-to-follow-geek-friendly example: Darth Vader and Luke are in a duel to the death on Bespin, all the while revealing the ultimate truth that Vader is Luke's father; a perfect scene, right? Now imagine that same scene if Luke and Vader were just standing in a room together and the same information was revealed? It's not nearly as exciting or entertaining or memorable. Get the idea? There are countless ways Neo could have learned the ultimate truth, besides minute after minute of exposition filmed in coma-inducing settings.
Probably the most obvious ailment afflicting this film was the lack of screen time the main characters shared. Neo, Trinity, and Morpheus were the heroes that drew me to this series more than anything else. I enjoy contemplating the philosophy of the Matrix, but moreover, I enjoy seeing how these characters deal with that philosophy. In 'REVOLUTIONS', what I saw was Neo stuck in limbo, then off- camera "meditating", then flying a ship. Trinity had some fair moments on screen, until they killed her off. That was the film-makers' decision, which I respect, however, the scene was geared to inflict even more pain into Neo, which it did; Until he forgot all about it for the remainder of the film. I felt a loss because she was a great character, but I didn't so much feel Neo's loss because I couldn't be conviced that they were truly in love. The sex scene in 'RELOADED' didn't do it for me, I guess. Getting back to topic though, Morpheus was the most neglected character in the entire movie. I know you remember how regal and intelligent he came off in the original 'The Matrix' when he spoke of his belief in "The One" and his passion for the future. Do you remember the Morpheus I'm speaking of? I think everyone else forgot. Instead he was demoted to the rank of ensign co-pilot for Niobe. At the end of "RELOADED", Morpheus had been put through Hell (again), having his ship destroyed and being told that Neo was not "The One" he thought he was. I could not wait for the final installment to see Morpheus deal with his world being turned upside down. Instead, he just flew around the tunnels upside down, with Niobe barking orders. The shaky camera really added to the intensity, don't you think?What a waste of great pathos. The battle for Zion was entertaining, but would have been great if some of the principle characters could have been there to add some emotional weight. Did you really honestly care what Link's wife and her friend were up to? I would have cared more if we had gotten to know them before the camera followed them around for ten minutes. If the final battle between Smith and Neo hadn't been so drawn out, Link's wife could have possibly gotten top billing. If that doesn't bother you, you must be watching 'The Matrix' films for a different reason.
Which brings me to my next argument...If it's the special effects that you paid to see, then... "Congratulations! You are the big winner!" By now though, CG should be a byproduct of a story that SHOULDN'T steal the thunder of the ACTUAL story! Don't make excuses for this movie by saying that the effects were "Awesome!", hence the movie was "Awesome!" In the not-too-distant future (next Tuesday), those same effects will look so commonplace. Then how will you describe the film?
I don't want to cover the ambiguous ending in too much detail. I had hoped for some RESOLUTION by
watching 'REVOLUTIONS'. Isn't that what most of us had paid to see? An ending? A bookend to a
fantastic voyage? No, you get a big "THE END" followed by a "boing" sound when a question mark suddenly pops up on the screen ala 'Flash Gordon' (this actually only happened in my subconscious mind; or did it?).The thought of another 'Matrix' film is disheartening at this point.
I really hope those of you that thought 'REVOLUTIONS' was "GREAT!" will mull over what "was" and
what "could have been" (Phantom Menace de ja vu). I don't think time will wear well on this last installment of 'The Matrix'. I really am a 'Matrix' geek like most of you, and that is why I am really, really disappointed. Unless someone can convince me (sans insults) otherwise, I have lost hope in much the same way Morpheus did when his ship blew up and he magically turned into Mr. Sulu from Star Trek.
Labels: reviews
