The Matrix Revolutions

A sad and undignified ending to the series. Unarguably it has an underlying thought and depth to it (even though sometimes it is a bit of a problem finding it). But as for the rest; the intriguingly developing storyline around the Merovingian and Persephone trails off into nothing. And the amount of clichés in this exceeds anything seen in any other seriously intended movie over the past years. OK, maybe there are more clichés in Pearl Harbor and We Were Soldiers, but at least those movies don’t ride on the philosophical wave typical of the beginning of the twenty-first century. The effects are just for effect and not for the good of the movie. Needlessly long scenes and a completely different approach to the material than in the preceding parts. I have nothing against change, but it just doesn’t work here. It almost looks as if, paradoxically, apart from who plays Persephone, the only significant upside of the movie is the music in the last third. The chorals are surprisingly suitable for this “techno movie". The only flawless area is the audiovisual treat in the form of the final duel between Neo and Smith and it is a great shame about all of the wasted potential here. As excellent as part one was, despite it borrowing a lot of motifs from other movies, and part two was a great relaxing watch, unfortunately part three is nothing better than criminally mediocre. (13/05/2022)

The action is bombastic and, most importantly, the seemingly endless battle with the machines has the makings to enter the company of some of the most iconic scenes. But that script! Compared to the lacklustre second part, it’s considerably sharper, with less bullshit, and subordinates almost everything to the great effect, or rather to the exterior, but it again fails to impress the viewer in any way or with any idea, to squeeze at least a pinch of emotions out of them... I admittedly rode the wave of the spectacular action, but I actually kept waiting and waiting and asking myself what the hell can come out of this? And then suddenly the end came and all I could feel was disappointment. That was supposed to be it? Is this what everyone's so crazy about? After the fantastic first one, the directors must have run out of breath and Reloaded and Revolutions are just a bloated bubble, we can only shake our heads in disbelief. This time, there was no déja vu. (29/09/2011)

The raindrops are still falling, the heroes are still the same, but for us that code has somehow changed. It remains green, but no longer flows smoothly. It stumbles – and instead of a quality storyline, it is teeming with unjustified monologues, unbelievable dialogue, and sadly dysfunctional action scenes. When I think back to the perfection of the first installment, the precisely defined characters, and the unforgettable two hours that can be watched endlessly without losing their magic, it feels unfair that the Lana and Lilly Wachowski have fatally let me down and forever ruined one unforgettable story for me. Morpheus has become just a motivational figure, Niobe herself has no role, regardless of who she rescues, and only the tangible bond between Neo and Trinity gives me a feeling of some vitality. And even the perfect final battle does not repair that tainted impression for me. This program has performed an invalid operation and will be terminated. (13/07/2005)

Rating the entire trilogy. Like in Reloaded, there are moments that really pissed me off, but as a whole it’s amazing, and the climax, when white is reunited with black, can’t be described other than superb, unexpected (though actually inevitable) and incredibly deep… PS: In the great order of things, the Battle of Sion is just eye candy, but that doesn’t alter the fact that it made my jaw drop. (22/08/2010)

As I mentioned with The Matrix Reloaded, these two films should be evaluated together because they work best as a pair. Yes, at times it's overly commercial, and on the other hand, it's sometimes overly philosophical without the philosophy saying much of anything. One ends up going in circles without anything substantial to grasp onto. But when it comes to the final scene, where Neo is supposed to reach the mainframe and either win or lose, it always grips my heart and gives me chills. Certainly, it didn't fulfill the promise of the first film, but I can't help feeling that, with some distance, I'm not actually that disappointed with it. (26/01/2014)