Catholic War Machine

So a group of my close friends and, in most cases, their significant others, went to catch the third installment of what I hoped would be the biggest trilogy in film history. After watching Matrix: Reloaded earlier this year, I hailed the Wachowski brothers as being the George Lucas for the new millenium.

Now, on hindsight, I think I was right in some aspects. Both creators have churned out a whole new cult world for its fans and the story will continue to be told and retold, over and over again.

If people bother to, that is.

But let me start with the good points:

Once again, I'm a stickler for the way they named their characters. While the biggest question, "Why is she called Trinity?" still remains, it's nice to see less-than-subtle nods to film greats like Japanese samurai actor Toshiro Mifune, Aryan mythological hero Prince Rama, Indian poet Kamala Das, firearms manufacturers Mauser, Colt and AK. Names like these give an added richness to their characters, giving them a depth of understanding even before the character opens her mouth.

However, I was disappointed that, other than a Smith-possessed Bane, and a disgruntled Cipher in the original movie, no one else in Zion even harboured thoughts of going renegade and giving in to the machines. Some of you may remember my belief that, in the spirit of his Biblical namesake, Councillor Hamann would become the third traitor, proving once and for all that the machines may not always be the greatest enemy. Why name him Hamann then? (Hindsight: Unless, of course, it was a tribute to German philosopher Johann Georg Hamann.)

I find it most disappointing too, when I look back on the film and all I can go is "the APUs were SO cool!". The Armored Personnel Unit first appeared in Reloaded as part of the Docking Bay's patrol defence. In Revolutions, the whole APU Corps. are deployed in a valiant attempt to prevent the machines from overrunning the Dock. I still think it's amazing that the whole batallion of APU were designed solely for this last stand against the Sentinels.

Once again, the show came off more a story about the love between Trinity and Neo, as well as a bonanza of special effects, many of which were created for the sole purpose of this movie. Unfortunately, while every step was meticulously planned to ensure that each and every scene was flawlessly produced, Keanu Reeves and Hugo Weaving have more chemistry together than Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss. Which is pathetic, considering the way the movie progressed. It was a pain to see them speak of love (seventeen times at last count) and not be able to pull it off.

I think what happened was the Wachowski's forgot the numero uno rule in making movies: Make a movie. The Matrix Trilogy is groundbreaking on so many levels, but as a movie, it fails.

To sum it up, one reviewer said it best. If you liked Reloaded, you'll like Revolutions.