Movie Reviews

The Animatrix (2003)

I am a fan of the 3 (yes all 3) Matrix films, admittedly not at identical levels. I had not heard of The Animatrix until it showed up on this streaming service. The Animatrix is a group of short films with a Matrix theme. The short films while all sharing the same Matrix ancestor do not all share actual space in that reality. The short films, while not in timeline order, are separated only by brief Matrix wallpaper and the name of the upcoming film. I did not find this format a problem. At least for me when digesting dystopias I prefer my films in short format. I enjoyed the animation of all the stories. The voice acting was great. Some names may (or may not) surprise the viewer. As for plot, I found "Matriculated" had the most interesting and novel take on the theme of AI domination. Emotionally I wish that it had ended differently, but intellectually I was not surprised. However the final scene of "Matriculated" was intriguing. Probably viewing at least one Matrix film (preferably the first one) before viewing this film would be a prerequisite for enjoying The Animatrix.