The Matrix Resurrections

This is another one of those movies where I hesitated quite some time before getting around to watch it. I was worried it was going to either be another woke Hollywood destruction of a franchise or just a mediocre money grab trying to squeeze the last drops out the franchise. I was wrong though. When the end credits started to roll I found myself having quite enjoyed the movie. Sure, it does not have the wow factor of the first movie but that one was the first with an entirely new story and concept so it is perhaps not so surprising. I would say that I easily enjoyed this one more than the third movie in the original trilogy though. They have made a story with a semi-plausible explanation as to why and how Neo is back in the Matrix and why he is alive in the first place. After a somewhat slow but not at all uninteresting beginning the movie takes of with the usual stunts, mysteries and cool special effects. The martial arts scenes are really not as impressive as in the first movie but the special effects are quite cool. There is a new bad guy, or should I say program, for Neo to confront and, again, he has some new and old friends to help him. I do miss the original Morpheus though. His replacement do not have the same carisma. Otherwise the characters are not bad. The weakest character and the only one I did not like at all was the new Smith. This guy was so cool in the original trilogy. The Smith they have in this movie is just your average mediocre Hollywood bad guy. Overall a quite enjoyable sci-fi/action movie and it was nice to see Keanu Reeves back as Neo.

I know it must be tempting to get the old cash cow out of the barn for one last miking, but this is just one temptation too far. It's not so much that the story is weak (it is), it's that it all takes far too long for the "Neo" (Keanu Reeves) and "Trinity" (Carrie-Anne Moss) characters to get up and running. Reeves has largely lost his freshness and vivacity and the baddies exude all the menace of a wet lettuce. At best the supporting casting borders on the bizarre - Jonathan Groff and Neil Patrick Harris are both far better sticking to their more familiar genres, and Jessica Henwick's "Bugs" character, though feisty, was just far too flat. The graphics are all old hat, as are the time-shifting themes and action scenes. There is plenty of gun totin', but nothing at all innovative. This was entertaining and escapist stuff first time around in 1999, but at 2½ hours this is slow and repetitive with some seriously wilting dialogue and the real time/their time narrative just bored me. It certainly looks good on a big screen, I fear what little it does have will not work at all on the television, but otherwise - sorry, this is poor.

FULL SPOILER-FREE REVIEW @ https://www.msbreviews.com/movie-reviews/the-matrix-resurrections-spoiler-free-review "The Matrix Resurrections is one of my biggest disappointments of the year. Lana Wachowski delivers a surprisingly meta, self-aware movie about the original trilogy packed with bold, fascinating ideas but an absolutely terrible execution. From the dreadfully unfunny, cringe-worthy brainstorming sessions about the previous films to the heavy-handed, headache-inducing exposition, the director constantly tries to tell the viewers how incredible the original trilogy is, forgetting to create a compelling, captivating story for this new installment. The gorgeous visuals and impactful score aren't good enough to elevate the shockingly average, choppy action sequences. Despite remarkable performances from Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, and the standout Jessica Henwick, Resurrections just didn't work for me. If you're a fan of the franchise, I obviously recommend watching it. Just be aware that this isn't a new The Matrix movie, but instead a film about the actual saga." Rating: C-