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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Kesh" data-source="post: 1208055" data-attributes="member: 1308">Saw the 12:30 pm showing of <a href="http://www.thematrix.com" target="_blank">Matrix Revolutions</a> today. So, here's my thoughts.Short version, without spoilers: it did a good job of tying together the plot and providing a good ending to the story. Not everything was cleanly answered, but most of it was laid out for us. There wasn't as much action as the previous two films, but a lot more large, military-style events. So it wasn't as gripping, but still very fun.Oh, and don't sit through the end credits. There's nothing special afterwards.Now, on to the main review...I'll start off by mentioning the trailers before the film. Looks like there's a new film based on Marvel's The Punisher comics. Doesn't look too bad, might even be fun, but I was never fond of Punisher anyway.Another Fast and the Furious rip-off, but by the original creators. This one is motorcycles, called Torque.A sweet, sweet trailer for a thriller called Mindhunters. FBI trainees, specializing in serial killers, are finally about to finish their training and have to go through an exercise simulating the events of a deranged killer. Unfortunately... someone really is a psychotic killer, which is discovered when one of the traps is real and kills an agent. But.. the only people on the island are the trainees and their teachers.The trailer for Troy blew me away. It's the Trojan War done Gladiator style. 'nuff said. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f60e.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":cool:" title="Cool    :cool:"  data-smilie="6"data-shortname=":cool:" />And, the teaser trailer for Return of the King. I was hoping for the full trailer, but oh well. On to the movie!The Matrix: RevolutionsNo intro. No flashbacks. You jump right in where we left off, with minimal exposition to set up the story. Might want to go rent/rewatch Matrix Reloaded before you go to the theater.Zion is less than a day from destruction. Neo is in a coma... and Bane/Smith is unconscious right beside him. So, now what?[spoiler]We do learn a lot in this film. Programs can gain emotions, or a relatively close approximation thereof. They have just as much choice as humans, but most programs choose not to fight their purpose.Choice is the real focus of the story, which is delivered with just the right amount of firmness. Not over the top, not too subtle.Neo's ability to affect machines in the real world wasn't actually explained, nor his ability to access the Matrix without a link. I suppose that's a suspension of disbelief point, though a tough one to make.The effects were, of course, excellent. Great job blending CGI with real actors this time, nothing as blatant as the "Burly Brawl" in the second film. The APCs, or mini-mechs as I like to call them, were pretty well done. I especially liked how they had to be reloaded with ammo, which came to be a critical part of the story.The Neo/Bane fight was pretty well done. A decent reason for the strobe-light effect, and I was shocked by Neo being blinded. It really fits the archetype though... made blind, so he can 'see'. Though the makeup people saved money by putting the blindfold on him. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f609.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=";)" title="Wink    ;)"  data-smilie="2"data-shortname=";)" />I liked the Machine City. Interesting visual design. The Big Floating Head was pretty cheesy though. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f600.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":D" title="Big grin    :D"  data-smilie="8"data-shortname=":D" />And finally, the Neo/Smith fight. I figured out how Neo was going to win back when I first saw Reloaded, but it was interesting to see how he got there. The FX were great, the combat was fun (if a bit hard to actually see) and the solution made sense.My biggest complaint with the film was the death scenes. The APC captain and Trinity should've been dead, dead, dead... instead, they managed to have a nice conversation and say everything they needed to before dying. Gah.There was very little of the signature hand-to-hand combat in this movie. Carrie-Ann Moss got to do her favorite bits, though, during the "Hell Club" fight. Including her classic jump-hover-kick from the first film. Nice to see that again.I wish the Merovingian had died. Damn, patronizing, rambling... grrf. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />[/spoiler]Overall, I'd give Revolutions 3 out of 5 stars as part of the trilogy, 2 out of 5 as a film you see by itself without watching Reloaded first. They really are one big movie, so watching them back-to-back would make it flow a lot better.Personally, I hope that someday the brothers edit together Reloaded, Enter the Matrix and Revolutions into one extra-large director's cut someday. Dunno how that'd fit on a single DVD though. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f600.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":D" title="Big grin    :D"  data-smilie="8"data-shortname=":D" /></blockquote>

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