The Animatrix
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Movie Reviews of The Animatrix
Movie Review: A new anime fan...
Summary: 5 Stars
This is what I LOVE about the Matrix: when you think you've got it all figured out, you'll read a review from someone else putting a whole new twist on the story, making you discover aspects of it you didn't quite catch before. I can personally spend hours happily reading all the reviews connected to any Matrix product, always fascinated at the power it has to make people think. As a fanatic of anything Matrix, I wanted to get this DVD even though I must state that I was not an anime fan to begin with and didn't expect to like all the material. Well, I was proven wrong.True, not all 9 shorts are of equal quality, each one with its own animation and storytelling style. Whether you'll prefer one over the other really depends on your personal tastes. In my case, I have my favorites but must admit that each piece, even the ones which I feel are weaker, have some redeeming qualities which make up for their shortcomings.
"Final Flight of the Osiris" is without a doubt my personal favorite. This story could easily have been a part of Reloaded but since that movie was quite long to begin with, it was a very good idea to include it here instead. From the creators of "Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within", the animation all in CGI is even better this time around, with a few years of technological progress. Some of the characters are so well done that they almost feel human, especially the male lead Thadeus. The story is erotic, chilling and moving at the same time. A must see.
"The second Renaissance Part I&II" is my second favorite with a backstory to how the machines have come to enslave humans. I love the new spin this has put on the story where we discover that the machines are not as totally evil as we had previously thought. Quite violent and disturbing with images that will stay with you for a long time afterwards. Not for the squirmish and definitely not for kids.
I also have to mention "Matriculated". I really loved it even though I saw that quite a few reviewers didn't seem to agree. It is the most abstract short here with a lot of psychedelic and very colorful imagery which is a big part of why I loved it. I also appreciated the reversal story where a robot is immerged into a virtual world created by the minds of several humans so they can entice him to join them in their resistance against the machines. The animation style was very much to my liking and I really loved the robot who ends becoming quite likable, therefore complicating the Matrix story even more, adding a very interesting spin to the mix.
"Program", "Beyond", "Kid's story" and "A Detective's story" are engaging as well with different animation styles and stories I liked in various degrees. Only "World Record" is, in my opinion, not as strong as the others and I found myself not really connecting to its very unusual animation technique nor its somewhat static plot, even though it is still worth seeing.
The extras are also noteworthy and I found myself captivated by the different directors and various crew members explaining how they came to craft these shorts with a lot of patience and dedication. Finally, for me the ultimate proof that this DVD is a must resides in the fact that after viewing it, I got the urge to seek out some classics in the Japanese Anime world, even though I really wasn't a big fan of it before. The Wachowsky brothers succeeded in my case to convert an anime neophyte into a fan. No small feat.
Any Matrix fan has got to see this. And remember, one element which is very important in the Matrix world is to retain the freedom to make up your own mind and form your own opinion. Don't let any negative reviews keep you from seeing this. And once you've watched, write a review and put your own spin on it!
Movie Review: A new anime fan...
Summary: 5 Stars
This is what I LOVE about the Matrix: when you think you've got it all figured out, you'll read a review from someone else putting a whole new twist on the story, making you discover aspects of it you didn't quite catch before. I can personally spend hours happily reading all the reviews connected to any Matrix product, always fascinated at the power it has to make people think. As a fanatic of anything Matrix, I wanted to get this DVD even though I must state that I was not an anime fan to begin with and didn't expect to like all the material. Well, I was proven wrong.True, not all 9 shorts are of equal quality, each one with its own animation and storytelling style. Whether you'll prefer one over the other really depends on your personal tastes. In my case, I have my favorites but must admit that each piece, even the ones which I feel are weaker, have some redeeming qualities which make up for their shortcomings.
"Final Flight of the Osiris" is without a doubt my personal favorite. This story could easily have been a part of Reloaded but since that movie was quite long to begin with, it was a very good idea to include it here instead. From the creators of "Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within", the animation all in CGI is even better this time around, with a few years of technological progress. Some of the characters are so well done that they almost feel human, especially the male lead Thadeus. The story is erotic, chilling and moving at the same time. A must see.
"The second Renaissance Part I&II" is my second favorite with a backstory to how the machines have come to enslave humans. I love the new spin this has put on the story where we discover that the machines are not as totally evil as we had previously thought. Quite violent and disturbing with images that will stay with you for a long time afterwards. Not for the squirmish and definitely not for kids.
I also have to mention "Matriculated". I really loved it even though I saw that quite a few reviewers didn't seem to agree. It is the most abstract short here with a lot of psychedelic and very colorful imagery which is a big part of why I loved it. I also appreciated the reversal story where a robot is immerged into a virtual world created by the minds of several humans so they can entice him to join them in their resistance against the machines. The animation style was very much to my liking and I really loved the robot who ends becoming quite likable, therefore complicating the Matrix story even more, adding a very interesting spin to the mix.
"Program", "Beyond", "Kid's story" and "A Detective's story" are engaging as well with different animation styles and stories I liked in various degrees. Only "World Record" is, in my opinion, not as strong as the others and I found myself not really connecting to its very unusual animation technique nor its somewhat static plot, even though it is still worth seeing.
The extras are also noteworthy and I found myself captivated by the different directors and various crew members explaining how they came to craft these shorts with a lot of patience and dedication. Finally, for me the ultimate proof that this DVD is a must resides in the fact that after viewing it, I got the urge to seek out some classics in the Japanese Anime world, even though I really wasn't a big fan of it before. The Wachowsky brothers succeeded in my case to convert an anime neophyte into a fan. No small feat.
Any Matrix fan has got to see this. And remember, one element which is very important in the Matrix world is to retain the freedom to make up your own mind and form your own opinion. Don't let any negative reviews keep you from seeing this. And once you've watched, write a review and put your own spin on it!
Movie Review: A must see dvd before you see Reloaded and Revolutions
Summary: 5 Stars
A majority of people thinks Reloaded and Revolutions' story is weak. This is simply because a lot of plots are not there, but here, in Animatrix and in Enter the Matrix. There are several links from here to the movies. I wish there is a trivia for this, I can think of a bit more than a dozen.Final Flight of the Osiris brings about the first level of Enter the Matrix. It is the crew of the Osiris who sacrifice their lives to inform Zion about the machines' movement. This one links to Reloaded and Enter the Matrix. The CG of this episode is welly done, the coloring and character modelling are almost at the same level as Final Fantasy - the Spirit WIthin.
Kid's Story - This one is about the so-called self-substantiation(also refered in World Record) of Mr. Popper, who is afterwards refered as the kid in the movies. His role in the movie is a disciple and true believer of Neo, the One, the Savior, the Massiah, Jesus. He is often misunderstood as an extra jarjarbink-like character in the movie, but he is definitely not. In the movies, he made references to both his own words here in this episode and another one from another episode(Beyond). The drawing here is also significant. It uses a draft-like style, used to represent dreams in many anime in the 60's and 70's. Also, during the chase, characters are twisted, torn, rendered into random forms to represent chaos, irrational, unreal, imaginary, etc.
Detective's Story - This probably happens before the Neb crew found Neo. This episode used a grey-scale coloring, featuring a mixture of old and new technologies. Reminding the audience that this is the Matrix. This also reveals the desire of human-being to know the truth(Beyond also talks about this)
World Record - Spoke about self-substantiation, the time-line basically happens in a few seconds, but showing the Dan's memory. This episode shows us that those who realize the Matrix, their will and desire to be freed. Like the Kid's Story, it twisted the character into a random shape to express the idea of chaos.
The Second Renaissance (Parts 1 and 2) - These two episodes refer to the birth of the matrix, also refered as the Genesis of Matrix. It reveals many arguments exists nowadays about the development of true AI. This issue is pretty controversial, but the brothers obviously think that AI robots also deserves respect. This episode is a turn point of good and evil in the whole Matrix idea: it is human who started the war (the elimination of B166ER's kind) and the first side to ask for peace is the machine.
Program - This episode reminds us of the idea "Ignorance is bliss." Cypher, who betrayed the Neb, is also mentioned here. The drawings are great and full of direction and momentum. My favourite part is the zoom-out near the end of the episode.
Matriculated - This one refers to the possible of the existence of love in machine/program. This lies a clear plot to Rama Kandra's love to Sati and Kamala in Revolutions. This episode is the most complicated episodes in the collection. Few of the scenes are hard to understand their purpose unless you spend time to think about it. Anyways, this episode is the deepest of all.
Generally speaking, each of these episodes cannot stand alone by itself. They are connected somehow together with the movies. Each episode is drawn in different styles: full CG, Computer Assisted animating, hand-draft, Japanese Anime, etc. All those who oppose Reloaded and Revolutions must see these movies and this review, for this anime is also a crucial element in the series.
Movie Review: Whoa!
Summary: 5 Stars
Instead of reviewing the entire thing I'll just review the actual movies(mostly). Final Flight of the Osiris-
This short was made by the Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within people and is just gorgeous. The opening fight sequence was pretty much unessecary but fun enough that you don't care anyway. The story is basically about...well the final flight of the Osiris, and how they discover the army digging to Zion. It is also one of the two shorts that actually relate directly to the movie The Matrix: Reloaded.
The Second Renaissance Parts I & II-
This short shows the rise of the machines and the fall of humanity. The war and everything that led up to it. Second Renaissance has plenty of CG parts which is to be expected from the people who brought you Blue Submarine No. 6. Although this time the CG and drawn animation actually blend well together. A thing that contradicts the movies in this is that it says everything is from the Zion database but in the first film they said they didn't know who struck first but Second Renaissanc says who did. Maybe they actually found out who knows. Anyway this is another one of the great films that you'll watch over and over and over and...
Kid's Story-
This is the only other film that relates to The Matrix Reloaded directly but you have to see the movie and pay attention to know how. Anywho this film is made by the Cowboy Bebop crew and has a new type of animation on it's side. The animation is made to look like the artists original sketch just with color but the thing is it takes twice as many cels to do it so don't say they were lazy. Overall another great film.
Program-
Thi is probably the most traditionally anime of the bunch. Created by the Ninja Scroll people this film is about a woman in a simulation who is forced to fight against her friend who is trying to go back to live in The Matrix. This one is very cool. The fighting is great and everything.
World Record-
This one was written by the guy behind Ninja Scroll, but was animated by Madhouse. The animation is...odd, but creative at the same time. Unfortunately it's not that great. In fact I think it really [bad] especially the agents and the way they look. This will be one you won't care about but for maybe one minute so you can know what's happening.
Beyond-
This is about a girl who is trying to find her pet cat who wanders off into a haunted house. The haunted house is actually a glitch in the Matrix. The girl and some other kids go to the house and play because of all the weird things they can do like throwing a glass bottle to the ground and when it hits it breaks but freezes before hitting the ground and then fixes itself and comes back. An interesting short and worth your time
A Detective Story-
This is a cool film brought to you by the Cowboy Bebop people. The film is about a private detective who's promises to get out of the business if the next person that calls is a suspicious husband. Well the next person instead is a program(obviously) who wants him to find a hacker that goes by the alias Trinity. When he asks who he'll be working for he doesn;t recieve an answer and is about to hang up when he is given $800,000 which is put into his bank account and so it begins. A great film that you and everyone else should like.
Matriculated-
I'm not even going to waste my time explaining it's TERRIBLE!
Well that's all but make sure you check out the special features they're actually pretty awesome compared to other anime DVD's
Movie Review: Use your illusion
Summary: 5 Stars
This collection of nine animated films (actually eight, one arbitrarily divided into two parts) inspired by THE MATRIX (1999) explores aspects of Matrix-mythology glossed over in the feature films. The First, "Final Flight of the Osiris," played briefly in theaters shortly before THE MATRIX RELOADED (2003) opened. Animated in the photo-realistic style of 2001's FINAL FANTASY: THE SPIRITS WITHIN and written by the Wachowski brothers, "Osiris" follows the ship's last doomed mission. Its crew, Jue and Thadeus (Voices of Pamela Segall and Kevin Micheal Richardson), are the first to spot the drilling machine and the sentinel army that threaten Zion in RELOADED, and Jue makes a daring leap into the Matrix to deliver a warning.
"The Second Renaissance, Parts I and II," also written by the Wachowskis, constitute a prequel to both MATRIX features. The conceit: We're viewing Zion historical file 12-1, which chronicles the rise of the machines, from their earliest, mindless incarnations to the sensational murder trial of B166-ER, the first android to kill its master, and the founding of the machine nation Zero-one. Persecuted by a coalition of fearful human nations, the citizens of Zero-one fight back; in a last ditch effort, humanity blots out the sun in hopes of starving the machines of solar energy. But they compensate, eventually enslaving their former human masters.
In "Kid's Story," alienated hacker Micheal Popper (Clayton Watson) gets a call from Neo (Keanu Reeves) and makes a perilous escape from the Matrix.
"Program" follows Cis (Hedy Burress) as she participates in a favorite fight simulation set in feudal Japan. But her training partner, Duo (Phil LaMarr), has made a deal to return to the Matrix; Cis can join him or die.
"World Record." the least attractivly animated film in the group, chronicles the unusual awakening of Dan Davis (Victor Williams), an Olymic caliber runner who pushes himself beyond the bounds of human endurance and creates a rip in the veil of the Matrix.
In the spooky "Beyond," teenage Yoko (Hedy Buress) tracks her cat, Yuki, to a local "Haunted House" where neighborhood kids have discovered the laws of nature don't apply. Cans float in midair, a broken light bulb appears and diappears in a flash of light, youngsters turn cartwheels in the air and drift to earth like feathers. They're experiencing a glitch in the Matrix, and debuggers are on their way to fix it. Writor-director Koji Morimoto's haunting short story offers a genuinely different view of the world of THE MATRIX, from its old-fashioned Japanese architecture to its quizzical ending.
The B&W film noir pastiche "A Detective Story" reaches back to Trinity's (Carrie-Anne Moss) pre-Neo life as a super hacker, and follows the efforts of a hardboiled dick (James Arnold Taylor) to track her down.
Finally, in "Matriculated," human revolutionaries try to convert machines to their cause by creating a Matrix of their own. Though the premise is clever, writor-director Peter Chung ("Aeon Flux") get bogged down in psycheldelic images that make the film look like a Frutopia commercial.
MATRIX completists (Including me) will revel in the films' interlocking stories and animation buffs will appreciate the range of talent the Wachoskis brought to bear on these shorts, including noted anime directors Yoshiaki Kawajiri (VAMPIRE HUNTER D: BLOODLUST) and Shinichiro Wantabe (COWBOY BEBOP).