Robots VS Kung Fu: The Matrix Grindhouse Edition

The whole modern grindhouse genre is a very fascinating idea but not one that I think works well in a long form format. Hobo with a Shotgun, Machete, and Planet Terror, to name a few, were all novel ideas but after the initial awe wore off I began to become disinterested.

This is the same thing that happened with this edit. I found the idea extremely interesting and unique but half way into it, I lost interest and began to drift away from paying attention. This has nothing to do with the quality of the edit but is more a reflection on my interest and thoughts on the genre.

Rating the technical aspect of a film like this is difficult because bad editing techniques are what make a film a grindhouse film. That being said, this edit is a perfect representation of how the techniques for a grindhouse film should be executed. The amount of work that must have went into this edit is astounding.

I don't really think the Johnny Mnemonic scenes worked very well for the most part because they threw off the narrative, which is why I gave it an 8 rating.

On the other hand, there were several things about this edit that I did enjoy. The running gag of Agent Smith zipping his pants (inferring a certain action) was hilarious. As were some of the lines of dialogue, like the conversation between Neo and Trinity about her being a man a long time ago HAHA!! I also really enjoyed the ending, which I won't spoil.

My favorite part of this edit was actually the fake trailers that occur before the feature film, similar to the fake trailers before Grindhouse (Planet Terror/Death Proof). Trailers of this sort is where I feel the modern grindhouse technique is best used, because they are in a short form format.

Overall, even though I didn't enjoy this edit as much as others I would still recommend it. The ideas are solid and would be hard pressed to find anything as original. For those reasons alone, this edit should be viewed and if another is released I will most certainly view that as well.

This was a masterpiece*! (*If you like this kind of thing)

The great thing about the grindhouse genre of fanedits is that every flaw and imperfection actually makes it better!
I was, and am, a huge fan of Mystery Science Theater 3000, particularly the early Joel episodes, but all of it. And then onto Cinematic Titanic and Rifftrax (and Wrecking Crew) and on and on. So in loving that show there is a certain appreciation one gains for this kind of film-making.

I loved that the subplot with that guy named "Raulph?" that Neo kept calling only kinda made sense. (I think the scenes were from Johnny Mnemonic, but I haven't seen that movie).

I loved that horrible background music drowned out quite a lot of the dialogue!

I loved that you could almost always see the wires during fight scenes! The training sequence between Morpheus and Neo was loooooong. It made me think of an old MST3K movie featuring a lot of rock climbing.

I loved how almost none of Neo's inserted dialogue really flowed or worked at all!! It becomes hysterical at times. It is absolutely fantastic!

With these Grind-House edits, every negative comment becomes a compliment, if you really appreciate these! Don't get me wrong, someone could screw this up and create something very boring and completely without narrative. It takes just exactly the right blend to create a masterpiece of ridiculousness such as this. This is genius! (see also War of the Stars)

I really REALLY loved the ending!!! I laughed for five or ten minutes at it's abruptness, despite the preceding summary/montage.

It takes a genius to create something that feels like an authentic inept early 80s cheap sci-fi movie. I wish MST3K were in the corner of the screen to help me through the dialogue that was drowned out by music :-)

This was brilliant and I hope there is a sequel, as the Coming Attractions promised!

Just finished watching Robots VS Kung Fu, wow!

I gave a high audio/video quality rating because the filming era of the footage was changed from the late 90s to the 70s-ish. And all of the quality work done on the video and audio to make it feel like 70s film was dead on. 9 stars for that. I feel like the narrative-voice was a bit off and could have had the voices match up a bit better. so 9 stars for the audio editing. 10 stars on the visual because it was dead on for the time period. 9 stars for narrative and enjoyment because there were moments when I felt a bit lost and had to re-watch parts and understand what's going on.

I tried to keep in mind all of the details as I watched it; like Neo as a drug dealer and possible traitor working for the machines... It's tough to learn the new story when I've watched the old one so many times. It was very good though. The extensive audio work was really good, and making Morpheus out to be a cold hard-ass was a great touch. I also liked the history lesson that Neo received. I suppose that was to catch him up on the years that he missed while he was being removed from the matrix? From an outsiders view of course. I liked the removal of animation, it was nice and made the show feel dated. There was also a lot of the close up action removed. This is so ever-true of old style movies. They didn't get too close to the action because they knew it would make it look fake (because it was fake) so they kept their distance from the action scenes or used obscure shots or made the action start and end quickly. This re-edit nailed that aspect of old film making dead to rights. The blurring from distant shots was a good touch too. Neo killing the people he used to work for was good too, but I'm wondering where he found the time to do that. The previews were good also, along with the DVD Menu work. It really made it an immersed experience from start to finish. The scene of the machine (smith) fighting Neo down on the subway rails was confusing for a few moments. I thought it showed Smith jumping out?? and then it showed Neo and Smith still down there, and then Neo had gotten out of the trains way... that part was trippy. I'm not sure if it was intentional or just an honest error in this massive re-edit.

Over all, this was absolutely great and I think that any big Matrix fan would enjoy viewing it.

[Review]
Remember 'The Matrix'? Reality is just an illusion... and only The One, aka Neo, can save us - via some envelope-pushing special effects and a pounding soundtrack courtesy of the likes of The Propellerheads, The Prodigy and Rage Against The Machine.

Well, chuck your memories in the bin. Because everything you think you know about The Matrix is a load of crap and Neo is going to ram it up your back-side, all-the-while accompanied by a mildly weird 80's electronic 'rhythm'. Unless you pay him not to. Then he's your best friend.

If this sounds like your kind of re-edit, then you are going to love this. 'Robots vs Kung Fu' is very left-of-centre which for those of the more cynical disposition (like yours truly) means it is highly enjoyable. Characters are completely mixed up and messed around, often with hilarious results. I thoroughly enjoyed hearing Neo tell people to 'fuck off' at every opportunity, his shady morals making him a far more sympathetic anti-hero than the wide-eyed innocent original. And don't get me started on the enigmatic and downright-weird Morpheous.

Then there are The Agents, particularly Agent Smith. Where to start? Well, when he's not buggering his victims off-screen for information, he's having them held-down in an interview room for his own sexual gratification. If you thought the original was bad, wait until you've been treated to this editor's version. Brilliant.

How matrixgrindhouse pulls this off is by delving in to an enviable knowledge of pulp video fare. The list of sources is awe-inspiring and a large hint at just how much work and research went in to this project.

The best compliment I can pay this edit? I'll be back very soon to watch it again. Or was that deja-vu?

[Technical]
I want to end on the high this gargantuan effort deserves, so we'll start with criticisms. The main one is that this film seems confused about whether it is an homage to early-80's VHS straight-to-video exploitation (there was a time when there was very little content to rent on VHS, so shit films were rushed out to fill the vacuum - believe me, I remember by grandad renting a sci-film he thought from the cover must be like Star Wars only for us to watch open-mouthed as people had their skulls melted with lasers) or if it's a dodgy 16mm release of a low-budget sci-fi, which would make it late 1970's. The music and low grade video for me firmly places it in the former, which makes the film-degradation effects occasionally confusing. I'd have loved to see tape drop-out and wear to accompany the rest of the edit, rather than the usual film scratches.

'Grindhouse' stylistically can also be taken so far that the audience isn't sure at times whether a degrading effect is intentional or not. For example, in this edit one of the main characters (Trinity) speaks about 4 long lines of dialogue that are at quite a profound moment in the film (as profound as an excellent piss-take as this can get) and they are virtually inaudiable. Is this a clever device to cover up lines that wouldn't make sense? Or is the sound badly handled? At times it's hard to tell.

As I said in my review, there is an absolute well of footage that the editor has sifted through to make this film - but at times the music sounds a little limited. It fits most of the time, but there are tracks that sound self-indulgent and don't fit in with the others. Listening to the soundtrack to the original 'The Matrix' is a masterclass is putting disparate music together that fits seamlessly, and a project this large deserves as much attention.

All that being said, this is indeed a huge project. Almost every shot has been toyed with in some way or another, and when the trailer says 'three years in the making' you believe it. A massive undertaking that must have taken months of dedication - which is what it takes to make a great FanEdit. Excellent work.

(One last point - the film can be watched on an online video service, making it instantly accessible and user-friendly. FanEditors aspiring to the seriousness and calibre of this project that want their work to reach a large audience should take note.)

Hmm how to rate this, I mean it's intentionally bad, but it does that good! This movie was a real blast and a good fresh way to see this movie again, lots visual and narrative creativity. I also have to mention that the music score is epic and the bonus ending is hilarious, I almost wish the sequels were about something more like that. There were a few parts were the narrative was hard to follow, but maybe I just haven't seen enough of the movies this is parodieng to be in on the joke. It's absolutely worth a watch and it was a lot more funny then I thought it would be. I can't remember specifics right now, but there was several edits I found to be very clever.