Movie Reviews in 50 Words: (M)

The Matrix (1999)
Lean, polished, convention-defining flick about a hacker turned reality-bending savior delivers an engrossing mix of martial arts, gunplay, and couch philosophy later replicated shamelessly by genre peers. It’s a cocktail that works, urgently presented as if it were the crew’s first and last movie. If only this were the case.

Buy it

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The Matrix Reloaded (2003)
Viewers may sense the Wachowski brothers steering the franchise into the danger zone when the last remnant of civilization responds to an impending robot invasion by hosting a colossal rave. This sequel is so plagued with excess–more characters, bigger effects, an increasingly absurd storyline–that it collapses on itself.

Bury it

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The Matrix Revolutions (2003)
“Whoa” befalls those who held onto the proverbial ledge after the cliffhanger ending in Reloaded. Flesh and machine square off in a film completely enamored with its own overwrought mythology. The technological wizardry is certainly there, but amounts to nothing more than a pretty husk. Stick with the first flick.

Bury it