Review: Matrix Revolutions, The (2003)

THE MATRIX REVOLUTIONS (2003) 2 1/2 stars out of 4. Starring Keanu
Reeves, Laurence Fisburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugh Weaving, Jada Pinkett
Smith, Mary Alice, Tanveer K. Atwal, Nona Gaye and Harold Perrinau.
Director of Photography Bill Pope. Music by Don Davis. Written and
directed by The Wachowski Brothers. Rated R. Running time: 129 minutes.


 The Matrix filled you with awe, wonder and paranoia. It got you
thinking about reality and the various planes on which it could exist.

 The Matrix Reloaded filled you with ennui as it ponderously
pontificated about choice and free will, while all you wanted to see was
Neo kick butt and save Zion and humanity.

 And so The Matrix Revolutions finally arrives, filled with sound and
fury; a cacophony that deafens the ears and deadens the mind.

 For, in the end — or is it the beginning — Revolutions leaves you
wanting; like the old Peggy Lee song, you'll be asking, "Is that all
there is?"

 After sitting through more than six hours of man vs. machine, of
endless philosophical droning about the virtues of humanity vs. the
slavery of technology, Revolutions' final revelation is a major letdown.

 When the lights come up, you'll find you have more questions than
answers. And maybe that is how the Wachowski Brothers wanted it. Perhaps
it is their intention not to give us pat, easy answers, the type we
expect from most films.

 If that's the case, I applaud them while simultaneously cursing them.

 It's like spending several hours working on a gigantic jigsaw puzzle
only to find at the end that a few pieces are missing. That is the kind
of frustration Revolutions imparts.

 The movie's main drawback, though, centers on a lack of humanity. The
centerpiece of Revolutions is the battle for Zion, but instead of an
epic clash of men vs. machines, we basically watch machines vs.
machines, albeit people control the Zion war instruments.

 The other problem deals with Keanu Reeves' Neo. In this final epic, he
almost is a peripheral figure. He basically disappears for long
stretches in the movie. And while Zion battles for its survival, Neo
must battle his nemesis, Agent Smith, who has grown even more powerful
since his last appearance in Reloaded.

 Basically, the entire matrix is comprised of Smiths. "Like what I've
done with the place?" the seemingly omnipresent program asks Neo
sardonically before their final Armageddon-like face off.

 The continual use of those cryptic snatches of dialogue that go
unexplained seem to have multiplied in Revolutions. It's maddening at
times.

 Revolutions picks up where Reloaded ended, with Neo in a coma. After
his rescue, he leaves his comrades to go seek his destiny.

 Revolutions offers a smorgasbord of styles: battles scenes reminiscent
of World War II combat films; more martial arts and bullet time
sequences; and the latest in computerized special effects.

 Yet it all seems so cold, so technological. This final chapter should
have been the most human, the most emotionally charged of movies, but it
ultimately leaves you dazed and confused.

 Bob Bloom is the film critic at the Journal and Courier in Lafayette,
IN. He can be reached by e-mail at [EMAIL PROTECTED] or at
[EMAIL PROTECTED] Other reviews by Bloom can be found at
www.jconline.com by clicking on movies.
 Bloom's reviews also appear on the Web at the Rottentomatoes Web site,
www.rottentomatoes.com and at the Internet Movie Database:
http://www.imdb.com/M/reviews_by?Bob+Bloom

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X-RT-RatingText: 2.5/4