I did'nt care for this, and I guess my dislike can be summed up as it's just not like the other movies.
The movie seems silly and made by an older person who seems to have lost any edge or passion.
I love the Matrix movies. I find them to be the most interesting genre-pushing action movies out there. Incredibly forward-thinking and rewarding movies out there. Full of thought on storytelling, the human condition, and our relationship with other beings and the world. Daring beyond pretty much other Hollywood blockbusters. And to toot my horn, Ive always liked the sequels, from well before the internet seemed to revaluate them.
But this movie just did not to do it for me. It starts with not having the honestly atmosphere and mood of the originals. The first movie has this cyberpunk neo-noir look in the real world and then it becomes stark. The Matrix world feels off, cold, and that draws you in. Amazing art direction. In the later sequels, the Matrix world and the sets you see give the impression of them being part of this unseenworld, this underworld. I'm talking Club Hell and even the Merv castle. They feel like not ordinary places. Here the MAtrix looks and feels like any other movie I've ever seen. The cinematography and general production design feel weak, giving off no real personality. Hard to feel or care for Neo when he's going to some boring Coffee shop. There's nothing interesting about this Matrix.
But also the entire first half of the movie is cringe. The metaness is lame and forced. Not funny and does not feel like the Matrix. Parts of the original movies were meta, but strangely more subtle and dealing more with how the world exists as a fake entity. Here its hammered on and lame. The entire writing feels idiotic. Embarrassing characters. No one should be saying MILF's in a matrix movie. The Matrix took itself pretty seriously, here it feels like the movie is laughing at anyone who cared about that tone. I'm not sure what it achieves beyond trying to be funny? It sure does not add to the world or feel of the Matrix.
The action is bad. There's nothing to be said and that alone is a failure to me. The original movies are full of memorable and unique action scenes. Hell, Club Hell feels the most uncreative being that it's basically the lobby scene with a gimmick. But Hell I remember that, I won't remember anything in this movie. None of the cool bullet ballet action that is beautiful and arresting to look at. Run of the mill action scenes that add no character. The action scenes in the original do add character to the series. They make it feel otherwordly as instead of just simple punching, you have dudes in FBI suits fighting in ballet kung fu. It makes it feel a bit more myth-making as this world partakes in honestly, fancy fighting. It sucks.
The music sucks. Thats it. Felt generic and lacking the proto-EDM/House music that thrilled in the original and added so much. It can't even capture Don Davis in the moments where the music would sore and feel more heroic.
The story? Well. It was just well lame. I see people claiming this is some unique movie that goes against Hollywood conventions. But it doesn't. Its full of dumb humor and quips. The final act devolves into fighting mass cgi zombies, something that despite Smith's Clones didn't happen. The movie plays it extremely safe and doesn't really do anything daring with the storytelling. Not like in Reloaded where it turns the chosen one narrative on it's head. Or Revolutions where it has a non-conventional ending. Here, the story is simple and plays out just like you'd expect with really nothing to go off of. Nothing to make you question and nothing that surprises you.
The beginning of the movie is nonsense and while a Matrix that is looping could be cool, what's not is this talk about Moodles and a fake Morpheus who mostly feels pointless in the movie. Like the first starts off with so much atmosphere and tone, this starts off idiotic and goofy. Like its cramming you with a bunch of info that goes nowhere. Also Agent Morpheus apparently having a life really takes the grit out of the agents. Also Neo can just make a Matrix within a Matrix? What is this world anymore?
Honestly, I lost interest pretty much after that and then the movie got really cringy.
I liked Buggs as a presence. But her character also lacks...well character. Her motivation is she just saw Neo. I get it the meta-narrative is shes a fan and that's it. Honestly, the only thing this movie seems to have for it is that it's a meta take on sequels. Which doesn't work for me. Yes the sequels have a meta-ness with control and chosen one narrative, but that is actually built into the narrative. Its part of the conflict between the oracle and the architect that the chosen one narrative is obvious, and that for the Oracle it needs to be broken. Here it seems even more messy, surronded by nothing good to help carry the load.
