The Matrix is one of the best 90s sci-fi movies according to Rotten Tomatoes, as it posited a grand philosophical theory in which audiences didn’t have to know the works of Immanuel Kant to understand. The same can’t be said for its two sequels, but the one consistency throughout the whole series were incredible and jaw dropping actions scenes, and some CGI that was way ahead of its time.
However, as CGI was still in its infancy back then and it was more of an experiment than a full replacement for practical affects, some shots don’t totally hold up. And while there are some great scenes that have influenced a generation of movies, there are some computer generated images that are outright hilarious when watched today.
Best: Zion
Though Zion is home to some of the strangest scenes of the trilogy, the city’s aesthetic is actually one of the coolest parts of the second and third movie.
Not only is Zion filled with what look like the coolest raves in history, but the weird amalgam of underground caves, insane weapons tech, and behemoth spacecrafts is one of the best sci-fi worlds, even if it does have some divisive end results.
Doesn’t Hold Up: The Energy Source
As Morpheus explains to Neo all about the matrix, he tells him of the energy source, which then cuts to a tree of cocoons filled with strange goo that babies are resting in.
There was never a faker looking baby in a movie than that The Matrix baby, which was entirely computer generated and didn't even look believable back in 1999.
Best: The Lobby Scene
T he action sequence in the Lobby was one of the greatest gun fights of the 1990s, and is an unforgettable part of the trilogy overall.
On top of the epic throwdown, when an explosion is triggered later, the explosion fills the room in one of the best looking slow motion shots of the movie.
Doesn’t Hold Up: The Twins
With Matrix Reloaded trying to out do the first movie in every way, whether its the convoluted plot, the CGI scenes, or the fighting choreography, it’s still up for debate how many of the new elements were a success.
But one other way the Wachowskis tried to one up the original was with its villains, as Reloaded featured the Twins, two antagonists who were somehow able to turn transparent and back. It was not only one of the most ghastly looking uses of CGI, but it was completely out of place too.
Best: Transforming Into Agent Smith
As Agent Smith has the ability to stick his hand in to the chest of anybody in the Matrix and turn them in to a copy of him, they transform by first being covered in some sort of metallic looking ooze as they twitch around.
It’s one of the coolest looking affects, even if it doesn’t make a single bit of sense. Not only that, but it’s the reason behind one of the best lines of the series, which is when Agent Smith says, “the best thing about being me, there's so many me's.”
Doesn’t Hold Up: APU Defense
In The Matrix: Revolutions, APU stands for Armored Personal Unit, which are those giant hydraulic mechanized walkers that are used to combat the sentinels.
The defense units are mostly seen during the Battle of Zion close to the end of the movie, which is led by Captain Mifune, and they look absolutely ridiculous when they’re in use. As the weapons have two giant canons attached to them and move in a way that no weapon like that possibly could, they look like NPC’s from a PlayStation 2 game.
Best: Bullet Time
Bullet time features in inarguably one of the best fight scenes of the 90s and it has single handedly influenced hundreds of action and sci-fi movies in the 21st century.
As Neo bends backwards while bullets fly past him, it was the biggest sell the movie had. What’s even better is that even though bullet time is obviously the big trick of the movie, the series never overdoes it and it’s perfectly interspersed throughout the trilogy.
Doesn’t Hold Up: Neo vs. Smith Clones
The fight choreography is one of the reasons the sequels aren’t as bad as people say, but when it’s combined with CGI models of Neo, it’s a different story entirely.
Attention is drawn to the bad CGI even further as it’s intercut with real fighting choreography, such as when he really pulls a pole out of the ground, but then the movie cuts to a very rubbery CGI Neo swinging the pole around. On top of that are all of the duplicated Agent Smiths, and when they’re piling on to Neo, it just looks like a giant bowl of CGI mess.
Best: The Freeway Sequence
The freeway chase is one of the few things the sequels got right, and though the CGI of the twins turning transparent and back might look terrible, the way it’s used for this action scene is incredible, as they are going in and out of vehicles.
The whole sequence is jaw dropping, as there are smaller fights going on inside of cars, and grander fights happening on top of trucks. And with the chaos of cars flipping over every which way, it’s the perfect use of CGI and close to impossible to tell what is and what isn’t computer generated.
Doesn’t Hold Up: The Final Fight
Though the final battle between Agent Smith and Neo features one of Agent Smith’s most sinister quotes, the scene is a complete computer generated mess.
Not only does it feel like it goes on for hours, but the fight scene follows the two powerful beings, human or otherwise, flying through the sky and slamming each other against buildings. It’s nothing new, as viewers have seen this at several points up to this point, and some strategically added lightning effects doesn’t mask anything.