joelsundstrom I enjoyed the first Matrix for it's excellent action and special effects that still hold up today. Unfortunately Warner Bros wanted a sequel and since The Wachowskis didn't really know how they could up the action, special effects and story, this film failed. For a start, the pacing is really poor, the movie takes an hour to get going with four action scenes and painful monologues. The action is also not great, the fact that our heroes encounter extreme peril and survive the situation without any significant injuries makes the action less intense. And also don't mention there's too much action and some of it goes on for too long, boring me to death. Also the human CGI looks terrible, Neo looks like he's made of plastic whenever he flies and The Smiths in the Burly Brawl move unrealistically and look awful. Also I should mention that even though this movie is about as long as the first, it lasts way too long, seriously, this should be 15 minutes shorter with faster pacing and a better story. In all honesty I'm not surprised this film failed, there's no need for a sequel to The Matrix and the writers would have a tough job trying to make a compelling plot. There is a couple of good action scenes, some okay performances (and really good ones with Hugo Weaving and Carrie Anne-Moss) and great dialogue, but for the most part The Matrix Reloaded is another bad movie sequel.

dedjuj (Spoiler Alert : this review may contain Spoilers).The movie The Matrix Reloaded was a great sequel to The Matrix. There were a lot of hidden meaning in this movie just like before with a lot of reference to religion. The world as we know it, is a place where we live, grow up, get an education, etc. This has been the reality that almost every human being on the planet knows. People think that every day they make choices that affect how their life goes on. For example, if you to go to college and get a degree to get a good job and to support yourself. Choose to start a business or company, then you can make money and also help other people with your product or ideas. Well, no, you don't have a choose anything in your life. These so called choices that you make are already made for you. This world is not the real world, but a fake one that is here to misguide us and to hide the truth about life. That truth is the what the movie The Matrix Reloaded is about. The world isn't real and that we follow blindly a world that hides the truth from us. Freewill is a complete lie that is made up so that people will follow this fake world and not second guess it. The choices that we think we make aren't really made by us, but already made for us. We are here to understand why we made it. There is a reason why things happen the way they do and we need to understand it because it is beyond our so called control.There is a scene that takes place on a bench in a park about half way through the movie. The Oracle is waiting for Neo on the bench and is watching people as they walk by. Neo, who is accompanied by seraph the person who protects the Oracle, walks into the park and is greeted by the Oracle. Neo is there to get answers for the things that has been going on lately. The Oracle tells Neo about choice and how we are not here to make them but to understand why we did what we did. This will be an important factor that Neo has to consider when he is conflicted with the event that goes on. The survival of the real world Zion in the movie depends on what he does.This movie has points that reflect the teachings of The Bhagavad Gita and the Mahabharata, which are Hindu religious texts. The Bhagavad Gita is a story about Arjuna and Krishna. This whole text is about the conversation that the two had while in the middle of a great war called the Mahabharata. The warrior Arjuna was conflicted due to the fact that the people he was fighting and was supposed to kill were his relatives, friends, teachers and etc. Arjuna was just about to quit and go back to the forest to live out his days in exile when Krishna (a god) talked to him. Krishna tells Arjuna that this is his duty, his purpose in life. The people he kills are not really going to die, but go to the next step in the reincarnation cycle.In the movie, Neo is the like Arjuna in the sense that he is ready to quit and he doesn't know what to do. The Oracle makes it easy for him by telling him that he already made the choice and now all he had to do is understand why he does what he does. The Oracle also says that the "One" which she refers to as Neo in the movie, has to go back to the original source. In the movie, the original source, is the machine mainframe. He must once again become a part of the mainframe.This is another reference to the Hinduism culture. In Hinduism the ultimate goal is to become one with Brahman. That is the only thing that matters in life, in fact the purpose in life is to merge our soul back with Brahman. Brahman is the one god that is above all others. The part where Neo has to join the Machine Mainframe is just like the how we have to merge our soul with Brahman. The similarities are undeniably there and that what the whole movie was based on. The Oracle Says that the purpose of the one is understand the choices that he already made and also in the end to join the mainframe to reset the matrix and bring peace to both the Matrix and Zion.The plot of the movie is great and there is a greater hidden meaning to every scene. This movie is undoubtedly a great classic and it lives up to the expectation of The Matrix series.

TheLittleSongbird While there are better films out there than 'The Matrix', in its genre and as an overall film, it is still a great, impeccably made and awe-inspiring film and ground-breaking in its visuals and sound. It was followed by two sequels, neither of them being absolute travesties but at the same time neither are close to the same level.Under review is its first sequel 'The Matrix Reloaded'. A film with some great merits that come close to matching how 'The Matrix' executed the same merits. It also suffers from some major flaws, that make it both disappointing and frustrating. Granted the Wachowskis had a mammoth task to follow and it was such a high standard to compete with, so it was always going to be touch and go as to how it was going to come off.Starting with its good things, once again while not revolutionary 'The Matrix Reloaded' looks wonderful. The production design is still audacious, the special effects dazzling and uber-cool, very slick editing and cinematography that's both clever and imaginative. Once again the music score is hypnotic and haunting, the use of sound having a real sense of eeriness.'The Matrix Reloaded' benefits from some astonishing set pieces, that benefit from looking great, breathless stunts, a great sense of paranoia, energy and tension and, while rather underused, the villains are interesting.Acting varies with Keanu Reeves still oozing super-coolness, Carrie Anne Moss bringing strength and vulnerability and Hugo Weaving a commanding presence. As charismatic as Laurence Fishburne is he does take it too seriously here with too much of a heavy approach.Which is a general problem with 'The Matrix Reloaded' in feeling too heavy and the tone being too serious. It also feels bloated, trying to do too much and also incorporating too many themes and characters, some being not that interesting.Its writing is messy as well, with so much of the dialogue being cheesy and stilted. The pace surprisingly plods, especially at the beginning that feels endless with scenes that serve little to no point or drag badly, and the finale is convoluted.In summary, not an awful film but for a reload/sequel it's vastly inferior, even for expectations being so mixed. 5/10 Bethany Cox

AllNewSux I used to own this movie on DVD, but after a couple of views I dumped it because it was goofy and confusing as Hell. Recently I watched the 2003 film 'The Animatrix' and it finally gave me some understanding of the 2nd film in the trilogy. Don't get me wrong, as a whole it's still quite confusing. New characters are introduced with no backstory, many characters look somewhat similar to other characters which occasionally makes distinguishing them difficult and the long expositions only serve to confuse things even more. 'The Animatrix' will only help you understand some, but not all of this.'The Matrix Reloaded' basically introduces us to a whole new world in Zion. This is good because it makes us care more about the fate of the humans who are disconnected from the Matrix. We see them living in a crowded city with families just like us as opposed to simply sticking with Morpheus and the gang. A lot more cinematic influences are clearly shown in this film from spaghetti Westerns to Bruce Lee to Shaw brothers films the movie never hides from it's origins. Occasionally the CGI is over the top as it is in every movie made after the original 'Matrix', but I don't have too much of a problem with what is supposed to be a giant computer program looking like a computer program. Neo has become a messiah and a superhero by this time and he seems unsure of whether or not that's a good thing. Although only shown briefly, Neo is basically Jesus to many people and that's when we also get to see some of the influence of the Bible on this movie. Neo is actually called Superman in a scene because of the unbelievable powers he now possesses. Granted when a hero or villain is this unstoppable the numerous fights in the film could get boring, but they don't. In fact the fight against the Merovingian's henchmen is possibly the coolest fight scene of 21st century cinema. Yes, Neo is going to win this battle too, but it's interesting to see just how. If you don't understand the movie you aren't going to like it and if you have no previous experience with the Matrix universe you will probably downright hate it. However, if like me you think the 1st film is one of the greatest sci-fi movies ever made and would like to comprehend it better watch the other films in the series. Watch 'The Animatrix', watch a documentary or read the plot synopsis a few times before going in because I honestly believe that the better you understand this, the more you will be able to appreciate what is actually a pretty decent sequel...