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"The film never pays off," writes D. J. Williams (Christian Spotlight). "Though there is no doubt that Revolutions is a spectacular achievement in action films, as the end of an epic trilogy it is found significantly lacking. Though I'm sure the ending makes perfect sense to the Wachowskis … they forgot to tell the rest of us exactly what it means—leading to a conclusion that leaves viewers feeling cheated."

Steve Lansingh (The Film Forum) says, "The Matrix was a film that helped enrich my conception of a human being living with saviorhood looming over him. But by the time we get to Revolutions, Neo stoically heads off on his preordained path with virtually no emotion; the script told him what to do and so he's doing it. The Wachowski brothers seem to be involved mainly in universe-building, in expanding the palette of places and people in their fiction. Their main story—the one about overcoming our human resistance to belief, to prophecy and destiny—fades away."

My full review is at Looking Closer.

For an interesting, and humorous, comparison of the three Matrix films, look at the compare/contrast chart posted at Metaphilm.

Mad about Mystic River

Clint Eastwood's Mystic River, which took some hits from religious press critics a few weeks back, earns a rave review this week from Carole McDonnell (The Film Forum). She writes, "The slow dissection of the grief and pain surrounding a murder is heart-wrenching under the hand of director Clint Eastwood. The film has many themes: guilt and expiation, ancestral sins, community and belonging. But it is only at the end that the film's major theme is apparent. And that theme is what gives the movie its last good punch. The mystic river is the emotional river of human rationalizations, especially the rationalizations made by Christians who take grace for granted and who create their own ways of atoning for their sins."

Next week: Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World heralds the return of Peter Weir and Russell Crowe.

Also posted today is an interview with Elf producer Todd Komarnicki

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November (Web-only) 2003, Vol. 47