Review Detail
8.9 23 10
(Updated: September 12, 2012)
Overall rating
9.0
Audio/Video Quality
10.0
Narrative
8.0
Enjoyment
9.0
Generally speaking, I enjoyed the Matrix sequels. Sure, they weren’t as good as the original, but few sequels are. I never really bothered with any edits until now because hey, why watch an edit of a film I like in its original form? Then Geminigod came along, with promises of an epic finale and so on. I was intrigued, and since I had the time to spare, being on summer break from university, I decided I’d check it out.
And I was absolutely impressed. About an hour and forty minutes into it I asked myself where my rubber stamp was. Ambition is the name of this game, and it’s safe to say that Geminigod is winning (duh).
VIDEO:
Absolutely stunning. The Blu-ray source (and the further clean up by the editor) really shines through even on the DL DVD version. Gem also did some VFX work for a few bits (no, I won’t tell you which) and his work was very well done. There was only one shot that was a bit off due to color correction, but it was a necessary evil.
10/10
AUDIO:
Lacking the proper equipment for a true 5.1 experience I can’t really say how the surround was, but it sounded good, though I did feel a few times the music was over powering the dialogue and sound effects, though I think that may be a flaw of the original and not this edit.
10/10
THE EDIT
The opening was very well edited, flowing from the Revolutions code opening through to the Reloaded one. The title “The Epic Edition” was a bit awkward…perhaps if it had been in the Matrix font it would have fit a bit better, but hey, it was still good.
While several semi-major scenes were excised, I didn’t really notice until about twenty minutes after the cut bit would have taken place. All of the cuts were well made, though there was ONE I didn’t agree with at the end in terms of dialogue, but it was a minor quibble. There was one flash frame during a cut in the rave sequence at the beginning, but the funny thing is, I couldn’t recall what had been cut. There were a couple awkward fades elsewhere, but nothing overly distracting.
Now, for the story. Gem did a great job condensing the two films to a slightly-less-than-three hour long experience. There are a few spots near the middle where he began to use blend the events of Revolutions and Reloaded, and it worked wonderfully. Gone is the silly plotline if Neo being comatose in the Matrix and everything related to that. While he DOES have a noted change in demeanor after the Neb is destroyed, it fits with what he has to do. Is it perfect? No, but if you pretend that you’ve never seen the original versions, it works.
The biggest issue is that, the way the story has been restructured, a number of characters don’t really get an emotional climax, or one at all. It can be left to interpretation, but something would have been nice. Though, this is more a fault to the source material not really having much room for alternate takes, but Gem did the best with what he had to work with.
I don’t want to write a novel on what works and what doesn’t, but suffice it to say that this edit is brilliant, and a definite improvement on the sequels.
8/10
THE DVD:
The disc is simple enough: the movie, chapter selection, and two bonus features: The Final Flight of the Osiris as the prologue, and The Second Renaissance from the Animatrix as “In The Beginning.” As with the main feature, the quality here is excellent.
10/10
IN SUM
I really enjoyed watching this, and as it charged towards its climax, it felt as if I was watching a new film entirely. The few faults are easy to overlook, and on the whole it is an enjoyable experience.
9/10
Review by Aztek463 — June 10, 2011 @ 10:33 PM
And I was absolutely impressed. About an hour and forty minutes into it I asked myself where my rubber stamp was. Ambition is the name of this game, and it’s safe to say that Geminigod is winning (duh).
VIDEO:
Absolutely stunning. The Blu-ray source (and the further clean up by the editor) really shines through even on the DL DVD version. Gem also did some VFX work for a few bits (no, I won’t tell you which) and his work was very well done. There was only one shot that was a bit off due to color correction, but it was a necessary evil.
10/10
AUDIO:
Lacking the proper equipment for a true 5.1 experience I can’t really say how the surround was, but it sounded good, though I did feel a few times the music was over powering the dialogue and sound effects, though I think that may be a flaw of the original and not this edit.
10/10
THE EDIT
The opening was very well edited, flowing from the Revolutions code opening through to the Reloaded one. The title “The Epic Edition” was a bit awkward…perhaps if it had been in the Matrix font it would have fit a bit better, but hey, it was still good.
While several semi-major scenes were excised, I didn’t really notice until about twenty minutes after the cut bit would have taken place. All of the cuts were well made, though there was ONE I didn’t agree with at the end in terms of dialogue, but it was a minor quibble. There was one flash frame during a cut in the rave sequence at the beginning, but the funny thing is, I couldn’t recall what had been cut. There were a couple awkward fades elsewhere, but nothing overly distracting.
Now, for the story. Gem did a great job condensing the two films to a slightly-less-than-three hour long experience. There are a few spots near the middle where he began to use blend the events of Revolutions and Reloaded, and it worked wonderfully. Gone is the silly plotline if Neo being comatose in the Matrix and everything related to that. While he DOES have a noted change in demeanor after the Neb is destroyed, it fits with what he has to do. Is it perfect? No, but if you pretend that you’ve never seen the original versions, it works.
The biggest issue is that, the way the story has been restructured, a number of characters don’t really get an emotional climax, or one at all. It can be left to interpretation, but something would have been nice. Though, this is more a fault to the source material not really having much room for alternate takes, but Gem did the best with what he had to work with.
I don’t want to write a novel on what works and what doesn’t, but suffice it to say that this edit is brilliant, and a definite improvement on the sequels.
8/10
THE DVD:
The disc is simple enough: the movie, chapter selection, and two bonus features: The Final Flight of the Osiris as the prologue, and The Second Renaissance from the Animatrix as “In The Beginning.” As with the main feature, the quality here is excellent.
10/10
IN SUM
I really enjoyed watching this, and as it charged towards its climax, it felt as if I was watching a new film entirely. The few faults are easy to overlook, and on the whole it is an enjoyable experience.
9/10
Review by Aztek463 — June 10, 2011 @ 10:33 PM
A