The Ultimate Matrix Collection DVD: Review By Brian

Back in 1999 the world was asked a very simple question.

"What is the Matrix?"

What audiences didn't know was ferociousness of the beast that lied behind that catchy little slogan.

I remember walking into the theater to catch The Matrix for the first time. Having seen nothing more at the time then a sci-fi laden TV spot for the film, my curiosity was sparked enough to go and see it based on the sheer fondness I continue to have for the genre.

What unfolded in front of me that day was a film that I still hold very high in the ranks of cinematic perfection, and is comparable to what I'm looking for in the ultimate movie going experience. Full of wonder, mystery, philosophy, deep overwhelming plotlines and the cool sci-fi action, the story of The Matrix has it all.

Techno-babble and geekdom aside The Matrix revolutionized the way shots were composed, edited and presented. From Gap ads to Pepsi commercials, and whether you claimed to be a film geek or not, you knew where the wannabes were biting their newly found style from. This only showed that The Matrix was proving itself to be less than a mere science fiction romp, and more like cinematic revolution.

The Matrix gave us hope. It introduced us to a world that intrigued boat loads of movie going audiences everywhere. It set the stage for our unlikely hero, and while the massive storyline and precursored events were revealed to us on screen, the end of this first film came and went, leaving us with a feeling that we had only glimpsed into the abyss and that the genesis of The Matrix had yet to be uncovered.

The Matrix Reloaded came at us like a freight train 4 years later. An many found the film to be contrived and overwhelmed in it's own mythology, Reloaded, as with all second acts of the 3 act play, served as a crucial piece of the pie. Our heros became fully realized and had taken shape while we were away, but what was completely invigorating about the film was it's revelation of what 'the matrix' actually was and could do. Too much dialogue? Too much technical babble? Maybe, but no matter how overloaded the film may get with it's special effects or it's attempt on selling it's existence, it's the humanity and the philosophy that really drive the film home and give something back to the audience that they can really tune into, a ploy in which many artistic expressions within the sci-fi genre seem to fail miserably.

Less then a year after Reloaded overwhelmed us, the final chapter came knocking on our doors screaming to complete the series with The Matrix Revolutions. Hailed as a much better predecessor to the first film then Reloaded, Revolutions took us into the core, through epic battles where we hoped good to triumph over evil, and finalized the series with a bang. Bigger special effects, more confusion about what "the Matrix" really was, and some superb acting achievements by the cast rounded out a fairly tight and concise science fiction tale with tons of heart in which any fan of films could easily take part in.

Packed to the virtual limits of "the real world" this set will keep you busy for hours on in, but why only a 4.5 star rating? No director's commentaries. For some reason the Wachowskis didn't sit down for the much expected director's commentary track. And while this is a minor bump in the road for most fans, including myself, it'll be really disheartening to find out down the road that Warner Bros. sat on these commentaries only to hit fans with yet another reissue down the road.

Nevertheless, the special feature content included within this set, which spans tens of hours, is by far worth the price of admission alone. Here are some of the highlights I found interesting...

Audio Commentaries

Although the absence of the director's commentary is a bit frustrating in the "Ultimate Collection" here, there is some worth while commentary tucked within each film. In an interesting move, the filmmakers have gone and included commentary tracks by film critics Todd McCarthy, John Powers and David Thomson as well as scholars Dr. Cornel West and Ken Wilber.

While both tracks give their own unique views about "The Matrix" as a whole, I'd have to say the most intriguing part of this feature element is what the scholars have to say about the philosophical effects of these films. Informative, yet broad enough to possibly bring to light some other aspects of the philosophy you might not have thought about the film before the listen.

On the other spectrum, the film critic commentaries are redundant and self centered. I don't think there is a track in any of the films which wasn't a name dropping festival of sorts, trying to sell their status in the film community to the viewing audience. We watch movies that intrigue us because we want to come to our own conclusions about the film, not because of what these "critics" find valuable, or because a film can be categorized or defined inside a confined box of film school rhetoric.

DISC 6: The Matrix Revolutions Revisted

28 featurettes. So much content here you'll be overwhelmed with Matrix goodness for hours on in.

DISC 7: The Animatrix

The anime precursor to The Matrix Reloaded and all of it's special feature trimmings. Never really that big of a fan of anime, I found this thing to be a nice supplement enough to make me stop the disc and dive into the real meat and potatoes. For fans sake though, it's very much appreciated that every spec of Matrix media unleashed on the public during its trespective theatrical runs are included in this "Ultimate" set.

DISC 8: The Roots of The Matrix

Running over 190 mintes, this disc contains even more special feature content to keep you on your Matrix high for hours. Sporting tons of docs and featurettes that take a look at the philosophical effects of the film's storyline and the characters involved. The Hard Problem: The Science Behind the Fiction, a doc*mentary on asking the question if the possibility of a real "Matrix" scenario is possible, has to be the shining gem in this section of special features. A very intriguing "what if" is presented and maintained. Bravo.

DISC 9: The Burly Man Chronicles

21 featurettes running over 177 minutes mostly chronicling the people involved in the creating the films as well as the 'Enter the Matrix' console game.

DISC 10: The Zion Archive

Concept art, photo galleries, music videos, TV spots, trailers, previews...every single shred of Matrix media that ever existed to promote or help create this film. A full library of material that completes every fan's dream of an "Ultimate" collection.

The picture is absolutely immaculate. Beyond the hand held video sequences in many of the special features docs, the transfer of the actual films onto disc are complete perfection.

I took a look at The Matrix and The Matrix Revolutions on the Philips 42" Pixel Plus 2LCD TV. The picture was amazing. The control I have over this television allows me to adjust for deep contrasts that can be handled dynamically, adjusting from sequence to sequence for the ultimate look of the film. With the TV's Ambilight technology the light source coming from the back of the unit was adjusted to a faint blue color which ultimately allowed my eyes to easily adjust to the picture's sharpness and depth. A truly awe-inspiring cinematic experience that I was truly impressed by! Philips have outdone themselves with this particular model.

Pumping through my trusty Pioneer home theater unit which I've tweaked to perfection over the past 6 years, the sound was brilliant. booming lows and a concise mix allowed this film to shine in every context. The sound was so perfect in points of the various films I actually thought some of the subtle sound effects I heard were actually coming from outside my house which prompted me to investigate further. A round of applause for the presentation of these films in this collection. Once again, this is the "Matrix" set us fans have been waiting for!

While it may disappoint some fans that the set's packaging wasn't a little bit more flamboyant, I found the package to be a perfect representation of the films. Matrix code falling in an arrayed pattern of silver embedded into a deep black box. Perfection, and says everything The Matrix really is. Inside you'll find each disc to be wrapped in a cardboard book style case with artwork from each of the films scattered about. As you can usually tell by a DVD's package, I truly don't think Warner Bros. will be reissuing this set any time soon.

This collection of films is a must for any fan of action, sci-fi, or just plain cool. Period. As far as the realm of science fiction is concerned, a new standard has been set. The Matrix films will prove to stand the test of time as truly ageless cinema.

Very tiny shortcomings aside, when they say this is "The Ultimate Matrix Collection" they mean it. And fans can rest assured, this is NOT some hokey marketing scam to get you to plop down even more cash for a reissue...this is a collection well worth any true fan's hard earned dough, even if you already own this trilogy on DVD.