My Review of The Matrix Resurrections (2021) starring Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Jessica Henwick, Neil Patrick Harris, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Jada Pinkett Smith & more. The Video Review below is “Spoiler-Free” until 09:40.
Brief Thoughts with No Spoilers
I went into this feeling very hopeful. I know, I know, I’m a naïve optimist. I love the first Matrix, so I was hoping for the best. But I came out disappointed. It was great to see Keanu and Carrie-Anne together again. Their chemistry is really good and they carry the movie. There are some good performances by the new characters, especially Jessica Henwick as blue-haired “Bugs”. (I didn’t realize she is the actress who played Colleen Wing in Marvel’s very average Iron Fist TV Series.)
There is a lot of talking in the film, too. A lot! There’s also Doogie Howser M.D.! That was a surprise to me when I saw the first trailer. The film is very self-referential and contains some nice ideas with a few cool action scenes, but overall left me feeling disappointed. 👺🕶️
Are you planning to watch it?
Thanks for reading!
-Wakizashi, *freezing cold this morning. It snowed last night, luckily after I got home from seeing the movie.*
Wakizashi's Reviews 
Yeah, we’re supposed to have our first real snowstorm of the season tomorrow. 3-8inches of the blasted stuff.
I too want to like this movie. But I don’t see how it can be. So I am not very hopeful. By the time it comes out on bluray I should have enough info to know if it’s going to be worth my time to watch or not.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Just one geeky guy’s opinion, after all. You might love it. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ha! Remember, this is YOUR blog. Your opinions are as law here. More universal and constant than gravity itself 😉
But seriously though, I just watched the video. I think your sum up makes it seem like it is closer to the sequels than the original. My one question would be, is this a standalone or the start of a new trilogy? I consider the Matrix to be a standalone.
And congrats on all the likes and comments on your youtube post! You definitely tapped into a popular vein 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
The new film works as a standalone. But it could be continued. I guess it depends on the financial box office, which will be dented by the decision to release it on HBO Max at the same time.
The spike in views and comments on my video is just a glitch in the matrix 😎 What made me laugh was my review calling the film “average & disappointing” seems to have upset a few folk. And most of them haven’t even seen it yet! Bizarro World, right? It’s just a movie, guys! Get some perspective in your lives. 😂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Glad to hear it can be a standalone. I’m tired of multi movie stories.
I was that way about the phantom menace. It was Star wars so if course it was automatically awesome, w/o me even needing to see it 🙂
So I think they’re younger people w/o enough experience yet.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes I really want to see it. What was wrong with it?
LikeLiked by 3 people
I was hoping it would be more exciting, more surprising, more thought-provoking than it was. Maybe my expectations were too high? I still recommend you see it. But I was disappointed in the story, the action scenes, and part of the “feel” of the film. It was almost too meta, too self-aware, trying to be too clever.
LikeLiked by 3 people
Sounds like the typical approach to every sequel these days. Thanks for th the warning!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m watching this right now, an hour in, and it’s not to my liking.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Final thoughts? 🤔
LikeLike
Huge disappointment. It was like a clip show episode of the previous films. I’ve never seen anything that lazy. The replacements for Morpheus and Smith sucked.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Apparently, when Laurence Fishburne was asked in an interview why he wasn’t reprising his iconic role, he said go and ask the director. He was missed, as was Hugo Weaving. “Lazy” does kind of sum it up.
LikeLike
I absolutely loved Matrix 1, but was disappointed by the next ones. No, I‘ll give this a pass and stay with my fond memories of the first one. Trinity can’t be hot enough to lure me back (she’s also legacy code now, so many years after)
LikeLiked by 2 people
Me too! It’s my favourite, like a lot of people. I’ve always had a thing for Trinity and she still looks great in this movie 😍
LikeLiked by 1 person
yes, we all grow older 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m planning on seeing it … I enjoyed the trailer, so I hope to like the full movie. Like many people, I was blown away by the first Matrix. Then I heard the sequels weren’t very good, so I never saw them. I don’t think this new Matrix will capture the magic of the first one for me, since the concept and styled action were already introduced back then. You mentioning that the new film is self-referential sounds like a let-down. But I hope the movie has at least something different to say.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I enjoyed the sequels despite their flaws. But the original Matrix blew my mind, like a lot of people. The first film works as a standalone and didn’t need sequels, but money, right? I started re-watching Matrix Reloaded last night and got pulled back into it. Maybe it was after watching the new movie, but Reloaded looked and felt so much better. The fight choreography in the new Matrix pales in comparison to the first 3 films. At least the story is interesting but I wasn’t sure if it was being played for ironic laughs or being serious(ish). I hope you enjoy it! Thanks for your comment.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Like so many people, I loved the first Matrix movie and hated the rest of them… this is supposed to be less serious (at least that’s what I heard…) which might be a good thing, at least compared to parts 2 and 3… I think I will see it, with no great hopes the disappointment will not be huge 😉
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’m one of the rare ones who enjoyed the sequels, despite their obvious flaws.😎 The new film at least tries to be different, and there are good ideas in there. I think they weren’t sure what tone to go for. Plus it felt like it was too “meta”, too self-referential. But maybe I’m still plugged into the matrix?
LikeLiked by 3 people
I’ll tell you after I see it 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
My expectations were already pretty low for this. I absolutely loved the first movie. In fact, I think I went to the theater to watch that more times than any other movie I’ve ever seen. Just couldn’t get enough. I was disappointed with movies 2 and 3, thinking perhaps they should have just left well enough alone and stopped at the first one. So this one has me very skeptical. Thankfully, though, none of this has in any way lessened either my memory or enjoyment of that first film. 🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
As I’ve said in other comments, at least this film tries something new. There are good ideas in it and the performances are mostly very good. It felt too long and too filled with ideas. Maybe they should’ve made a TV series instead?
LikeLiked by 2 people
I was hoping for something good but now I’m not sure ha. If anything, it’s made me go back and watch the trilogy.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Me too. I put on Reloaded for the first time in years and was surprised by how much it holds up, especially the first half. Pretty much until the Architect scene which I think is where the film lost its way. I enjoyed it when it first came out but haven’t re-watched it as much as the Matrix. After watching the new film, it was interesting to compare them. Reloaded “feels” like a Matrix movie. The new one is something different. But a lot of people are saying it’s great, so there you go. I hope you enjoy it. 😎
LikeLike
Just watched the film and I enjoyed it. I wasn’t expecting it to be 1999 again and I really enjoyed my time in the cinema. It’s a good science-fiction film and had some great new characters. Plus, I really enjoyed visiting the Machine City, so all in all 8/10 for me. Just watching your YouTube video 😎
LikeLiked by 1 person
Glad to hear you enjoyed it! And thank you for checking out my review, I appreciate it. 👺👍
LikeLike
Pingback: The Algorithm Had Me! | In the Teahouse, a Wakizashi
I had low expectations and was still disappointed. The action was terrible and the endless re-use of old footage so hamfisted.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for your comment! Yeah, like a fool I went to see it with overly optimistic high hopes. Those hopes crashed and burned about 30 minutes into the film. 😖
LikeLiked by 1 person
30mins seems to be a very consistent point – I loved it until about then and lots of my friends are reporting the same. First bit was good but the rest was not.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Agreed. The middle section of the film almost put me to sleep 😴 I quite enjoyed the climax, though. But I’m still not sure why they gave Trinity the One’s powers…? She was already a total badass in the first 3 movies.
LikeLiked by 1 person
For me, The Matrix was a one-and-done. The back-to-back sequels sort of proved to me that the movie was best left unfranchised, so I had no impulse to dip my toe in that world again with Resurrections.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, it works perfectly as a single movie. The amount of money it made was the reason why they made 2 and 3. There’s a lot to like in Reloaded but Revolutions is pretty dull.
LikeLiked by 1 person