Provo Matrix was fun!

Thanks for organising that, R4E (don't feel like typing the whole thing). That was fun, hanging out, stumping people. I can't BELIEVE they couldn't get that one question! Though now I'm kinda depressed 'cause it's over.

Dana

 

Sorry I missed it, work and all...
However, I did get to see it at another showing.

WOW I recognized a LOT of extras. Did you happen to catch that one of the Zion Extras was the Big Bad "Jasmine" from ANGEL? And another one was like the Ward Bishop or something in Tonga on "The Other Side of Heaven?"

 

Yeah, I noticed her! Actually, I kinda jumped when I realised it was her. I'll bet Joss Whedon was thrilled to death, knowing he loves Matrix sooooo much!

I haven't seen "Other Side Of Heaven" yet.

Dana

 

Hey I'm glad you had fun! It was fun for me, too. And I'm soo glad we were able to get in for that show.

I liked the movie, in general. Let me say that first. But I've been doing some serious thinking and I wanted to post my thoughts and see what the rest of you (on this board) thought about it.

I loved the action and the deeper philosophy, but I've been having a lot of misgivings about the film as a whole. Obviously, there was that rave/love scene, but also some of the fight scenes really went on longer than they needed to and this is what troubles me the most: in the original movie I felt like we had interesting and important plot all through the show, but in Reloaded the whole movie really seemed to revolve around that scene with the Architect. Meeting the Merovingian and getting the Keymaster was all about getting to the Architect. The stuff with Smith was great but the only truly important thing that happened was seeing that he has a presence in the real world now. Nothing truly important happened in Zion. Meeting the oracle was an important scene, but that and the Architect scene seemed to be the only scenes that you couldn't have really just have thrown away. Perhaps instead of trying to cram two movies into one, the Wachowski brothers were trying to make two movies out of one?

Now, there were some very cool moments that I was happy to see. The guy in the mech with the huge guns was so cool. Morpheus' ex-girlfriend was a cool new character. Smith's new ability was impressive and mysterious. And my favorite new character is Seraph!

So here ends my mixed review.

 

Well, to counterpoint your opinions with some facts from the makers of the movie, here are three important things to remember;

1: The Wachoski brothers hated having their stuff pirated by hundreds of copycats. (Scream 3, Shrek...) So to stop that, they make fight scenes that COULD NOT BE copied. (And personally, I thought it was kinda cool how each fight endured inhumanly long. Remember, it's not really air their breathing, it's their mind's endurence that counts.)

2: The storyline is based on anime. I have come to realize that western movies tend to have a "Point A" to start with and a clear cut "Point B" with in the first few dozen minutes of the movie. SW:ANH is one exception, we're not really aware of any plot to destroy the Death Star until near the end. Eastern movies, (e.g. anime) tend to have a "Point A" and a "Point B" But after getting to "Point B" there's a "Point C" and sometimes "D", "E", and even more. It's just one way of storytelling.

3: According to the Wachoski Brothers, Reloaded and Revolutions are really just a BIG MOVIE cut in half. Perhaps put together, they'll be a more complete story.

Anyway, that's my defence for this great piece of cinema. (But personally, as a member of the LDS faith, I find it alittle disturbing to see a Zion that looks like Sodom and Gamora. )

 

WHAT WAS THE POINT OF THE SEX SCENE? I mean, REALLY? It didn't need to be in there, the rave didn't need to be in there, and lemme tell ya, I've heard more inspirational speeches. Independence Day, Braveheart, tv show ROAR . . . Heck, Elrond in "Fellowship" was more inspirational.

But Lee has a point. It IS just one movie divided in half.

And I, too, find it disturbing that Zion looked like, well . . . Sodom and Gamora.

Dana

 

Acually Zion looks quite a bit like the worker's underground city in the silent movie classic Metropolis, just with sexier clothing. It did strike me as odd that people would start partying right after being told that an enemy invasion is coming. And modern movie-makers seem to think the audience won't know a couple is seriously involved with each other unless they have sex in at least one scene.

 

Haven't seen it.

I'll have to wait until it comes out on video, and hope that cleanflicks is still in business.

 

Well, I heard a rumor that there was added violence or something to make the first The Matrix movie "R". Maybe the sex scene was just there to bump up the rating.

The rest of the movie was cinematically beautiful. (I liked the shot of the blood dripping down the matrix screen near the end; the red and green mix was kinda symbolic.)

 

What the heck are you doing up so late, Corrin?

Anyway . . . the blood on the screen was gross. Visually striking, yes. But gross.

I thought the soundtrack was MUCH better this time around.

Dana

 

I particularly enjoyed the fight scene music. It seemed to evolve as the fights progressed. I'm definately getting the sound-track.

 

Yes, it totally looked like Metropolus... If anyone has seen it, there is a part where Marie/Mary is talking to the main character good-guy in a place that is a cave lit with candles and looks kind of like a cathedral.

The dancing in the Temple (that boy takes off his shoes before entering- signifying it was holy ground... Did anybody else notice the hundreds of shoes?) IS disturbing, even if they were trying to make a point by flaunting they were out of the Matrix and alive.

I think the Wachoski (sp) Brothers were trying to do the whole "make a joyful noise unto the Lord" or "praise him with song and with dance," just not in a very Molly Morman sort of way that most of us are used to.