http://www.moviemistakes.com/Aside from the obvious goal of the site, they have (ATM) a good, balanced review on TMR on the front page. Since I can't find any archive of past movie reviews, I think I'll quote the whole thing for future consumption, lest the review on the front page disappear:
[q]The Matrix Reloaded review
Just been to see it (finally out here in the UK), and ohohoho... Never have I come so close to standing up and applauding during a film. A perfect combination of live action and CGI, great background info about the Matrix's history... I can't find the right words. Suffice to say, go and see it now. Right now. I mean actually right now - close the browser and get to a cinema. Ignore any negative reviews (although the negative ones are getting more attention than the positive ones, which are vastly in the majority) - it's on a different plane to the original, so you can't compare accurately. The first one was a landmark, so of course Reloaded won't be covering entirely new territory, because, well, it's not new territory, and it's stupid to expect it to.
What Reloaded does is exactly what a sequel/continuation should do, which is add to the story, open new paths, and yes, blow away previous effects completely, and it manages this perfectly. One critic wrote something along the lines of "the action bogs down horribly between set-pieces", which to me just shows that they were being very narrow-minded in their expectations. Nothing gets bogged down - there's just a lot of this lost art called "plot", which too many action films have forgotten about, and have suffered because of it. Likewise the philosophising - a few people have said that there's far too much intellectual posturing, which is just blatantly untrue. Aside from the meeting with the Frenchman, which concentrates a lot on the significance of choice (and which proves entirely relevant later on), there's nothing remotely mood-killing about the dialogue.
Sorry - this semi-rant was prompted by reading about Laurence Fishburne's negative reaction when asked his opinion of the negative reviews. Mr. Fishburne, I entirely agree. Anything people don't like about this film seems to be largely based on their expectations or lack of understanding, rather than the film's own merits. Expecting more action or less plot, and disappointed? That's your problem, not the film's. Complaining that it starts too slowly? Again, adjust your expectations. It does start relatively slowly, but that's the nature of the plot - writing in a big action scene before we really know what's going on would be far too forced. Likewise the ending - it's been made very clear that the Matrix "trilogy" is more one normal length film and one very long film in two parts than a traditional trilogy, but still some people seem to think that the way it ends is somehow "wrong".
I'm stupidly concentrating on countering the negatives, rather than praising the positives, of which there are many (many, many, many). Even aside from the fight sequences, the visuals are stunning - CGI done properly, rather than looking like a cartoon. All the actors are, of course, top notch, and it's surprisingly funny in places, which the original wasn't, really. All the other amazing achievements, though, pale into insignificance compared to the ridiculous complexity of the fight/action scenes. I sincerely hope no-one even attempts to mimic them, because they're going to fail miserably, and embarrass themselves in the process. The thing which really stood out was that either due to the training, the budget, the CGI, or all four, there was a blessed lack of frequent cutting during the fights - a mark of great direction, but also of putting enough effort into them so that complicated moves could be executed within one shot.
One which sticks in my mind is the fight in the chateau entrance hall - four people cartwheeling/somersaulting/jumping across and around the room, in one wide shot. CGI or real life? Doesn't matter, because it was absolutely stunning regardless. If it was CGI, it was so well done that you couldn't tell, and if it was live action, the co-ordination needed to get four actors positioned properly on wires deserves some kind of special award. The car chase again shows just how much effort went in to making it look right. As far as I could tell, the vast majority, if not all, of the car crashes were real cars really crashing, and they looked GREAT. And as for the "Burly Brawl" - words can't begin to do it justice.
Right, I'm going to try and calm down now. Suffice to say that negative reviewers don't know what they're talking about - it's deep without being impenetrable, perfectly paced, takes the original and expands on it in every conceivable direction (and even a few inconceivable ones), and takes your eyes through such a visual feast that if your pulse isn't racing by the end, you're probably dead.[/q]
