Brandon Lee would have been better and bring out more range and charisma in his character.
share"Matrix isn't highly regarded"
I think Keanu's acting is kind of what they were looking for though. Keanu is very wooden and monotone and all that, but look at the personalities of all the other characters in the movie. Almost everyone in the Nebuchadnezzar crew is stoic and quiet and wooden, just like Neo.
shareActually, Keanu also happens to be one of the reasons this film is widely considered to be a classic. Why? Because he played the character the way it was meant to. In other words, his acting was effective for Neo.
You want something corny? You got it!
I disagree and for an unpopular reason. Keanu Reeves has the the "stoner acting" going on a lot of the time. And not to mention his awesome REAL martial arts and yoga training. He is the perfect "high guy" (that's not really high) questioning reality and wanting to go deeper in the mind. It's a *beep* movie.
shareGood point. His character is kind of like his one in Bill and Ted, except that hes living in a world where the conspiracy theories really are true.
shareI disagree, the film is highly regarded as a classic. If anything has tarnished its image its the sequels IMO.
Like someone here said, Keanu elevated the film, perhaps not so much with his acting (which was ok with what they were going for) but with his look (he looks very ethereal, pasty white skin, dark hair & eyes, with deep monotonous voice) and dedication to the role (the fight scenes - just like he has elevated John Wick with similar dedication and training).
I think both his look, physicality, and acceptable acting is far more vital in this film than a Shakespearean actor who cannot train and fight as he did, while looking as he did.
Personally, I can't remember a sequel I was more eager to see and more disappointed in than the 2nd Matrix film. A muddled mess.
shareOr the third. Horrible!
Not sure how many times I have seen the first. Probably somewhere between 10 to 20 times. Went back to watch it a second time at the movie theater when it was on even - something I only did twice in my life (other being Fight Club).
The second and the third I haven't watched again since first seeing them!
It's a testament to its creators that they had Reeves and Moss as the leads, yet still made a brilliant film.
Remember 2001 is considered one of the best films of all time yet Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood never set the world on fire.
I do give Keanu credit for picking good projects and he did do a good acting job in The Gift.
I thought Brandon Lee was even worse than Keanu.