The Matrix double-feature last night was fun (thanks Damon). Five hours of movies and food, yikes. I enjoyed the movie, and my only complaint was when they started replacing Keanu with a CG character in some of the fight scenes. It started to look more like a video game then a film, but given the nature of the Matrix world, maybe that was the point.
Kottke was also annoyed by the effects: “The completely computer-generated effects (e.g. in the Neo vs. 100 Agent Smiths fight) looked, well, completely computer-generated.”
Before and between the features they screened 3 of the new Animatrix shorts. I had seen part of one online, but was waiting until the DVD came out so I could watch them all. Now I’m not so sure. I’ll probably still get the DVD, but I hope the subject matter in the other shorts is better than The Second Renaissance. Not that it was bad – it was brilliantly done, with a great blend of CG and hand-drawn – but it sure was a depressing little film. Sort of like Grave of the Fireflies: a beautiful and moving film, but not something I want to watch over and over.
