Review of The Animatrix (2003) by Not-Dave S — 12 Aug 2014

An ambitious collection of animated shorts based off the Matrix.

Film-by-film ratings:

Final Flight of the Osiris (3.5 out of 5): Not much happens. But the CGI animation looks great and the ending is important to the story of the first Matrix movie.

The Second Renaissance Parts I & II (3.5 out of 5): A detailed, violent prequel backstory to the trilogy but with a convoluted animation style and no need to be split into two parts.

Kid's Story (4 out of 5): A fascinating mini-story involving a seemingly ordinary teen's escape out of the Matrix. I wanted to see more of this character and the art style was really cool. But, a short film is a short film after all.

Program (2 out of 5): A stylishly animated filler. Probably the weakest in this collection.

World Record (3 out of 5): Another filler, but with even wilder art and a more interesting story.

Beyond (4 out of 5): A short that definitely needs it's own standalone film. Colorful, dazzling animation, an interesting main character, and a simple but fun story involving Japanese teens, a "haunted" house, and a glitch in the Matrix. Easily my favorite film in the bunch.

A Detective Story (3.5 out of 5): A stylish, moody noir mystery and the only short featuring one of the main characters of the trilogy. The ending doesn't make much sense but it's worth a look.

Matriculated (3.5 out of 5): A trippy, bizarrely animated story of a group of humans who try to train and befriend a machine. Not sure if I'd put this at the end of this collection, but it's worth a look.