The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

Just grabbed my tickets for the premiere this Wednesday! Fingers crossed this one actually holds its own against the second installment—because if they totally blow the third part, the whole The Matrix saga just becomes one legendary masterpiece followed by two massive letdowns. Usually, the third movie beats out the second, but hey—we all know The Matrix breaks all the rules!

Kind of like how she stays on her best behavior.

granitesailor98, did you reserve those tickets or actually buy them?

Hmm... maybe I should check out the Metropolitan Opera House🙂 to see if they have tickets left🙂. It’d be pretty sweet to go this Wednesday... though, let me think... what would I even be missing at school? Probably just some required reading and a couple of quizzes—whatever. I REALLY need to snag those tickets.😁

I sat through half an hour of the first Matrix, maybe ten minutes of the second, and I’m definitely not wasting any more cash or time on the third. Do you guys actually have a decent argument for watching this "cult classic" that isn't just pointing at some special effects? 😕

nimbletiger68 said:I made it through half of the first Matrix, about ten minutes of the second, and I'm certainly not wasting any more time or money on a third attempt. Do you have a better argument than just "special effects" to convince me to try watching this supposed cult classic again?😕

Neo was cool... kung-fu style!!!
Trinity drool

Not really. 😁

nimbletiger68 said:...calling it "quasi-cult"? 😕

Honestly, adding the word "quasi" before "cult" feels a little redundant to me—I mean, let's be real, "The Matrix" isn't just some niche favorite, it’s an absolute cinematic icon and a massive global phenomenon.

I checked it out.
It's way worse than the first one.
Slightly better than the second, though.
What do you guys want to know?

northernseal6 said:What exactly are we discussing here?

Does anyone actually care about the Monica Bellucci situation on Carrie? Is there any actual news regarding Ann Moss's recent activities? Just asking for myself.

northernseal6 said:What do you want to know?

Does Neo dodge bullets?
Does Morpheus die?
Does Monica Bellucci actually serve a purpose in the film? (By "purpose," I mean what GNN was asking)
Are there any scenes involving an orgasmic cake?
Does Neo at least break a sweat to provide some actual tension?
In your opinion, could Captain Kirk in no-shirt mode take on Neo and Smith simultaneously while still delivering a speech about truth, justice, and the American Way?

So many questions... only one movie...

Watch out for spoilers.
I haven't seen it.

Richard Hernandez13 said:Calling something a cult classic feels pretty redundant—I mean, calling "The Matrix" a cult movie is pointless because it’s an absolute icon and a massive global phenomenon.

Give me a break. At this rate, everything is a "cult classic." You've got people treating Lord of the Rings like gospel, others swear by Harry Potter,
Metallica is legendary, Iron Maiden is iconic, and I guess the band The Cult counts too. I might just have to accept that we're living in the era of the "cult classic." I won't even bother listing all the other global phenomena, or we'll be here all day...

rapidstag74 said:Does Neo actually dodge bullets?
Does Morpheus bite the dust?
Does Monica Bellucci even serve a purpose in this flick? (and by purpose, I mean what GNN was getting at)
Are there any scenes involving an Orgasm Cake?
Does Neo actually break a sweat at some point to give the movie a shred of tension?
In your humble opinion, could Captain Kirk in his shirtless glory take on Neo and Smith simultaneously while still delivering a rousing speech about truth, justice, and the American way?

1. Fingers crossed!
2. Nah, hopefully not!
3. Who cares🙄
4. Man, I hope so!🙂
5. Whatever man😉
6. 😂😂

I just picked up my tickets... wow, at twenty bucks a pop, that’s a steal for a world premiere.
Besides, who even needs the EU when we're already watching massive blockbusters like this right here in America?

replies to rapidstag74

1. Not quite like the first one. They toned down the action scenes just a tiny bit.
2. Nope.
3. None at all. Absolutely zero. Aside from that killer red rose and her bust, her appearance was totally pointless.
4. ???
5. How did you not know? Neo doesn't sweat. Hehe.
6. Captain Kirk is a god. The Smiths and Neo don't even come close. He could do everything on that list and still break a real sweat. That's a real man right there.😁

northernseal6 said:6. Captain Kirk is basically a deity. Smith and Neo? Please, they’re nothing compared to him. He could take on everything listed there and still have enough energy left to break a sweat. That's what a real man looks like.😁

And honestly, if he ever actually started losing, they'd just beam him straight to a hospital 😁 or pull Neo right out of the Matrix before things got messy. 😁

northernseal6 said:responses to rapidstag74
1. Not quite like the first one. They dialed back the action scenes just a tiny bit.

AH! So, merely 98%! How absolutely marvelous.

2. No.

DOH!

3. None at all. Absolutely zero. Aside from the stunning red rose and her cleavage, her presence is entirely superfluous.

Tch, and what else could you possibly require?

4. ???

Which implies it isn't there. A pity.

5. Did you not know? Neo doesn't sweat. Hehe.

Quite right; it is simply because the Matrix is a continuum of imaginative reality and, as such, does not permit the materialization of bodily fluids. That is why no one can get pregnant in the Matrix.

6. Captain Kirk is a god. Smith and Neo are nothing compared to him. He could do everything listed above, and he would actually break a sweat. You know, like a real human being.😁

Word!

I mean, is our world actually that different from the Matrix?

rapidstag74> So, in your opinion, could Captain Kirk in his shirtless mode take on Neo and Smith at the same time, while still delivering a speech about truth, justice, and the American Way?

You forgot one thing: "...and he’d probably throw in a few racist remarks toward Spock."

Anyway, I won't drag this out forever because the second half of my previous thought was pretty much garbage, but I've decided I'm still going to check out the third installment when it hits theaters. I guess I owe it that much, regardless of whether the movie actually sucks or not.

I've been watching some trailers on my phone lately, and after reading urbannomad30's post, I can already say it feels like the third part might be way better than the second. From what I've seen so far, they seem to be making a gritty action flick loaded with CGI and special effects—but unlike the second one, it looks like they're actually doing it right this time 😁.

So, I'll probably just head to the theater, turn my brain off, and hope for the best. My main hope is that it doesn't bore me to death like *Reloaded* did, and that I finally get to see that one scene everyone on GNN keeps buzzing about. (Though, personally, I find C.A. Moss about as trustworthy as a common thief 😁).

urbannomad30> But the bad news is that this looks way too much like Star Wars.

I don't really get why that's bad news??? If they're putting together a solid action movie, why shouldn't it be on the level of Star Wars? (We're talking about *Episode II*, right?).

Sure, Lucas surpassed them a long time ago and there won't be anything revolutionary about any of this, but it'll look incredibly cool, and honestly, that's what matters.

Since I've already made peace with the fact that I won't find much philosophical depth in the Matrix sequels, I'm just going in expecting good action. It doesn't bother me much if the film lacks substance. And hey, if it actually has some, even better. *shrugs*

I’m going to drop a little spoiler here (SPOILER ALERT), though honestly, the massive debate over The Matrix is going to explode tomorrow anyway once all the armchair philosophers, critics, and pundits get back from the premiere.

Personally, I thought the third installment was killer. The story is complete—it’s like everything clicked into place, yet nothing actually makes sense.

That’s exactly why the movie works so well; after the credits roll, you’re left staring at the screen thinking, "Wait, what the hell just happened?" It’s brilliant how they refuse to give any concrete answers.

You don't find out if Neo is truly The One, or who the Oracle and the Architect really represent, or even what the deal is with the rest of the people we met in the previous films. Nothing. Whatever you think happened, happened simply because—according to the film—that’s just how it went down. We aren't even left knowing if the "real world" is actually real, what year it is, or if Neo's predecessors and the premises from the second film were just stories fed to him by the Machines to treat him like an anomaly, forcing him back into place to leave the Matrix alone. Is it all just a game played by system programmers manipulating everyone else, or is the whole thing just a twisted allegory for modern society, globalization, and total control?

Regardless, there’s enough room for sequels, spin-offs, and themed comic books to last a lifetime. It would be crazy to expect we won't see anything else bearing the Matrix name again. This saga—split into a trilogy plus some animated shorts and a video game (and let's be real, if you haven't played the game, you have no clue what was happening with Niobe, Ghost, and the other ship captains during the gap between the second movie and the Council, haha)—has concluded. And I say this: it ended MEGA-SUCCESSFULLY. Thank God someone made a movie like this, and thank God it’s the best one.

The first one was great, the second was great, and the third was just as great.

The critics will always have something to say and plenty of ways to nitpick, right up until someone hands them a MacBook Pro and puts them in front of Final Cut Pro and Maya. Then they’ll shut up, bite their lips, and head home to their tiny apartments. There’s a massive difference between trashing someone’s work and actually having the skill to create it. The Matrix is a masterpiece, and it’s unlikely anyone will pull off something like this again anytime soon. And honestly, that’s where the true value lies.

Melissa Moore32 said:I don't see how this is bad news. If they're already pulling off solid stunts, why not aim for something on the level of Star Wars?

Agreed. As far as I'm concerned, The Matrix and Star Wars possess the same "depth." Or lack thereof. It's all just pure escapism. One draws from mythology, the other from comic books.

Give this a click if you're interested

http://www.eightlinks.com/archives/000839.html

I found a special 15 MB version of the trailer; the standard one is only 8 MB.