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It doesn't lean so hard into the vapidly cryptic "I know because I must know" bullshit of the original trilogy, but some of that nonsense remains.
They still beat you over the head with certain things- Blue Glasses! GET IT? BECAUSE THE BLUE PILLS? GET IT?
Yeah, we fucking get it. And frankly, it's fucking stupid. Maybe, don't make the pills blue, and don't make your glasses blue. Maybe take all the obvious symbolism OUT of the fucking thing- and perhaps the machines would have a better time keeping him sedated.
But nope, it's more important to beat us over the head with the not-subtle symbolism. Seriously, they may as well went full on pop up video with that shit and put a giant arrow over it.
Simulatte! GET IT? AS IN SIMULATION? GET IT?
The fact that the core of this story is, essentially, that Neo and Trinity's love is the thing that's thwarting the machines plans is nauseating.
The two have such great chemistry, and it's a beautiful thing to watch, but from a storytelling standpoint, it's fucking Pollyanna. ALL WE NEED IS LOVE, FOLKS! Yes, the power of the love between these two humans is just too much for these machines to handle.
and the overly meta narrative in the beginning is just too much. A drop of that is good, but this shit was thick as mud. And that's the problem I have with this, so much is done with a hammer, when a scalpel is needed.
We get mention of this "greater power" that showed up at some point, but we never got any significant explanation for that. What was that greater power?
That isn't to say there aren't good ideas in here, There's some quality world building, particularly Io and the Sentients, which i expected given the Animatrix story. I liked the idea of Neo's Modal, and his creation of the Morpheus/Smith hybrid program, and the way some programs- Morpheus included- are able to use technology to take physical form in the real world.
I dig the Analyst as the successor to the Architect, and the scene with Neo in Trinity's garage was among the best in the entire series.
I like the idea of Neo and Trinity both being super powered beings within this world, with the ability to reshape the Matrix as they see fit, rainbows and all. But the fact that their love amounts to this magical force that keeps thwarting the machines isn't a particularly compelling story. It makes sense when they confine it to the choices we make as a result of that love, but that's not the extent of it. Their bond basically keeps the Matrix running. ZZZZZZZ
The OG trilogy holds up fairly well- except for that horrendous soundtrack- a few rambling monologues notwithstanding.
I may have a difference in opinion on repeated viewings, but this was a flat experience overall.
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