Thread by @terrorhousemag

Recently re-watched THE MATRIX movies. I'm of the opinion that the first one is massively overrated and not that good. I still think it's overrated, but the movies aren't that bad. Yeah, I said movies. RELOADED and REVOLUTIONS really aren't as bad as the fanboys say.

I can't hate RELOADED or REVOLUTIONS because all the flaws in them were also present in the first MATRIX. Defending THE MATRIX and hating the sequels is like defending REVENGE OF THE SITH and hating the first two Star Wars prequels. It was obvious where this dogshit was going.

THE FIRST FLAW: all the movies have terrible acting.

I blame the Wachowskis for this. Keanu Reeves has the emotional range of a piece of Wonderbread, sure, but Carrie-Anne Moss and Laurence Fishburne can actually act (see: UNTHINKABLE, MEMENTO, APOCALYPSE NOW).

No, the blame for why Moss and Fishburne sleepwalk through their lines goes to the Wachowskis and THE SECOND FLAW: terrible writing.

THE MATRIX is at B-movie level. On-the-nose dialogue, pompous philosophizing, no subtlety. A forerunner to the awful 80 IQ action movies of today.

NOBODY could have made scenes like the one where Trinity brings Neo back to life with THE POWER OF LOVE compelling. NOBODY could have made Morpheus come off as an actual human and not a lame magical black man stereotype. The Wachowskis are M. Night Shyamalan with stunt doubles.

In fact, much like how the PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN movies were saved by Johnny Depp, the MATRIX movies were saved by Hugo Weaving. Agent Smith is the only interesting character in the series because Weaving is the only actor who actually acts.

THE THIRD FLAW: fight scenes that stretch on for too long and have no payoff.

The big climactic showdown between Neo and Agent Smith in the first movie ends with Neo running away like a pussy. Almost all the fight scenes in the sequels end with Neo running away. Very heroic.

The best fight scene in the entire trilogy is the one between Neo and Bane/Smith midway through REVOLUTIONS, since it takes place in the real world, ergo the directors had to film a scene with minimal CGI and real-world sets. Also, it has an actual resolution (Neo kills Bane).

REVOLUTIONS really should have ended right there. Instead, it plods on for another 45 minutes until we get to the final fight between Neo and Smith, which is just a copypaste of their fight at the end of the first movie but with more special effects.

THE FOURTH FLAW: preachiness.

THE MATRIX has its head so far up its ass that it can see daylight out the other end. I love how Jean Baudrillard, upon hearing that the Wachowski were inspired by his writings, called them a couple of idiots.

Mark Ames described THE MATRIX as "Philip K. Dick for [short bus riders]." Pretty accurate. All of its ideas about the nature of reality were done far better in BLADE RUNNER and TOTAL RECALL, neither of which had to lean on grandiose, on-the-nose philosophizing.

In fact, the Wachowskis STOLE the red pill metaphor from TOTAL RECALL! Remember the scene where Arnold Schwarzenegger's character is offered a red pill that will supposedly take him back to the real world? I can't believe nobody's ever brought this up.

What I liked about THE MATRIX movies:

- Action scenes are well-edited, without narcolepsy-inducing rapid cut editing.
- Good cinematography. The run-down sci-fi real world is pleasantly reminiscent of ALIEN, and the Matrix scenes are even nicer today because of 90's nostalgia.

- The premise, while artlessly plagiarized from Dick (as mentioned earlier), is compelling enough to sustain three movies.

Basically, if you take THE MATRIX movies for what they are (B-movie schlock with a Hollywood budget) and drop the bullshit philosophizing, they're fun.

Oh yeah: the fight between Neo and Smith at the end of REVOLUTIONS, with its excess of CGI and overpowered characters who are impossible to relate to, is a pretty clear forerunner of modern movies and their video game-like action scenes. Another reason to hate it.