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Movies on release
November 07, 2003
THE MATRIX REVOLUTIONS: Starring Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Laurence Fishburne, Hugo Weaving. Director: Wachowki brothers.
So, we finally reach the end game. After the senses-rocking salvo that was The Matrix, and the over-hyped but relentless The Matrix Reloaded, the triology now draws to a close, with Revolutions supposedly answering the many questions that have formed amid the complex mixture of man and machine and virtual reality.
Part II left Neo’s (Keanu Reeves) band of freedom fighters stranded without transport, with Sentinels closing in, while the rest of the free humans at Zion were about to face the Machine Army in a battle to the death.
While the middle section of the triology lacked the critical acclaim that had greeted the original Matrix, it did at least leave plenty of cliffhangers. And the Wachowskis look to make the most of that with an explosive finale – the humans at Zion mount an aggressive defence, slipping on power armour to mix it up with the robot squids in a climatic sequence that is reported to have cost $43 million alone.
Add to that a low-altitude helicopter chase and another no-holds-barred face-off between Neo and Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving) dubbed The Super Brawl and it’s obvious that Revolutions is not going to lack for set-pieces.
Whether it will provide enough explanation in between the explosions to send people home happy is another matter. That was the key reason why people felt let down by Reloaded; too much pyschobabble, not enough plain speaking. But if Revolutions can wrap things up coherently, it will cement the triology’s revolutionary reputation, as The Matrix helped stand cinema on its head, setting new standards for uber-stylish punch-ups, special effects and sunglasses as fashion statement.
MIRANDA: Starring Christina Ricci, John Simm, John Hurt, Kyle MacLachlan. Director: Marc Munden.
A good-looking, smartly-shot film that unfortunately meanders through a cinematic no-mans land: not sparky enough for a romantic comedy, but too fluffy to convince as a thriller.
Librarian Frank (John Simm) falls for exotic Miranda, who loves and leaves him. Although it was only a brief fling, he’s smitten, and tracks her down to London. There he finds the American lass is part of a con team, where she is used as bait by gravelly-voiced Christian (John Hurt) to sucker rich people into crooked property deals.
In their sights is property dealer Nailor (Kyle MacLachlan) – who clearly must be a villain as he likes S&M – and a £5 million payday.
All of which serves to bring a little adventure into the life of salt-of-the-earth Frank, as he pursues his elusive former love.
The culture-clash moments between Simm and Ricci are good, but none of the characters are ever really developed enough for you to care about how they end up.
Mark Miseldine
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