"Thomas Anderson" is a nerdy boy by day, and an enigmatic hacker "Neo" by night. His latter persona is constantly challenging his norms, his behaviour, his reality even - and when he is contacted by Carrie-Anne Moss "Trinity" his suspicions begin to pan out and he is introduced to a crew of rebels led by "Morpheus" (Laurence Fishburne) on a mission to expose the extent to which mankind is merely a plaything of the "Matrix" living entirely imagined lives. The system is onto them, though, and using Hugo Weaving's "Agent Smith" and a fifth columnist from within the group's own ranks, is bent on their destruction. This film has that scarce value of having exciting (rather than delicately choreographed) action scenes married together with an intelligent, at times quite thought-provoking dialogue mixing fact/fiction and religiosity on a clever premiss that once we start to question reality; the conspiracy theories can run wild - and right to the top! Is "Neo" the one to save humanity - some sort of resurrected "one"? The Wachowski Brother remind us how to make a good sci-fi fantasy, but also that in his day Keanu Reeves was a one of the best, his boy-next-door good looks, agility and charisma working very well here. Of course the effects have dated, but one you've been subsumed into the plot - and if you are watching on a big screen - then that matters not; it's a gripping chunk of cinema depicting loyalty, determination and integrity that I really enjoyed.
