# How did The Matrix: Revolutions become so absolutely horrible? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 5, 2010, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325 "2010-08-05T20:53:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![The\_Bith\_Shuffle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ce73a5/32.png) [@The\_Bith\_Shuffle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Bith_Shuffle)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/1 "2010-08-05T20:53:31Z")
For a while I didn’t watch _The Matrix: Revolutions_ because I had heard that it was really, really bad. I had watched _The Matrix: Reloaded_ in theaters and thought the fight scenes were pretty sweet, but didn’t think it was an awesome movie. I recently decided to watch the third movie piece by piece on YouTube and couldn’t believe just how insanely bad it was. The dialog, the acting, the scenery, everything just sucks in a way I had no idea was possible. Each scene builds upon the last, creating a build-up of terribleness that leaves the viewer feeling lifeless and hopeless. The lines in particular make _Cube_ seem like _Hamlet_ by comparison. How could this movie be so bad? What happened? What were they thinking? ---
**Author:** ![PlainJain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5daacb/32.png) [@PlainJain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlainJain)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/2 "2010-08-05T20:55:36Z")
I liked it. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/3 "2010-08-05T20:56:11Z")
> [@The\_Bith\_Shuffle](#): > > How could this movie be so bad? What happened? What were they thinking? “Fuck it, we’re gonna clear 400M in gross alone no matter what it’s about. Just shoot the damn thing and get it thru editing already.” ---
**Author:** ![kasuo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8c91f0/32.png) [@kasuo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kasuo)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/4 "2010-08-05T21:11:16Z")
I’m guessing a lot of ecstasy ---
**Author:** ![Stuffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f17d59/32.png) [@Stuffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stuffy)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/5 "2010-08-05T21:18:12Z")
I thought it was decent. The action was a drop off sure, other than that it was fine. ---
**Author:** ![kingbighair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/13edae/32.png) [@kingbighair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kingbighair)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/6 "2010-08-05T21:59:14Z")
I never understood the hate for 2 and 3. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/7 "2010-08-05T22:17:44Z")
I liked all three of the movies. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/8 "2010-08-05T22:42:05Z")
I’m sure somehow George Lucas is to blame. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/9 "2010-08-05T22:44:46Z")
It didn’t become terrible. It began that way and stayed that way. And it always will be that way. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/10 "2010-08-05T23:05:02Z")
Considering the first two were pretty bad, it’s not surprising it was bad, too. ---
**Author:** ![Valgard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/7feea3/32.png) [@Valgard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Valgard)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/11 "2010-08-05T23:13:51Z")
I thought the first one was interesting (although it didn’t hold up too well the next time I watched it), didn’t see the second one and saw the third one on IMAX (blind date wanted to go to it, she really liked the series). It was the cinematic equivalent of the world’s lousiest book in really large printing. I think the filmmakers got too caught up in making things dark and mysterious and here come the scary machines and We’ve Got A Really Important Message About Humanity and OMG Neo is so awesome so it just became a jumble of crud. Visually it was just too damn dark; if your action scenes look lousy in IMAX format you’ve got problems. Acting was awful - face it, this is a B-grade cheesy science fiction movie (albeit with a big budget) and every single person was delivering their lines like they were onstage doing a command performance of Hamlet for God and they’re going for an Oscar in the Bestest Drama Ever Made. They were trying so hard to be so serious and it just came off as wooden as the entire lumber department at Home Depot. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/12 "2010-08-05T23:18:12Z")
The Matrix was awesome. Everyone loved it, even the hip ones that now pretend not to have loved it. Reloaded was much worse, but we knew it was a trilogy, and we remained hopeful. Revolutions let us know that our hope was in vain. Hurt my feelings to see Jada Pinkett stinking up the screen. Killed me to see the cool ass oracle replaced. Should have just changed her all together, to a different form…an old man or something. Because trying to duplicate the coolness of the original oracle was failure served hot. ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/13 "2010-08-05T23:50:09Z")
> [@Valgard](#): > > I think the filmmakers got too caught up in making things dark and mysterious and here come the scary machines and We’ve Got A Really Important Message About Humanity and OMG Neo is so awesome so it just became a jumble of crud. Visually it was just too damn dark; if your action scenes look lousy in IMAX format you’ve got problems. I agree. It always seemed like the Wachowskis came to the sudden realization after writing Reloaded that they only had one more movie in which to wrap everything up, so they just tried cramming too much in, while tacking on a perfunctory resolution. I actually liked Reloaded and thought it brought up a lot of interesting ideas, but Revolutions just failed to build on them. ---
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2010, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/14 "2010-08-06T00:04:43Z")
Problems with 2&3: 1.) The first film took place mostly within the Matrix or Matrix simulation programs. After the first film they began shooting more and more in the real world. We don’t give a fuck about the real world. We want to see people doing crazy shit in the Matrix. 2.) They quadrupled the amount of stupid, meaningless nonsense in an attempt to make the story seem deep and sophisticated (I’m referring to the kind of crap you constantly hear pouring out of the mouths of the Oracle and the Architect). 3.) They made the protagonist invincible. The protagonist already showed that he can cheat death at the end of the first film. That destroys tension. 4.) They made things complicated. The first film was pretty simple. But in the sequels you have a thousand Smiths, you have people doing backflips on semis and you’ve got obnoxious car crashes. The first film, while certainly an action film, seemed toned down compared to the crazy stuff happening in the sequels. 5.) We hate the new characters introduced in the sequels. We hate the French programs, we hate the keymaker, we hate the twins and we hate the population of Zion. 6.) The plot becomes more convoluted as time goes on (what? The _Matrix_ is responsible for Neo’s powers?). The first film was cool for the same reason all first superhero films are cool: The protagonist is just discovering his powers and you feel like you’re learning about them with him. Everything seemed pretty realistic and reserved, despite the impossible things that are taking place. It’s only at the end, at the climax, that the really incredible stuff happens and it feels special because it’s the first time stuff like that had happened in the movie. /rant ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2010, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/15 "2010-08-06T00:12:10Z")
I liked 3 better than 2, thought it was a fun movie, especially the big fight between the Mechs and the mechanical jellyfish. Some really surreal imagery there. The metaphysics in all of them were Complete Dumbth, that wasn’t why the movies were good. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2010, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/16 "2010-08-06T00:41:45Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > The Matrix was awesome. Everyone loved it, even the hip ones that now pretend not to have loved it. Just as a data point, I never loved it. Some good action sequences at the beginning and end, but the rest of it was dull dull dull dull dull dull dull dull and boring. ---
**Author:** ![Steophan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steophan/32/9595_2.png) [@Steophan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steophan)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2010, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/17 "2010-08-06T00:55:33Z")
The first one was, at least superficially, new and different. The sequels were more of the same, but the impact was gone. But that’s not the real problem with them. The real issue is that, for the last ten years, every single film that is in any way dark or edgy has been filmed with a blue or green filter. Every. Single. One. For that, the Matrix creators will be first against the walk when I rise to power. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2010, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/18 "2010-08-06T00:56:32Z")
> [@AClockworkMelon](#): > > Problems with 2&3: > > 1.) The first film took place mostly within the Matrix or Matrix simulation programs. After the first film they began shooting more and more in the real world. We don’t give a fuck about the real world. We want to see people doing crazy shit in the Matrix. > 2.) They quadrupled the amount of stupid, meaningless nonsense in an attempt to make the story seem deep and sophisticated (I’m referring to the kind of crap you constantly hear pouring out of the mouths of the Oracle and the Architect). > 3.) They made the protagonist invincible. The protagonist already showed that he can cheat death at the end of the first film. That destroys tension. > 4.) They made things complicated. The first film was pretty simple. But in the sequels you have a thousand Smiths, you have people doing backflips on semis and you’ve got obnoxious car crashes. The first film, while certainly an action film, seemed toned down compared to the crazy stuff happening in the sequels. > 5.) We hate the new characters introduced in the sequels. We hate the French programs, we hate the keymaker, we hate the twins and we hate the population of Zion. > 6.) The plot becomes more convoluted as time goes on (what? The _Matrix_ is responsible for Neo’s powers?). > > The first film was cool for the same reason all first superhero films are cool: The protagonist is just discovering his powers and you feel like you’re learning about them with him. Everything seemed pretty realistic and reserved, despite the impossible things that are taking place. It’s only at the end, at the climax, that the really incredible stuff happens and it feels special because it’s the first time stuff like that had happened in the movie. I really couldn’t put it better myself. The first one was a lean, stripped down action movie which scratches the surface of interesting concepts but never lets those things get in the way of the forward momentum and the fun. The sequels are bloated with stupid elaborations, idiotic conceits and terrible supporting characters, with more obvious and distracting CGI and a slog of a story that’s as convoluted as it is unengaging. ---
**Author:** ![Lobot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ce7236/32.png) [@Lobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobot)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2010, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/19 "2010-08-06T01:16:25Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > Just as a data point, I never loved it. Some good action sequences at the beginning and end, but the rest of it was dull dull dull dull dull dull dull dull and boring. I saw the first one on DVD probably over a year after the film was in theatres and was underwhelmed. I thought it was kind of offensive, actually. I thought that maybe because I’d missed the opportunity to see it pre-hype, it might’ve been more impressive had I seen it fresh. Plus, a 27" screen doesn’t do these things justice. So I saw _Reloaded_ when it opened. It was the most painful moviegoing experience of my life. I don’t even remember _Revolutions_. IMHO, the first took itself more seriously than it deserved, and the second upped the ante in that regard tenfold, forgetting the idea of fun altogether. The third probably continued that progression further. ---
**Author:** ![Patch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a183cd/32.png) [@Patch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patch)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2010, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325/20 "2010-08-06T01:28:24Z")
There’s a torrent out there for _The Matrix: Dezionized_. An editor took films 2 & 3, spliced them together, and edited out everything that occurred in Zion. Not bad, but I really wish they had shortened the endless sloooooow mooooootion fight sequences as well. That crap dragged on way too long. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-the-matrix-revolutions-become-so-absolutely-horrible/549325.md?page=2)