Nowadays, sci-fi has been restricted to space combat and Star Trek sequels. Those are all well and good, but it was time for something fresh and really new. The Matrix delivers just that, with a strange story, awesome combat scenes, and incredible special effects.

The Matrix is a movie that couldn't even have been conceived of twenty years ago. Dealing with artificial intelligence, a gigantic computer network, and a world where nothing is as it seems, the closest alternate movie would have to be one that dealt with an underlying dream world. Going into this movie, I expected nonstop action, ongoing special effects, and a lack of story, but I was wrong. I was actually somewhat disappointed with the amount of action, even though there was more than in most other movies. A lot of the time was spent developing the story, or at least explaining the setting.

The Matrix has a good concept but anybody who goes to see it went for two reasons: the fighting and the graphics. Action basically takes over in the last half hour, delivering some of the best scenes ever. The freeze frame rotations, off-the-wall jumps, and fast kung fu are incredible, all aided by some pretty massive special effects. Some of the distant shots seemed a little blurry, but I think that was more of the theater's fault than anything else, and the machines in the real world were a little cheesy, but for the most part, the graphics were superb.

The subpar acting was saved by some humor, especially on behalf of the evil Agent Smith.

The setting is probably more important than the actual story, and some good humor, awesome special effects, and incredible fighting scenes makes The Matrix an instant sci-fi masterpiece.

Review by Erik Samdahl unless otherwise indicated.