Rating: 
Summary: Greatest Sci-Fi thriller of all time!
Review: Hands down the greatest Sci-Fi\Kung Fu\Well written plot\Special effects movie of all time. It will take an achievement of unmeasureable proportions to top this one.
Rating: 
Summary: Why Can't You Rate Films "No Stars?"
Review: Hands down, this is the worst overall movie I have ever gone to see in the theater (and I saw Leonard Part 6 in the theater, folks!). I cannot believe that some cyberpunk comic book crazies have actually said "this is the best sci-fi film ever". Question: Have you ever seen any of the following films: 2001: A Space Odyssey, Star Wars(episodes 1, 4, and 5), Alien, Contact, or Blade Runner? These are good sci-fi movies. Keanu Reeves as a cyberpunk hacker running around in special effects-goth land is not a good thing. I actually got gas from this movie- that's how much I didn't like it. People who will like this movie: cybergeeks who want to believe that they may someday be taken out of their dreary existances and chosen to save humanity. Great Special effects? Looks like a Gap ad combined whith that car ad where rows of cars fly by that guy standing in a white room. Horrible, horrible, horrible! Please don't believe the hype. This movie was yuck-o. Keanu will always be that guy from "Bill & Ted" to me anyway, so I can't take the goon seriously...
Rating:
Summary: Best Movie of 1999
Review: Hands down, this was the best sf film of 1999. Even the presence of the artless Keanu Reeves works - there are few actors who could more genuinely express Neo's confusion and sense of being out-of-place than Reeves (perhaps b/c he isn't acting). The superb Agent Smith should have been a shoe-in for a Supporting Actor nomination - and doubtless would have been had this not been an sf film. Possessing a truly original plot and splendid visuals, this film was one of the few must-see films of the year - and one of only two I gladly paid theater prices to see multiple times on the big screen. This widescreen release on video more than does justice to the big screen experience - though it will likely make anyone with a less than wall-sized TV think seriously of upgrading. Those with DVD players will doubtless only consider purchasing this movie in that format - and rightly so - but if you're stuck, as I am, with only a VCR, get this widescreen version! Being driven as it is by its visuals and luscious special effects, you don't want the inevitable losses that come with conversion to pan-and-scan, no matter what size your TV screen is. To sum up, this is a great film and the conversion to video is terrific. Buy!
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Summary: Life is but a dream. What is the Matrix?
Review: Have you ever had a dream you were so sure was real? What if you were unable to wake from that dream? How would you tell the difference between the dream world, and the real world? That is the essence of this movie. What is the Matrix? Unfortunately, no one can be told what the Matrix is. You have to see it for yourself. Laurence Fishburne is the dramatic star of The Matrix. I was surprised to see him in this movie. I thought he would be in a Shakespeare Troupe. In this film, Keanu Reeves plays a software writer (at the Metacortex - this movie is teeming with subtleties - Corporation in a nameless, soulless, city) who is a computer hacker by night. He is looking for the world's leading terrorist, Morpheus (Fishburne). One day, Morpheus' surrogate contacts Reeves and takes him to meet Morpheus. Reeves believes the year is 1999. In fact, the year is closer to 2199. Reeves is one of many people enslaved by machines (this aspect of The Matrix reminds me of The Terminator) fighting humans. These machines ran on solar power. Then man "scorched the sky." What were these machines to do? They now run on body heat provided by slaves kept in womb-like chambers; the dead are liquified and fed to the living; humans are no longer grown, but harvested. To keep the slaves occupied, the machines keep the heat sources tied up in The Matrix, "the wool that has been pulled over your eyes." The humans fighting the machines are in trouble and are fighting to defend the last human city on Earth, Zion (as I said, this movie is filled with subtle references that go beyond mere action movie fodder). High-speed lines run into the brains of the humans enslaved in these womb-like chambers. This movie has some titillation for the jabronis. The Matrix is a thinking man's movie. Those humans are connected to the Matrix, a virtual reality computer program that makes people think they are going to work or school in this city or that city in 1999. Morpheus convinces Reeves he is The One, the chosen one who will destroy the Matrix and liberate the world's slaves. As Morpheus says of the Matrix, "The Matrix is a computer program. It has rules. As in any computer program, those rules can be bent and broken."
Rating:
Summary: Why this movie matters?
Review: Have you ever imagined what would happen if the noble intention of bettering society through the use of technology would be misused for vicious motives? Have you ever thought if one person could stand up against an extraordinarily powerful entity that keeps updating itself in order to be invincible? Can a lowly computer operator overcome the tendency of going complacent and convince the general society that they were living a lie and to embrace the truth, despite the certainty that they would suffer grave consequences, the likes we haven't imagined before? Well, that is what The Matrix is all about. Deep mythology. Wild Action. A group of dedicated rebels for the cause of the truth. Oh, yes. That very annoying agent guy who keeps coming back. Watch the DVD and then save up money in order to watch the next two installments in the theaters. The Wachowski Brothers have done a brilliant job of pushing the envelope in filmmaking. When the next two movies eventually come out on DVD, make a note to yourself to play some banging electronica on your stereo system. :)
Rating:
Summary: Pretentious with a capital P
Review: Having had a quick look through all the reviews for this film, it seems that there is a general consensus that it's a great film. Well, sorry to be the odd one out, but I found it immensely boring and pretentious. Yes, I admit that the fight scenes are excellent, breathing new life into screen combat. But what the hell is the story on about? It really wants to be a philosophical allegory, including bits on religion and Alice In Wonderland etc etc. It's not - it comes across some kind of weirdo's fantasy, all blazing guns and S&M leather (just like Bound, the directors' previous film). It really has no depth to it at all, but if you want a film to just enjoy, then suppose you could do worse than this. You'll just have to wade through over an hour and a half until you get to anything good...but that's what DVD can do, so in many ways it's a great film for the format. The extras are copious and well put together, with the White Rabbit feature quite fun along with a great documentary on the filming of the bullet time technology, all wrapped up in some snazzy menus (but the commentary is quite tedious). The Matrix thinks it's clever, and spends half the film trying to tell you this, which is the main reason I didn't like it. That, and it's boring. Still, it has its moments. Shame they last for a minute each.
Rating: 
Summary: OK, it's good...but not fantastic
Review: Having heard a lot of hype...I was quite excited to see it...truth is...it takes a long time to get going...and all the real clever stuff happens at the end...having said that...great effects...kinda cool story-line...but I was just left with wanting a little more...
Rating:
Summary: Take the red one!!!!!
Review: Having seen the Matrix on TV One too many times, I finally got the DVD. It came with so much stuff I was blown away so much you can still see the imprint on the wall! The "Making of" is really cool and it comes with bios for the actors. This is by far one of Keanu Reeves' best films. Be sure to also check out The Matrix Revisited also a really good DVD.
Rating:
Summary: Buy it NOW
Review: Heard alot of great reviews about this movie, you need to add this to your collection. You have to watch it a few times as so many items change and you watch it over and over again to pick up items otherwise lost. You really need this film in your collection...
Rating:
Summary: Wake me when it's over...
Review: Heavy handed new age metaphor drowned in a blinding overkill of special FX. Really clunky script, too. Stereotype characters from casting central, horrible cliches trying to pass as archetypal figures: Joseph Campbell's "The Hero With a Thousand Faces" as visually interpreted by a fifteen year old boy with a "QUAKE" fetish. Totally masturbatory shoot out sequences too, hard to believe that this film hasn't been skewered by the public in light of all those school shootings.
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