There
is no denying it; THE MATRIX RELOADED ($30) is one heck of a cool
movie. By the same token, THE MATRIX RELOADED isn’t quite as good
as it predecessor- THE MATRIX. Whereas THE MATRIX had a
whole lot of originality on its side, this second film in the trilogy by
brothers Andy and Larry Wachowski, seems a bit too stylistically
reminiscent of its predecessor, as well as every copycat movie that has
come this way since its release. Also, some sequences in THE MATRIX RELOADED
come off as too self indulgent- going on longer than necessary and sucking
some of the energy out of the film’s pacing. Now don’t get me wrong, I
really liked THE MATRIX RELOADED, I just think that if the plot and
pacing could have been streamlined a bit more to maintain a continuous
sense of urgency throughout the entire film.
Picking
up the story after Neo (Keanu Reeves) discovers the true nature of reality
and his place in the order of things, THE MATRIX RELOADED finds the
free contingent of humanity on the brink of loosing the ongoing war.
However, the enigmatic Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) is convinced that
prophecy is soon to be fulfilled and that Neo is the key to humanity’s
victory. While he may be the key to the prophecy, Neo, and his comrades
Morpheus and Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) are dependent upon the guidance
from The Oracle (Gloria Foster), who has gone into hiding within The
Matrix. Also waiting for Neo inside The Matrix is his old nemesis, Agent
Smith (Hugo Weaving), who now packs more than a few surprises. The cast of
THE MATRIX RELOADED also features Jada Pinkett Smith, Monica
Bellucci, Harry Lennix, Helmut Bakaitis, Randall Duk Kim and Anthony
Zerbe.
As
with the first film, I hate to give away too much of the plot of THE
MATRIX RELOADED, as it would spoil one’s enjoyment of this
particular film. However, I will give you some advice; don’t sit down to
watch THE MATRIX RELOADED unless you have already seen THE
MATRIX. Sure, one could watch this movie without seeing the first
film, and love every bit of the breathtaking action and some spectacular
CGI effects, but they would really be at a loss to understand the story.
However, once you are up to speed, THE MATRIX RELOADED proves to be
a slam-bang terrific action movie that resonates with some depth and
meaning. THE MATRIX RELOADED also whets your appetite for THE
MATRIX REVOLUTIONS, which will be hitting theaters shortly after the
DVD release of this middle film of the trilogy.
Warner
Home Video has made THE MATRIX RELOADED available on DVD in a
marvelous looking 2.35:1 wide screen presentation that has been enhanced
for playback on 16:9 displays. The image is uniformly excellent, providing
a crisp highly defined picture throughout. Colors are beautifully
rendered, appearing vibrant when required, and purposely skewed towards
green when the necessities of the plot dictate. The cooler hues look
incredible and those of a warmer cast are even better. Blacks are dead on
the money, while the whites are clean and completely stable. Contrast can
be wonderfully smooth or a bit harsh, depending upon the requirements of a
given moment. Shadow detail is first rate and the picture produces an
excellent sense of dimensionality. Digital compression artifacts are
rarely noticeable on this cleanly authored DVD.
THE
MATRIX RELOADED features an incredible Dolby Digital 5.1 channel
soundtrack that is everything that one should expect from this type of
sci-fi action movie. The is plenty of audio bravado in the mix-
aggressively taking advantage of the all the discrete channels for the
film’s numerous action sequences. Additionally, one will find a whole
lot of atmosphere and nuance in the sound mix that helps to subtlety
create the film’s acoustic environments with a real sense of space.
There is very effective imaging across the forward soundstage, which
nicely wraps around into the surround channels. Also, there are plenty of
sound effects whizzing through the rear channels to keep surround junkies
happy. As for the bass channel, it is going to rock your world- or at the
very least, rumble the sofa across your listening room. A French 5.1
channel track is also encoded onto the DVD, as are English, French and
Spanish subtitles.
Full
motion video, animation and sound serve to enhance the DVD's interactive
menus. Through the menus, one has access to standard scene selection and
set up features, as well as the supplemental programming that is contained
on the second disc of the set. Since a special edition release will be
forthcoming, when the entire trilogy is revisited on DVD, the supplements
on the current DVD set are modest. Preload is a twenty-two
minute program that contains the usual mix of interviews, as well a
glimpse at how some of the film’s magic was created. The Matrix
Unfolds is a five-minute look at the film trilogy, its connection
to THE ANIMATRIX, as well as the video games inspired by the movie
series.
The
Freeway Chase runs thirty minutes and gives a very detailed look
at the film’s top action set piece and how it was accomplished. Clocking
in at slightly less than ten minutes is Get Me An Exit,
which examines the impact the style of film series has had on advertising
and product placement. Enter The Matrix: Making The Game is
a twenty eight minute program that looks at the enormous effort that went
into conceiving and producing the video game inspired by the movie series.
A trailer for THE ANIMATRIX, as well as a spoof of the film from
the MTV Movie Awards closes out the supplements.
Despite
some minor flaws, I still think that THE MATRIX RELOADED is one
heck of a cool movie. As for Warner’s DVD release, it looks incredible
and sounds phenomenal, making it another must have demo disc. Very highly
recommended.
There
is no denying it; THE MATRIX RELOADED ($30) is one heck of a cool
movie. By the same token, THE MATRIX RELOADED isn’t quite as good
as it predecessor- THE MATRIX. Whereas THE MATRIX had a
whole lot of originality on its side, this second film in the trilogy by
brothers Andy and Larry Wachowski, seems a bit too stylistically
reminiscent of its predecessor, as well as every copycat movie that has
come this way since its release. Also, some sequences in THE MATRIX RELOADED
come off as too self indulgent- going on longer than necessary and sucking
some of the energy out of the film’s pacing. Now don’t get me wrong, I
really liked THE MATRIX RELOADED, I just think that if the plot and
pacing could have been streamlined a bit more to maintain a continuous
sense of urgency throughout the entire film.
Picking
up the story after Neo (Keanu Reeves) discovers the true nature of reality
and his place in the order of things, THE MATRIX RELOADED finds the
free contingent of humanity on the brink of loosing the ongoing war.
However, the enigmatic Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) is convinced that
prophecy is soon to be fulfilled and that Neo is the key to humanity’s
victory. While he may be the key to the prophecy, Neo, and his comrades
Morpheus and Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) are dependent upon the guidance
from The Oracle (Gloria Foster), who has gone into hiding within The
Matrix. Also waiting for Neo inside The Matrix is his old nemesis, Agent
Smith (Hugo Weaving), who now packs more than a few surprises. The cast of
THE MATRIX RELOADED also features Jada Pinkett Smith, Monica
Bellucci, Harry Lennix, Helmut Bakaitis, Randall Duk Kim and Anthony
Zerbe.
As
with the first film, I hate to give away too much of the plot of THE
MATRIX RELOADED, as it would spoil one’s enjoyment of this
particular film. However, I will give you some advice; don’t sit down to
watch THE MATRIX RELOADED unless you have already seen THE
MATRIX. Sure, one could watch this movie without seeing the first
film, and love every bit of the breathtaking action and some spectacular
CGI effects, but they would really be at a loss to understand the story.
However, once you are up to speed, THE MATRIX RELOADED proves to be
a slam-bang terrific action movie that resonates with some depth and
meaning. THE MATRIX RELOADED also whets your appetite for THE
MATRIX REVOLUTIONS, which will be hitting theaters shortly after the
DVD release of this middle film of the trilogy.
Warner
Home Video has made THE MATRIX RELOADED available on DVD in a
marvelous looking 2.35:1 wide screen presentation that has been enhanced
for playback on 16:9 displays. The image is uniformly excellent, providing
a crisp highly defined picture throughout. Colors are beautifully
rendered, appearing vibrant when required, and purposely skewed towards
green when the necessities of the plot dictate. The cooler hues look
incredible and those of a warmer cast are even better. Blacks are dead on
the money, while the whites are clean and completely stable. Contrast can
be wonderfully smooth or a bit harsh, depending upon the requirements of a
given moment. Shadow detail is first rate and the picture produces an
excellent sense of dimensionality. Digital compression artifacts are
rarely noticeable on this cleanly authored DVD.
THE
MATRIX RELOADED features an incredible Dolby Digital 5.1 channel
soundtrack that is everything that one should expect from this type of
sci-fi action movie. The is plenty of audio bravado in the mix-
aggressively taking advantage of the all the discrete channels for the
film’s numerous action sequences. Additionally, one will find a whole
lot of atmosphere and nuance in the sound mix that helps to subtlety
create the film’s acoustic environments with a real sense of space.
There is very effective imaging across the forward soundstage, which
nicely wraps around into the surround channels. Also, there are plenty of
sound effects whizzing through the rear channels to keep surround junkies
happy. As for the bass channel, it is going to rock your world- or at the
very least, rumble the sofa across your listening room. A French 5.1
channel track is also encoded onto the DVD, as are English, French and
Spanish subtitles.
Full
motion video, animation and sound serve to enhance the DVD's interactive
menus. Through the menus, one has access to standard scene selection and
set up features, as well as the supplemental programming that is contained
on the second disc of the set. Since a special edition release will be
forthcoming, when the entire trilogy is revisited on DVD, the supplements
on the current DVD set are modest. Preload is a twenty-two
minute program that contains the usual mix of interviews, as well a
glimpse at how some of the film’s magic was created. The Matrix
Unfolds is a five-minute look at the film trilogy, its connection
to THE ANIMATRIX, as well as the video games inspired by the movie
series.
The
Freeway Chase runs thirty minutes and gives a very detailed look
at the film’s top action set piece and how it was accomplished. Clocking
in at slightly less than ten minutes is Get Me An Exit,
which examines the impact the style of film series has had on advertising
and product placement. Enter The Matrix: Making The Game is
a twenty eight minute program that looks at the enormous effort that went
into conceiving and producing the video game inspired by the movie series.
A trailer for THE ANIMATRIX, as well as a spoof of the film from
the MTV Movie Awards closes out the supplements.
Despite
some minor flaws, I still think that THE MATRIX RELOADED is one
heck of a cool movie. As for Warner’s DVD release, it looks incredible
and sounds phenomenal, making it another must have demo disc. Very highly
recommended.
