1. The Matrix Reloaded (2003)
How The Original's Magic Was Stripped Away: Too Much Unnecessary Explanation The original
Matrix movie broke new ground when it was first released at the end of the 20th century, and - brilliant as it is - it's a movie that you doesn't require that every one of its storylines, themes or plot threads be explained in intricate detail. That's simply way to ruin the fun and give yourself an unnecessary headache. And yet when it came time for their inevitable follow-up, the Wachowski siblings did the one thing that they should have made a conscious effort to have avoided: they tried to explain themselves.
The Matrix, ultimately, is an intriguing and competent action movie, and to break it down and subject it scrutiny would only serve to ruin the brilliance of the movie, which at its core hinged on an intelligent but ultimately flawed concept. The Wachowskis decided that the sequel,
The Matrix Reloaded, should explain all the enigmatic details that made the first movie so great, to the point where all the mystery is sucked out and we're left watching a two hour philosophical debate that feels like filmmakers trying to explain their own plot to themselves.
The Matrix, thankfully, hasn't lost its status as a modern sci-fi classic, even if it does exist alongside its mis-judged follow-ups, but at the same time it's incredibly difficult to watch the first movie in the knowledge that the follow-ups actually exist. Ideas that were best left to the imagination, such as Zion, for example, are no longer appealing, because we know what the city looks like in an incredibly unnecessary amount of detail. Whereas the first installment was happy to be a blockbuster, the sequels feel like an introduction to philosophy slideshow made by that kid in your class who stalks the hallways in a trenchcoat.
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