The Matrix Reloaded

In a Nutshell: Good, but not as good as the first. Not as consistent or as tightly written as the original. Still manages to throw you for a loop at the end. If you haven't seen it yet, there is a preview for The Matrix Revolutions after all of the credits (but there are a ton of credits (like 8 minutes or so), so be prepared to sit for a while to see it.

Quick Plot: The Machines are attacking Zion, and only Neo can stop them. Along the way, he bumps into some old "friends" (Agent Smith and The Oracle), and a few new ones (you'll see). That about covers it.

In Detail: A touch disappointing, but then again, what film could possibly live up to that kind of hype? But seriously, I simply don't think it was as good of a movie. It was lacking much of the fun philosophy of the first one, IMO, until near the very end. I think there were some fights and effects just for the sake of having them, as opposed to the original where they were purposeful. Due to the restrained budget on the first one, they had to use the effects for just that, maximum effect. Here, they could use them "just because," and I really feel it detracts from the film. I also found the ending quite lame. There were two other places they could have ended it before they actually did. (We were really convinced it would end at the later of those two, but it just kept going.) The "mostly talk" portions of the film dragged on for too long without saying anything important (well, anything important to this movie; might be important later). There were other facts or facets that they just threw out there without much explanation, and they never came back to them. Maybe they will in Revolutions, but if not, they missed some great potential moments and they left us hanging on some aspects. Quite frustrating. Mainly, it was a good action flick, but it lacked the tautness and delightful discoveries of the first. Go with lower expectations, and you might enjoy it more. And I'm serious about having enough time to go to the bathroom during the credits and still make it back for the Revolutions preview; my brother did just that when we saw it with him. I have a slightly more in depth view of what disappointed me about the movie, but it contains spoilers that I don't want to include here. Let me know if you're interested. It also includes some thoughts and opinions about what might happen in the next movie (all personal theories, though; nothing official in any way).

Will I Buy It? Honestly, it depends on the third film (The Matrix Revolutions, opening in November 2003). If I don't like the way the whole series finishes up, then I'll just stick with the original and let the next two pass; it stands alone just fine, IMO. If I like Revolutions, then I'll have to have this one, for the sake of continuity.

Addendum: We didn't care for Revolutions either. As far as we are concerned, there is only the first movie, no sequels.