Katie Cole loved the “virtualistic combat with tight 3-D
effects” in the original. Nate Plumley called the final
trailer for the sequel “orgasmic.” And Marco Martinez,
who has already seen it, said “The Matrix Reloaded” is
better than “The Matrix.”
Martinez, a second-year molecular, cell and developmental
biology student, saw the film at an MTV Movie House preview
screening on the Warner Bros. studio lot. While he gave “The
Matrix” a 7.5 on the classic one-to-10 scale, he gave
“The Matrix Reloaded” an 8-8.5.
“It takes you around in a different route,” Martinez
said. “You have to piece it together with the information you
already have.”
Still, Martinez acknowledges that the success of “The
Matrix” series will live or die with its special effects.
Citing a car chase on a freeway, Martinez thought the sequel lived
up to its predecessor in that vital department.
“I don’t know if (the special effects) were that
different, but they added more of them,” Martinez said.
The prospect of more special effects seems to be a major draw
for the film.
“I hope Keanu can take over and dodge the bullets,”
said Cole, a first-year undeclared student.
Cole, whose favorite movie is “Captain Ron” but also
loves action movies, said that she hopes “The Matrix
Reloaded” will impress her in the same way “The
Matrix” did when she saw it in theaters.
“I remember thinking how crazy it would be if it was
real,” Cole said. “And it was cool how (Keanu Reeves)
dodged the bullets.”
And while Cole wants a repeat of that feeling, Plumley, a
first-year computer science student, hopes for something beyond
what the first film in the trilogy did. To Plumley, the sequel must
have more than the first in terms of special effects to keep his
attention.
“This sequel definitely has a lot of hype and expectation
to live up to,” Plumley said.
“Most sequels are just no good because they don’t
bring anything new or original to the table.”
Plumley referred to the new “Star Wars” films as
examples of bad sequel story-telling. According to him, any
movie’s story has a limit as to how far it can go.
“For this movie to be a success in my mind, it has quite a
job staying true to the original, as well as being fresh and
unique,” Plumley said. “The original
“˜Matrix’ was simply groundbreaking in terms of story
and effects, and from seeing the previews, (“˜The Matrix
Reloaded’) looks like it might be doing just that once
again.”
Martinez validated Plumley’s hopes after seeing the
film.
“The fighting style was something I haven’t seen
before,” Martinez said.
Still, not all fans are as critical. Cole expects to simply
enjoy the movie as entertainment. However, even she had one major
complaint about the Matrix series: Keanu Reeves’s acting.
“(Laurence) Fishburne (would win in a fight) for
sure,” Cole said. “He’s bigger. He can dominate.
Keanu Reeves is only there for pure sex appeal.”