After much thought and deliberation about this movie and I am still not sure what I really think about it, maybe writing about it will help me to flush it out more.

Revolutions is the final in a series of very philosophical films written and directed by the Wachowski Brothers. This one picks up right where Matrix Reloaded left off with Neo (Keanu Reeves) unconscious and the citizens of Zion preparing for war. There is so much going on that sometimes the story line is hard to follow.

There are several different stories that intertwine and all come together somehow at the end of the film. First of all Neo and Trinity (Carrie-Ann Moss) head towards the machine city in an effort to stop the machines from attacking Zion and to find a way to stop Agent Smith (Hugo Weaver). Then you have Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) and Niobi (Jada Pinkett-Smith) piloting a ship towards Zion trying to beat the machines there in an effort to aid their world from destruction. Lastly, there are the citizens of Zion trying to keep the sentinels from breaking the outer walls.

There are many uses of CG in this film including the machine world and the extravagant fights that take place. In fact towards the end of this long film you see Neo take on Agent Smith in an epic battle that takes up about 20-25 minutes of air time, which to me is way too long. This battle takes place on all levels, including in the sky, ground and a hole that they made during their battle. The good thing is that you don

Every beginning has an end. Every end has it’s credits. Or something like that. I’m sitting here at my keyboard trying to figure out what to write on Matrix Revolutions. Normally, I would have come right out of the gate with witty comments and banter to describe how I felt about the movie. Good critics typically begin by quickly summarizing how they felt in one sentence. I guess the best way I can do so is to say: “Eh…”

Revolutions is the third and final chapter in the Matrix uber-blockbusters by the Wachowski brothers. Their world is one in which most humans are grown, not born, and used as power for a sinister machine race. The Matrix itself is a simulated reality fed to those people still “plugged in” in order to keep their bodies alive. Those who are no longer part of the system, those who have been unplugged, instantly become freedom fighters in an attempt to liberate the rest of humanity from being used as batteries.

The central story is Neo’s (Keanu Reeves), the proverbial chosen one who has abilities and a connection unlike that of any of the others who have been freed. Naturally this causes not only blind hope but fear among those already in power for the fate of the humans. Sound biblical? The similarities are glaring and that’s kinda on purpose, but there are other articles on that. Check out more in Special Features. Revolutions brings the story full circle and reveals the fate of the freedom fighters, the machines and the entities that exist within the matrix, programs that have gained near conciousness and strive for their own freedom.

You all want an opinion though. When I said “Eh…” before, I was being accurate. The movie wastes no time in picking up where the second movie, Matrix: Reloaded, leaves off. Being in that Reloaded was released a scant 6 months ago, I won’t go into plot details. I will say though that Revolutions has to work as an elightenment and give a sense of closure in an all out, action packed CG fest in order to succeed in theatres the way that the first film did. The numbers to date are not reflecting a success, nor does my opinion.

The first hour is a very long hour with more dialogue than most chick flicks. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but in an action movie it would have behooved the film makers to break up the talking with more…umm.. action, perhaps? We see the soldiers preparing for the final battle between man and machine, some flying of hovercrafts, a lot of Agent Smiths talking. Oh, the Oracle was in there too, only we’ve been given a new actress to portay her. Mary Alice Smith, the Oracle from the video game earlier this year replaces Gloria Foster who passed away during filming in 2001 due to complcations from diabetes. Although presented a little too heavily, the change in appearance is explained within context of the film, and Miss Smith does an excellent job in mimmicking the speech and mannerisms of her predecessor, so well in fact that it was not very noticeable and didn’t necessarily require an in-depth explanation.

The meat of the meal occurs only in the final 45 minutes in a spectacular bombardment of computer generated bullet spray and scrap metal. Swarms of squid-like sentinels bombard the walls and penetrate the inner confines of Zion, the last human city and safe haven for the freedom fighters. This is all going on while Neo ventures back into the Matrix to battle within. An apocolyptic fight between him and Agent Smith, a program inside the computer that has grown beyond what the machines on the outside could have ever wanted. Wire-Fu and fist fights while flying are completly over-used in films as it is (Bullet Proof Monk anyone?) and I guess the Wachowskis felt they needed a little in their movie too. I’m just slightly sick of it personally. Just like anything else, there are times when you use it and times you don’t. It doesn’t enhance the story and doesn’t intensify the fighting, like say for example the fight in the subway station of the first movie.

Finally, the story’s end leaves something to be desired. It teaches a lesson of balance, yin and yang, and doesn’t resolve anything. Most audience members are going to leave with a kinda ‘what happened’ sense of the finale since nothing is truly answered and no conflicts are really won by either side. Many audience members, true fans of the series, stayed through to the end of the credits, expecting to see something more to justify their 9 bucks or to get a glimpse of a sequel that will never come. Though the ending could be considered realistic, it’s not audience fulfilling.

Despite a few grandiose flight and battle sequences, the slow pace and lack of resolution causes the film to fall flat. As a whole, the 3 movies make for a very exciting and thought provoking story, but Matrix Revolutions is a limp end to what could have been a strong cinematic series. Guess theres always Lord Of The Rings.