After rewatching all the movies inThe Matrixfranchise, it’s clear why the worst film is as bad as it is in comparison. In theranking of allThe Matrixmovies, two films make a fairly evenly matched case to be the worst:The Matrix RevolutionsandThe MatrixResurrections, but the latter is the worst. Over the years, theoriginal sequels toThe Matrix-ReloadedandRevolutions- have been reevaluated, and they’re not as bad as they were originally received.Resurrections, however, hasn’t had decades to stew, and it doesn’t have nearly as many positives to soften the blow of its problems.
I rewatchedall the movies inThe Matrixfranchise, and that rewatch made it clear whyResurrectionsdeserves to be considered the worst of the series. Watching the original trilogy is, admittedly, a bit confusing, but it’s still an exciting and entertaining experience, and Neo’s journey is just as thrilling as ever before. WatchingResurrections, however, completely deflates all the excitement of the first three films and sucks a lot of the joy out of the franchise. I’ve pinpointed exactly why that is, and it’s not the overly meta nature ofResurrections' story.
The Matrix Resurrections’ Action Doesn’t Come Close To Matching The Original Trilogy
Resurrections' Action Doesn’t Live Up To The Innovative & Beautiful Fights Of The Matrix Trilogy
Putting aside the wayThe Matrix: Resurrectionsrehashed the same plot points as the originalMatrixand added in a divisive meta-commentary, there’s one major difference between the most recent movie and the original trilogy: the action. In the originalMatrixtrilogy, the action was utterly astounding.Neo and Agent Smith’s punches felt like bullets, the martial arts choreography was impeccable, and the Wachowskis even invented a new technology just to make the “bullet time” slow motion as awesome as it is. InResurrections, however, all the action feels flat and canned in comparison, like everyone was just going through the motions.
Slow-motion shots were special in the originalMatrixtrilogy, but inResurrections, they felt like filler for half-baked action sequences.
WhereThe Matrixhad fast-paced martial arts filled with impressive acrobatics,Resurrectionshad stiff fight scenes filled with shaky-cam and endless cuts.Perhaps the best example is the slow motion: the original trilogy used slo-mo for stunning shots, like Neo dodging bullets or Morpheus jumping into the helicopter, whileResurrectionsover-used it for mundane moments, like people just normally jumping. Slow-motion shots were special in the originalMatrixtrilogy, but inResurrections, they felt like filler for half-baked action sequences. They’re also a microcosm of what broadly went wrong withResurrections: it had the style ofThe Matrix, but a fraction of the substance.
Where To Watch The Matrix Movies Online
The Matrix franchise is one of the most famous in sci-fi history, and here’s where all of the live-action movies can be watched online.
Take, for instance, Neo’s fight with the horde of Agent Smiths inThe Matrix Reloadedversus the swarm chase scene at theend ofThe MatrixResurrections.Reloaded’s massive fight scene truly felt massive: Neo was doing superhuman things, there were actual stakes, and each move he did was even more interesting than the last.In the swarm chase, however,Resurrectionsfelt like a pale imitation of a zombie chase scene that everything from28 Weeks LatertoThe Walking Deadalready did better. Much like those zombies,Resurrections' action just had no life in it.
The Matrix Reloaded & Revolutions’ Action Helped Redeem The Divisive Sequels
Reloaded & Revolutions' Plots Proved Divisive, But Their Fight Scenes Were Just As Entertaining As The Matrix’s
BothThe Matrix ReloadedandThe Matrix Revolutionswere divisive when they came out, but they’ve stood the test of time much better thanRevolutionshas. Again, it’s because of their action scenes.ReloadedandRevolutionsfaced a lot of criticism for their convoluted stories, their less-than-stellar CGI, and just not being what people expected to see out ofThe Matrix’s sequels. What they weren’t criticized for - at least not to the same extent - was their fight scenes.ReloadedandRevolutionsboth featured great action, and it helped them survive long enough to be viewed more favorably now.
ReloadedandRevolutionshad some very valid criticisms, but they also had awesome and exciting bits of action to fall back on. Even the most divisive and alienating scenes - likeReloaded’s Architect speech- were buffered by genuinely enthralling fights.Even if the sequels lost viewers with their convoluted plots, they were still fun to watch because of their action sequences. That letReloadedandRevolutionsbe fairly good, even if they didn’t live up to the original.Resurrections, on the other hand, didn’t even have the entertainment of fight scenes to soften the blow of its derivative plot.
Matrix 5 Must Get The Action Right After The Matrix Resurrections Disappointment
Exciting Action Is The Most Important Part Of The Matrix 5
The lesson theupcoming movieThe Matrix 5needs to take away fromResurrectionis that it can’t skimp on the action.No matter whatThe Matrix 5is actually about, whether its an earlier version of “The One” or another way for Neo to return, it has to have enough well-made action sequences to get those points across.The Matrixfranchise is endlessly fun to ponder and brings up many worthwhile questions, but it’s still an action franchise.The Matrix Resurrectionsis an example of what happens when theMatrixfranchise fails to give viewers great fight scenes, and it can’t repeat that mistake.
