Rating: 
Summary: The best action flick of the year
Review: OK, so Keanu Reeves has the acting range of a shop window mannequin, but not even his wooden thesping can diminish the quality of this visually awesome sci-fi spectacular. Action and FX fans won't be dissapointed, neither will those looking for a good story. Sueprificial, but fun.
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Summary: hip new generation star wars, excellent adventure dude!
Review: ok, so the DVD 'ain't out yet, the movie rocks and I can't shut up about it! I went into the theater thinking it would be a moderately entertaining way to kill a couple of hours. Man was I wrong! This movie blew me away! Much has been said about the cult following the movie has generated and I'm proud to be counted among them. Basically, this is Star Wars retold for the millenium. The symbols and the archetypes are all there. You know what? It still works! The unexpected spin really, and I mean REALLY caught me off guard! Once you find out what the Matrix is, and trust me you don't know what it is unless yopu've seen it, you'll just about jump out of your seat! In one flash, the world that you know and feel comfortable in reverses in such a dramatic way that you will hang on every scene thereafter. Rumors are that this is the first part of a trilogy which has already been conceptualized and is currently in preproduction. This film ends like "Empire Strikes Back" in that there is a lot left to go for the story. I can't wait! Stunning visuals, great characters, awesome production design and a script so exasperating you won't have the energy to get up once the credits roll! This is anything but the mindless sci-fi schlock that Hollywood churns out by the dozen. This is a truly original film, albeit inspired by "Star Wars" as well as another major sci-fi film I won't mention to save the secret. Don't kid yourself, if you think you're a sci-fi fan, this is the film to watch.
Rating: 
Summary: DVD Version - "scope" widescreen cuts off top - read on...
Review: OK, the widescreen gives you the very thick black bars, trying to maintain the aspect ratio of what the super-35 filming showed in the movie theater. HOWEVER, the VHS version in pan&scan shows more. THE DVD CUTS OFF TOPS OF HEADS. READ ALL THE NEWSGROUPS. You have to get used to the tops of heads being cut off for this movie. This is a rip-off!
Rating:
Summary: What's all the fuss?
Review: OK- the special effects are groundbreaking but people talk about The Matrix SO MUCH for one reason: it is one of those rare pieces of art that will change the way that you look at the world. Period. The movie has provided a clear code for looking at "Reality". This is modern myth making. Concepts like "the matrix" "gatekeepers" and "having your energy vampirized" and "waking up" are so well exemplified in this story and so applicable to THE REAL WORLD TODAY that the timing seems perfect...and planned. Companion reading: Children of the Matrix, by David Icke. See how far the rabbit hole goes...
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Summary: It is a baaaaaaadddddd movie.
Review: OK. IT GOOD. WHAT ELSE WRITE ME? EXCEPT YO AM NEO AND WATCHING YOU I AM. ---YODA
Rating: 
Summary: this movie ruined itself
Review: OK. The Matrix had a great concept. Sure, it was a bit similar to some writing by Lem (The Futurological Congress, Further Reminiscences of Ijon Tichy, and so on), but that's ok. All the groundwork concepts in the first half of this movie were amazing. People being farmed and fed hallucinations, reality only being what you think it is--great! The only problem is that about halfway through, the movie simply ceased to make sense. Neo comes back to life because Trinity kisses him? They have to get phone calls to come back into reality? Unplugging them from the matrix kills them, but Neo survived his initial unplugging? These all-powerful robots who control everything in the Matrix have to resort to fallible "agents" to do their dirty work? What? If you want some real sci-fi, go watch Twelve Monkeys. Or better yet, read some short stories by Stanislaw Lem--that'll *really* play with your definition of reality.
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Summary: sound or movie ?
Review: ok..what do you want when you watch a DVD movie ? Do you want great sound or a great film ? The Matrix has Keanu in it, so we aint buying this for acting now are we ? The sound is brilliant but the movie is average...maybe a little above average. I think the visual and sound effects will keep anyone interested for the first couple of screenings but if you watch movies many times, I think the gimmic of great sound will wear off. A great one to borrow from your mates for a while wihtout paying for it !
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Summary: 100011000110111101101011010100001010010110101110101
Review: Okay to be perfectly honest, I didn't think the special effects were very good, they looked fake to me, but that is because I work with special effects, so I know how it is done, and I know the CGI doesn't handle human movement very well, but for the time they did this the did one heck of a job. The special effects were actually easy to do, it is just know one had a script in which they could use them until now. Anyway I found this movie was very similar to Total Recal and Tron, but the characters in this movie knew how to dress. This movie didn't have a confusing plot or story, and the acting wasn't great, but it was good. Anyway The Matrix, the codirecting Wachowski brothers Andy and Larry annihilated any suggestion of a sophomore jinx. Set in the not too distant future in an insipid, characterless city, we find a young man named Neo (Keanu Reeves). A software techie by day and a computer hacker by night, he sits alone at home by his monitor, waiting for a sign, a signal--from what or whom he doesn't know until one night, a mysterious woman named Trinity seeks him out and introduces him to that faceless character he has been waiting for: Morpheus. A messiah of sorts, Morpheus presents Neo with the truth about his world by shedding light on the dark secrets that have troubled him for so long. Ultimately, Morpheus illustrates to Neo what the Matrix is a reality beyond reality that controls all of their lives, in a way that Neo can barely comprehend. Neo thus embarks on an adventure that is both terrifying and enthralling. Pitted against an enemy that transcends human concepts of evil, Morpheus and his team must train Neo to believe that he is the chosen champion of their fight. This was a very good movie but it is overated. Now the sequels look better than this, so if you haven't seen it, do so. Yes it is dated in terms of visual effects, but it is worth a look.
Rating:
Summary: Great film. Only a few minor flaws
Review: Okay, great special effects. Great action. Great story. Decent acting. You can read all of this in the other reviews. It is a no brainer that if you like any of the above qualities, you will probably like this movie. I have a few minor complaints, though. First of all, Keanu didn't quite pull off the kung fu thing. Yes he tried hard, which is one of the things I like about Keanu: he always tries hard and often takes on roles that are a bit of a stretch for him (John Harker in Dracula, for instance). But he just wasn't convincing. He is a great action star (no one could have been better in Point Break), but casting him in a kung fu role is akin to casting Charles Bronson in a ballet role. My second complaint, and I have seen this reiterated in some of the other reviews, is that the movie tried to be philosophical, but it really wasn't. It had a few pithy quotes, but it only scratched the surface of what they could have done with a film like this. Perhaps they were afraid of alienating the action movie fans by making it too deep, but I say "go for the depth." Complaint three has to do with the agents. Here you have virtual beings that integrate perfectly with the Matrix. They could take over any person in the Matrix, they could perform amazing feats by bending the Matrix to their will, so why couldn't they shoot guns for beans? They couldn't hit the broad side of a barn from the inside with a shotgun!!! Someone needs to rewrite that program. Lastly, Joe Pantolino (sp?) was grossly miscast in this film. I have liked Joe as an actor every since he played Guido in Risky Business. He is a good and likeable supporting actor, but he just doesn't fit in the cyberpunk arena. The filmmakers could have done just as well putting Zsa Zsa Gabor in that role. Sorry, Joe. That wasn't a cut. You just don't fit in that picture. Bill Paxton would have been a good substitute. Other than those minor flaws, the movie was excellent and enjoyable. The special effects blew me away, especially after I learned that so many of them were relatively low-tech. The "Making of.." feature on this DVD is an enlightening ride, as is the commentary. If you haven't seen this film, but think it looks remotely interesting, get it. The good far outweighs the bad.
Rating:
Summary: Ooh! Pretty pictures!
Review: Okay, this film's kinda fun if you don't think about it too hard, but when people characterize it as "thought-provoking" or similar, I have to assume that they, ahem, don't read much. I mean, really: The Matrix doesn't have an original thought in its head. The "robots controlling humans" business plays *exactly* like something from an old issue of Heavy Metal (now THERE'S a shining bastion of literary quality), and the "what is reality?" affair has been done with *much* more aplomb by such authors as Philip K. Dick, Samuel Delany, and Robert Anton Wilson. And as for the characters...crikey. What can you say? Here's a fun game: read Neuromancer, then watch The Matrix and shout out each character's name as he/she appears. You shouldn't have much trouble. All in all, a truly preposterous film, yet strangely enjoyable. Just phase out the bits where it tries and fails to be profound, enjoy the goofily mindless action sequences, and laugh at the numerous unintentionally funny segments, and you should spend an enjoyable couple hours.
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