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

A Duracell battery as a power source? Man, anything is possible... I could probably reconstruct the entire atmosphere if I had some glue and a broom...
And *The Matrix* only pulled in $85 million here in the States? That’s pretty underwhelming...

rapidstag74 said:Didn't that Architect guy mention something about how machines can just figure things out on their own?
I mean, maybe they’ve got some other power sources tucked away somewhere... I don't know, like freaking NUCLEAR ENERGY or something!!!

Machines are actually pretty environmentally conscious.

Okay, maybe not exactly—that whole situation where people were being used like Duracell batteries really only kicked off because of the psychological toll it took on whatever was left of the population (kind of like in *The Animatrix*).

Justin Patel said:well,
The Matrix only pulled in about 85 million here in the States... I mean, kind of underwhelming, right?

True, but that was just in its first five days! When you look at the global box office, it actually raked in 204 million during that same five-day stretch.

I'd say that's definitely anything but underwhelming.

So my husband—total movie geek, loves all that "matrix" stuff—stumbles in soaked to the bone after hitting the theater one day... Completely crushed. Honestly, I feel kind of bad I didn't tag along... at least we could've laughed our heads off together at how much that total garbage movie sucked (yeah, I'm talking about the third one)

Five years ago, amidst a sea of recycled cinematic tropes, something truly fresh finally emerged. It didn't really matter whether the science held up or not; what mattered was that it was a film that left you feeling fulfilled. When we walked out of the theater, there wasn't that lingering sense of emptiness, that longing for $8.25 (or maybe just a desperate need for a new Broadway ticket—$9.75!?) or that immediate sense of being forgotten the second the house lights flickered on.

Once word got out that two more "sequels" were coming (that’s the trendy buzzword in Hollywood lately—a TRILOGY), we were all practically counting down the days to see how the threads would be pulled together, depending on which fan theory you happened to subscribe to.

Then the first "sequel" arrived, and the sobering reality set in...
Even then, we tried to comfort ourselves. We told ourselves, "Hey, it's just the middle chapter; it doesn't need a beginning or an end." We drew comparisons to *The Two Towers*, insisting the situation was identical, though deep down, we feared exactly what ended up happening last Wednesday...

The third installment was the final nail in the coffin for our hopes and theories regarding what that masterpiece from five years ago could become. What we were left with was nothing more than a stripped-down, mega-popcorn-coke blockbuster. Its primary goals seemed to be showcasing a fifteen-minute highway demolition derby (in part two) and a loud, messy battle for Zion (in part three). Haven't we had enough of those? I have to ask those who argue that special effects are a valid reason to praise this series: since when did spectacle become the sole merit of a film?

And the story? The narrative devolved into some quasi-religious fable about a savior who completes his mission and ascends to legend. As the series progressed, it drifted further away from substance, relying on clunky, cringeworthy dialogue that even a mediocre daytime soap opera wouldn't touch—lines like, "Your eyes, Neo... actually, never mind," or "Thank you for everything, wherever you may be..." and so on.

It feels foolish to list the other flaws, because this post would easily outlast the flimsy scripts of the two sequels combined. But between the absurdity of introducing supposedly vital characters in the second film only for them to vanish without explanation in the third, the depiction of a beautiful sunny day on a "destroyed" Earth, and that pathetic five-minute death scene for the most unlikable character in cinema history ten years ago—not to mention those lines that feel like they were penned by a third-rate novelist—the takeaway is clear. That's the exact mood I had leaving the theater at 1:00 AM this past Saturday: pure disappointment and muttered comments like, "...we should have gone somewhere else," or "...I know, but hey, the soundtrack is good, right?"... and so forth.

As the saying goes, it seems those of us who watched the original *Matrix* had far more profound ideas about how to develop and conclude this saga than the people actually making it, who were clearly preoccupied with simply recouping their investment.
It also becomes glaringly obvious why *Matrix* was released globally all at once. It's clear that even the creators realized the film might only "survive" its initial opening weekend before the word gets out and it sinks rapidly.

That's all from me, a very disillusioned fan...

What a massive waste.......🙂
They took a brilliant concept and turned it into just another cookie-cutter Hollywood blockbuster.
And then people have the nerve to claim sequels aren't made just to chase a paycheck......

Imagine if the main computer was just some ancient Atari running on an obsolete format... honestly, what a way to go out. Best ending ever.

I’m still not quite sure how I feel about movies like this. I mean, I can't call it bad when the production value is top-tier and they’ve loaded it up with every possible special effect imaginable (which, let's be honest, is pretty much mandatory these days). But man, we act like we're being all intellectual, when at its core, the story is as simple as that. Everything could have easily fit into a single movie. (Though, obviously, they wouldn't have made the money...) And I don't see what the point of a sequel even is, other than to grab more cash and show off how far tech has come.

It's a textbook example of those films that lean into the whole "the emperor has no clothes" vibe. The framework is relatively straightforward, which is fine, but then they build this massive, pseudo-philosophical tower on top of it. In the end, nobody wants to admit that all this deep nonsense basically doesn't align with the plot—it's just making a mountain out of a molehill.

If it didn't have those pretensions, The Matrix would actually be a great film. As it stands, it's just pseudo-intellectual megalomania wrapped in flashy packaging. I don't care for movies you forget the second you walk out of the theater, especially when that wasn't the intention.

I have a feeling you shouldn't watch these kinds of movies sober... maybe they'd actually be good then. 😉 😁

Richard Hernandez13 said:True, but we're talking about a five-day window. Over those five days, they lost $204 million globally.

Everything else was fine, except for being weak...

Yeah, but Reloaded alone pulled in over $120 million right here in the States during those five days,,, I wasn't saying it was weak overall,, just compared to those two...

I honestly find it pretty terrible. After getting back from China this past Saturday, I borrowed a DVD copy of the first Matrix and gave it another watch, and I have to say, it still holds up beautifully, but the sequels... 👎

I will admit, though, that I actually slept through about half of the second one.

So, what kind of smokes is the Prophet lighting up?

ZgOne said:that unconvicted Jet Li guy

Legend... 👍

The movie isn't even bad. I honestly don't get what people were expecting. A happy ending? You can't have a long-running franchise like this just wrap everything up in a neat little bow for everyone. Besides, my take is that Neo realized halfway through the whole ordeal that he wasn't going to beat the machines—he could only strike a deal with them (which he’ll probably use later when we're fighting off aliens). The machines simply outclassed him. Even if he can fly faster than an F-16, he stands zero chance against Smith in a one-on-one fight. That’s why they threw in that ridiculous plot twist I still haven't quite wrapped my head around. How did Neo actually beat Smith? Honestly, the Matrix will keep existing as long as Kiefer Sutherland is available to sign on for more sequels, because he's the only one who can actually take Smith down.

Personally, I found it incredibly disappointing that Neo doesn't actually defeat the machines at the end, opting instead to strike some sort of deal with them. In the first film, Morpheus makes it crystal clear that their entire struggle is centered on destroying the Matrix once and for all.

(The only logical explanation I can see for this shift is that both humanity, Neo himself, and the entire resistance movement are still being puppeted by the Matrix.)

Beyond that, why exactly does Neo’s victory over Smith serve as the necessary condition for the war between humans and machines to cease? 😕

And another thing—how is it that Neo is no longer clearly superior to Smith in the sequels, considering he was practically handling him with one hand at the end of the first installment? 😕

nimblemarlin17 said:The Matrix stays alive as long as Kiefer Sutherland doesn't sign on for the sequels, because he’s the only one who can actually take them down.

I'll drink to that. Jack is a thousand times cooler than Neo.🙂

I don't think Neo actually beat Smith. It's more likely that Neo was synced to the Source during the fight, and when Smith took him over, he got synced too. Once Neo won the first round, Smith should have just been purged. Like a Recycle Bin for software. Put simply.

Betty Bennett10 said:Personally, I found it pretty terrible that Neo doesn't actually defeat the machines at the end, but instead just reaches some kind of truce with them. In the first movie, Morpheus explicitly states they are fighting to destroy the Matrix entirely.

(The only way I can make sense of this is if both the humans, Neo, and the resistance movement are all still being controlled by the Matrix itself.)

Also, why does Neo's victory over Smith serve as the condition for the war between machines and humans to end? 😕

And another thing—how is it that Neo isn't superior to Smith in the sequels when he was basically tossing him around with one hand at the end of the first film?😕

Morpheus is feeding him nonsense, and he’s clearly not smart enough if he actually believes in the "One"...
Smith had to be taken out because he would have flooded both the machine world and the Matrix, so they had to get rid of him. Plus, the Smith from the first film isn't the same guy in 2 and 3; he leveled up... he was probably just coasting until he upgraded himself to a level slightly higher than Neo.

Justin Patel said:Morpheus is playing him, and he isn't exactly a genius when it comes to believing in Neo...
If Smith wasn't dealt with, he would have flooded the machine world just like he did the Matrix. That’s why they had to take him out. Besides, the Smith from the first movie isn't even the same guy we see in the sequels; he evolved. He was just some basic program until he upgraded himself to a level way beyond Neo's reach.

Smith basically went Super Saiyan 4.

Total Dragon Ball Z vibes.

The whole fight looks like a cheap rip-off of DBZ. All Neo needed to do was scream, "ZZZRRRRAAAAAAAKKKKAAAA SSSSSMMMMMRRRRTTTIIII!!!"

It’s actually quite similar...
Goku and Neo are just naive kids playing with massive powers
whereas Smith and Vegeta have that secret smirk, or that disbelief when they take a loss...

Justin Patel said:Morpheus is being played, and he wasn't nearly that naive when it came to his faith in Neo..

What exactly is your angle here? Are you suggesting that Neo wasn't actually THE ONE?😲 😕

Betty Bennett10 said:What are you getting at? That Neo wasn't THE ONE?😲 😕

Maybe this quote provides your answer...
Persephone: "Neo, I am your mother."
Neo: "Whoa, dude."

but you still haven't told me which brand The Oracle smokes