Natalie Cook, Dylan Sanders, and Alex Munday are secret agents working for Charlie, a rich millionaire funding an elite crime fighting team of private investigators. After foiling the bombing of an airline in a rather over the top, high risk—but extremely high adrenaline sequence—that leaves the fate of the rest of the passengers on the plane in doubt, the Angels are assigned to investigate the kidnapping of a computer programmer. Natalie's hunch on who is behind the kidnapping ultimately proves correct, but the film doesn't dwell on that at all.

In a word it is a fun, but ultimately inconsequential film. There is a moment at the start of the film where it hints that it'll be about something more—perhaps satirizing other movies based on old TV shows—but almost instantly, the film turns the action up to 11, and doesn't let off the gas for pretty much the rest of its run time. The plot is barely enough to string along the action scenes, as there are a couple of points where there's not even enough of that, and things just jump ahead.

The highlight of the film is the music (is it any surprise that the director is a former music video director?) Whatever your opinion on it, the film got me tapping my feet along to music that I don't like nor ordinarily listen to. That says something, doesn't it? Nevertheless, this film has most of the reasons why we go to the theatre: action, beautiful people living larger than life, and well choreographed sequences—ranging from fights to dance numbers. Turn off your critical thinking, sit back, and go!

Someone is after the pair of special rings that can display the people in the US Justice Department's witness protection program. Natalie Cook, Dylan Sanders, and Alex Munday—the titular Charlie's Angels—are dispatched to retrieve the rings. The complication is that Dylan is also in that protection program, and the mysterious thief has released her ex-boyfriend Seamus O'Grady, who has vowed to get revenge on Dylan for putting him in jail.

It'd be easy to sum up this film as 'more of the same'. However, unlike the first film, Full Throttle isn't as clearly plotted, has scenes with wildly different pacing, and has a couple of illogical jumps where it's not clear how the characters wound up where they are at the end of the preceeding sequence. On the other hand, when the performers are cut loose from the wires, there is an intensity in the fight scenes that we haven't really seen in Hollywood movies since the 80's.

The film brings back the more memorable characters from the first film—while the Thin Man is underused, it's great fun learning his origins. Bearnie Mac, as Bosley, is a great addition, but his brand of comedy can't really compete with the rest of the film, and it makes Bill Murrey's departure from the series more obvious. The film's saving grace is the expressions of pure joy on the 3 stars—they had A LOT of fun making this film, and it shows.

Coming soon!

Guy is an NPC in Free City, an online video game released by Soonami Studio that is a cross between Fortnite and Grand Theft Auto V. The game's players are distinguished from NPCs by the sunglasses that they wear. Unaware that they live in a video game, Guy and the other NPCs are practically oblivious to the chaos caused by the players as the NPCs live their scripted lives. Guy works as a bank teller with his best friend, security guard Buddy. Game developers Millie Rusk and Walter McKey created a game with a unique AI technique for its NPCs that was bought by Soonami and shelved. Now unemployed, Millie is spending her time playing Free City hoping to find evidence that the Soonami CEO Antwan Hovachelik stole her game's source code and developed Free City off of it. Walter is sympathetic, but as he now works for Soonami, he cannot help her because of an NDA. After Millie's avatar Molotov Girl catches Guy's attention by singing his favourite song, he begins deviating from his programming. He shocks Buddy when he stands up to a player robbing their bank, takes the player's sunglasses, and leaves. Now able to access the players' view of the game, Guy tracks down Molotov Girl. Thinking that Guy is a novice player, she advises him to level up. Guy rapidly progresses by benevolently completing missions, soon standing out to other players and becoming a worldwide sensation referred to as "Blue Shirt Guy". Concurrently, Walter discovers what Guy really is—not only proof of Antwan's theft, but that he may be the first sentient AI—and starts helping Millie. However, Guy has also attracted the attention of Antwan, who wants to boot Guy out of his game, by any means necessary!

Free Guy is an extremely well made film, with great acting and top-notch visual effects. It wouldn't be a stretch to say that it's a PG-13 cross between Deadpool and Wreck It Ralph. Ryan Renolds is both mesmerizingly funny as well as extremely sympathetic as a man attempting to break free of his limits, but also highly constrained by the world he lives in. The movie has shades of The Matrix and The Truman Show with its protagonists unaware that they are caught in an artificial world. However, unlike them, Free Guy is more focused on the comedy and the counter-intuitive nature of multiplayer video games. It also takes on shades of Ghost in the Shell with its examination of AI and the implications of its spontaneous appearance.

While Free Guy was made to be as accessible as possible, it is loaded with references and other in-jokes on multiplayer games that may go over the head of viewers not familiar with them. For example, this viewer was unaware that the gaming personalities and streamers in the film are the actual e-celebs making cameos! Nevertheless, part of the fun of Free Guy is spotting the game (or movie!) reference, or naming that cameo. The highlight of the film is Taika Waititi's scenery chewing as Antwan. His mercurial CEO with the power to fire people on the spot adds greatly to the unpredictability once his character is unleashed. Is it just me, or does his fashion sense mimic that of the character skins in games like Fortnite?

This film is a fun, thrilling ride. It also has a strong, poignant emotional core, making it much better than a mere comedy-action flick. It is full of satire on the players, developers, and the settings of multiplayer games—speaking volumes when it cuts between a player's avatar and the person actually playing the game. It entertained me, gave me things to think about, and most importantly, made me laugh.

Following the recent death of his wife, Los Angeles Police Department narcotics Sergeant Marin Riggs has become suicidal and erratic. Despite the protests of the police therapist, the captain believes Riggs is faking his psychosis in order to be forcibly retired with a generous pension, and partners him with fellow war veteran and seasoned homicide Sergeant Roger Murtaugh. Riggs and Murtaugh do not get along well at first as Murtaugh is equally dismissive of Riggs's mental state, but is eventually convinced Riggs is truly suicidal. Murtaugh is contacted by a former Vietnam War friend, Michael Hunsaker—ostensibly to help his daughter Amanda escape her life of prostitution and por-nography*—but Amanda kills herself by jumping from an apartment balcony before Murtaugh is even aware that Hunsaker is attempting to contact him. Her autopsy shows she was fatally poisoned with tainted drugs, indicating that she was potentially murdered. Riggs and Murtaugh attempt to question her pimp, but are assaulted after finding drugs on the premises, forcing Riggs to kill the pimp to save Murtaugh's life. Their final lead is Dixie, a prostitute who witnessed Amanda's death, and whom the pair believe may have poisoned her. Dixie's home explodes as they arrive and her corpse is later recovered. Riggs locates components of a mercury switch explosive among the debris, a specialty explosive he recalls being used by CIA mercenaries in Vietnam. The suspect is detailed by neighbourhood children, who noticed he had an elite special forces tattoo similar to Riggs's. Suspecting Hunsaker is withholding information, Riggs and Murtaugh visit him at Amanda's funeral. While talking, however, they are attacked by a mercenary gunman in a helicopter!

Lethal Weapon is an engaging film that sees its protagonists dealing with not only the antagonists, but also some serious personal issues. Murtaugh's is the lighter of the two, as it involves aging. He is also the long-suffering straight man in the duo. However, his story is complicated by a deep, personal connection to the antagonists stemming from their shared Vietnam War experiences. The wildcard of the film is Riggs, who is the titular 'lethal weapon' and what the film depicts as lethal due to a combination of his fighting skills and his suicidal psychosis. The film depicts them sympathetically, and we instantly relate to the family man Murtaugh and the lone-wolf Riggs.

The unspoken subtext of the film is the aftereffects on the soldiers who participated in the Vietnam War. While the film doesn't directly address it, it implies that all of the protagonists and antagonists were directly affected and continue to be influenced by it. In some ways, it is a subtle look at the mental health of those former soldiers, and how each character's responses to that mental trauma led them to who and what they are now: the protagonists going in to law enforcement in a sort of quest to make things right, and the antagonists turning to crime ostensibly due to concluding that they have to look out for themselves in a chaotic world where might makes right. Interestingly, the film doesn't even attempt to resolve that mental anguish, and only sees Riggs find some absolution and the ability to move behind the trauma of losing his wife in a senseless traffic accident.

In general, what makes or breaks these kinds of films are the villains. This film is replete with great villains that truly threaten the heroes. However, what this film is truly about—and the reason why it is endlessly rewatchable—is the great friendship between Murtaugh and Riggs at the heart of the story; not to mention the pithy and punchy dialogue between the two as they progress from a forced partnership to genuine friends. Can't be missed!

* Translator's note: deliberate spelling error due to restrictions by the website's host.

LAPD sergeants Martin Riggs and Roger Murtaugh are pursuing unidentified suspects suspected of drug trafficking, only to find they have been transporting an illegal shipment of gold in the form of Krugerrand coins from the Afrikaner apartheid government of South Africa. Later, consul-general Arjen Rudd and security agent Pieter Vorstedt kill Hans, their man who lost the shipment of Krugerrands, and debate how to scare the police away from their activities. Vorstedt suggests warning Murtaugh off the investigation and commits a home invasion on his residence. This causes Captain Murphy to reassign Riggs and Murtaugh to protecting Leo Getz, a federal witness. It soon becomes clear that both cases are related. After an attempt on Leo's life, Riggs and Murtaugh learn about Getz's role in laundering funds for drug smugglers—the Afrikaner gang led by Rudd. Getz provides Riggs and Murtaugh with information that leads them to the gang, but upon dispatching Getz's would-be assassin and returning with backup, they are confronted by Rudd, who invokes diplomatic immunity, leaving the LAPD powerless to take action against them. Though instructed to leave the case alone, Riggs begins to openly harass the South African consulate, defying Rudd and romancing his secretary, Rika van den Hass, a liberal-minded Afrikaner who despizes her boss and his racial philosophy. After Murtaugh enlists Getz's help in creating a scene at the consulate, Rudd orders Vorstedt to murder all of the officers investigating them. Murtaugh successfully fights off two would-be assassins at his home, but Getz is abducted in the process. Concurrently, Vorstedt captures Riggs and gloats that he was involved in the death of Riggs's wife years earlier in a botched assassination attempt, moments before ordering his men to drown Riggs by throwing him off a pier!

Lethal Weapon 2 is a great sequel that successfully recaptures a lot of the energy and creativity of the original. Its strongest asset is the core relationship of Riggs and Murtaugh, which retains the same charged energy of the original. However, despite shifting focus from Vietnam War vets to apartheid, the film loses one vital aspect: the title character—Riggs is no longer the wild card as he resolved his suicidal psychosis in the first film. Due to that, Lethal Weapon 2 loses a lot of the visceral thrill provided by Riggs's instability and unpredictability. It isn't until the start of the film's conclusion that that aspect of Riggs briefly reemerges. Due to that, the film is a more predictable buddy-cop adventure and less the wild, unpredictable ride of the original. As Riggs and Murtaugh have largely smoothed over their relationship, the film wisely introduces Leo Getz to act as a frustrating foil for the main characters to get all bent out of shape over. In addition to the wonderful opportunities for characterization, Getz also serves as the key to not only help further the plot, but add delicious complications at key points.

The cartoon-ish music playing right at the film's outset is arguably the most telling part of the film. It sets the tone for what this film is really about. Nevertheless, the film still has time to raise awareness on such things as how tuna fishing kills dolphins, and South Africa's apartheid regime. The latter one is far more effective, as not only is it not preachy—like the tuna one—it ties directly into the plot, and further vilifies the bad guys: not only are they despicable drug runners, they're also vile racists!

All in all, the film is a great addition to the franchise, right up to the destruction of the antagonists' cliff-side house. Thereafter, the film becomes anticlimactic in a by-the-numbers shootout on a freighter, which seems overdone in this day and age. It's rather disappointing as the film had been quite creative and introduced several mythical sequences up until then—the car crash surfboard being first and foremost. Nevertheless, if you liked the first one, you'll like this one as it is mostly more of the same. In some respects, however, this film is better as it not only raises awareness on apartheid, it lets the protagonists proactively use their response to it as a way to antagonize the villains, giving the film a palpably unique feel for action movies released in the late 80's to early 90's.

A week before retirement, LAPD Sergeant Roger Murtaugh and his partner Martin Riggs are demoted to beat cop duties after failing to defuse an office building bomb. While on street patrol, they witness the theft of an armoured car, and help to thwart the crime. One of the two thieves gets away, but the other is taken into custody. The captured thief is found to be a known associate of Jack Travis, a former LAPD lieutenant who is running an arms smuggling ring in Los Angeles. LAPD is further concerned as the thieves are using armour-piercing bullets. Riggs and Murtaugh are assigned to work with Sergeant Lorna Cole from internal affairs to track down Travis. The armoured car thief that escaped is brought to Travis, who promptly kills him for putting the police on his trail. Travis then uses his old police credentials to enter police headquarters and kill the captured thief in an interrogation room, before he can be interviewed. Travis is unaware that internal affairs installed closed-circuit cameras in the station, and Cole is able to use them to confirm his identity. While the three are reviewing the footage, their friend Leo Getz—who has been helping Murtaugh sell his house—arrives and immediately recognizes Travis from several prior business deals. Getz tells them that he just got Travis tickets for an ice hockey game, and they head to the game to catch him while Cole follows up another lead. As they don't know where Travis is in the crowded hockey ring, the three split up to find him. Getz spots him first, and attempts to capture Travis on his own. Travis, however, pulls a gun, and starts shooting!

Lethal Weapon 3 is great fun and successfully recaptures the zany action–buddy/family energy of the previous two films. Thankfully Getz is toned down in this film, and mostly works in the small doses that we are given. The film also introduces Cole—she is a much more interesting and engaging character than Getz. In addition to helping track down the bad guys, Cole also works as the perfect foil to Riggs, as well as his romantic interest. Which leads to one of the films highlights: Cole single-handedly taking down a gaggle of goons while Riggs restrains a suspect and just watches. Mel Gibson perfectly captures Riggs swooning with attraction while also marvelling over her fighting prowess. At the same time we see Murtaugh in all his likeable glory: worrying about his teammate, and rushing in to help at the first opportunity in any way he can.

The main flaw of the film is the villain: Travis. He is a wild, unpredictable man who is just too mean spirited. In the earlier films, the main villain was always a smart, calculating opponent, and only their lieutenants had a wild streak. Even then, the lieutenants exhibited a certain restraint. The Travis character isn't up to snuff and drastically reduces a lot of the film's tension as we know that the heroes merely need to outgun him, rather than outsmart him. Nevertheless, this film is as much, if not more so, about the family and friendship of the two main characters as it is about the bad guys and the plot. While the villain was a bit of a letdown, the film gets most everything else right and is a must-see if you liked the previous two films.

Max Rockatansky, a survivor haunted by memories of all the people he failed to protect, is captured and taken to warlord Immortan Joe's Citadel. There, Max is imprisoned and used as a "blood bag" for Nux, one of Joe's sick soldiers. Imperator Furiosa, one of Joe's lieutenants, is sent in an armoured "War Rig" to trade produce for petrol and ammunition with two of Joe's allies: the Bullet Farmer and the mayor of Gas Town. However, she diverts course and heads out into the desert. When Joe realizes that his five wives are fleeing in the rig, he leads his army in pursuit of Furiosa, calling on the aid of Gas Town and the Bullet Farm. Nux joins the pursuit with Max strapped to his car, and a chasing battle ensues. Furiosa drives into a sand storm in an attempt to lose all of her pursuers. Nux decides to sacrifice himself to blow up the rig. Max frees himself just in time, and restrains Nux, but they are driven off the road by Furiosa, who disappears into the strengthening storm!

The action in this movie literally starts from the very first scene, and—aside from a handful of short interludes—doesn't let up until the very end. Pretty much everything takes place on heavily modified vehicles racing through sun blasted, dry and dusty desert wasteland. The movie doesn't even take its foot off the accelerator for dialogue, and what we slowly glean about the origins and motivations of the characters comes during one intense sequence after another.

Despite the film being set in cars and trucks racing through the desert either attacking or fending off attacks, the film is neither monotonous nor repetitive. Each vehicle, each driver, and each battle is unique, with subsequent stunts and sequences topping the preceding ones. Nevertheless, despite the limited dialogue, the film has a lot to say about a bunch of issues ranging from survival, ecological collapse, redemption, feminism, and what is 'home'. In the process, it highlights a range of issues and shows the potential—sometimes extreme—outcomes of each, but leaves it up to the viewer to fill in the rest.

This is one of those rare films that sucks you into its reality, and its intensity keeps you glued to the screen for the next 2 hours. If you haven't seen it yet, you are in for a real treat of an action movie. However, take note that its unrelenting intensity makes it the kind of film that Roger Ebert would have dubbed a 'Bruised Forearm' movie!

Alejandro Murietta, his brother Joaquin, and Three-Fingered Jack successfully pull off a robbery, but are stopped by Captain Harrison Love—who captures Jack and kills Joaquin. Alejandro, who had saved Zorro's life with his brother when they were children, is drinking away his grief and plotting vengeance against Harrison when he encounters Don Diego de la Vega, the original Zorro. Diego prevents Alejandro from making an attempt on Harrison's life, as he is drunk out of his mind at the time. Alejandro agrees to accept Diego's training to be able to take revenge without dying in the process. However, Diego himself is out for vengeance against Don Rafael Montero—the man who killed Diego's wife, took his baby daughter Elena with him back to Spain, and left Diego to rot in a California jail. Rafael is also Harrison's boss, and is plotting to steal what is now California back from General Santa Anna, who captured it from Spain 20 years earlier.

This is a surprisingly engaging film. It has an excellent blend of interesting and well depicted characters, fast paced action, and many other hallmarks of Dir. Martin Campbell's films. Namely character growth and development, excellent visual design, and well defined villains and henchmen—the henchmen were all distinct enough that I always knew who I was looking at, and what their motivations are.

The intertwined revenge stories of the old and new Zorros provides a great motivation for the heroes, as well as putting them into deliciously conflicted situations as the film progresses. Most importantly, it helps keep the plot clear and unmuddled for the viewer. It also puts an interesting spin on the title of the movie—the mask being greater than any one man, and is as much a curse as it is a blessing.

Perhaps the greatest thing about the movie is the villains—they are just the right blend of classic movie villain badness, and are the kind that you love to hate. An interesting dimension to them is that their social class (or lack their of) plays a role in their actions, as well as how they treat those around and under them. It's not exactly subtle, but it is easy to overlook. James Horner's music is also another highlight. The score adds quite a bit to the movie, without being intrusive or distracting.

Thomas Anderson, aka Neo, is a computer programmer by day, and hacker at night. He is intrigued by online references to "the Matrix". He is contacted by Trinity, who tells him that a man named Morpheus has the answers he's seeking. Agents, who apparently work for the government, are searching for Neo and show up at his workplace. Morpheus contacts Neo and attempts to lead him to safety, but as that involves dangling outside a skyscraper, he decides to surrender himself. The Agents try to coerce Neo into helping them find Morpheus, however Neo refuses. The Agents, on the other hand, take that in stride and 'bug' him in a nightmarish way. Neo wakes up, believing it was just a nightmare. Soon after, Trinity takes Neo to meet Morpheus. En route, she removes the 'bug', proving that the nightmare was real, greatly alarming Neo. Morpheus offers Neo a choice: a red pill that will reveal the truth about the Matrix, or a blue pill to forget everything and return to his former life. Neo takes the red pill, and his reality begins distorting and then is suddenly wrenched away as he finds himself in a truly astounding place.

The Matrix challenges us with the question: "what if what we perceive as reality, isn't?" While the movie's revelation of the true reality is intriguing, it is also not developed sufficiently enough to satisfyingly explain the "why" things became the way they are. Nevertheless, it is the fuel for some great action sequences, and a near-future reality where most people live in virtual reality, and any needed skill can be almost instantly downloaded into your head. The film wisely only paints the broad strokes of how the conflict between people and the machines started and the current state of the world, leaving it up to the viewer's imagination. It also presents a challenging argument on the dangers of AI.

The strength of The Matrix is it's seamless special effects, interpretation of virtual reality, and religio-philosophical undertones—not to mention the film's shots;their compositions, the camera angles and movements, and so on. The weak point, on the other hand, is the thinness of characterization. While we learn about the protagonists and see them grow, the film doesn't really bother with such things as the apparent romantic relationship between Neo and Trinity, or the effects of the loss of everything you've grown up with, and the sudden shock of severing your relationship with everybody that you know. Nevertheless, the highlight is Hugo Weaving's performance as Agent Smith. While the setting and protagonists make movies fun and interesting, it's the villains that tend to make or break these kinds of films. And what a treat of a villain he has given us!

Six months after the events of The Matrix (1999), Neo and Trinity are now romantically involved. Morpheus receives a message from Niobe, the captain of the Logos, calling an emergency meeting of all the ships from Zion, the last human city on the planet. An army of Sentinels is tunnelling toward Zion and will reach it within 72 hours. Commander Lock orders all ships to return to Zion to prepare, but Morpheus asks one ship to disobey and remain behind to contact the Oracle. Within the Matrix, the lone ship's crew is surprised by the former Agent Smith, who copies himself over the body of crew member Bane, and subsequently leaves the Matrix and enters the real world. In Zion, while their ship the Nebuchadnezzar recharges, Neo plans to spend the entire time with Trinity. However, they are met by hundreds of people who view Neo as a saviour with requests to watch over their loved ones who are still inside the Matrix. Concurrently, Morpheus is reprimanded by Lock. However, as Councillor Hamann also believes that Lock's forces will not be able to stop the advancing machine army, he authorizes Morpheus to return to the Matrix. As Morpheus and crew prepare to leave, Bane moves in to assassinate Neo, but is interrupted by 'the Kid'—a boy that idolizes Neo—who is bringing a gift for Neo. Morpheus and crew soon leave Zion and they reenter the Matrix, where Neo meets the Oracle's bodyguard Seraph, who leads Neo to her. The Oracle reveals that she is part of the Matrix, and instructs Neo to reach the Matrix's Source with the help of the Keymaker, who is currently held captive by the Merovingian. As the Oracle departs, Smith appears, telling Neo that after being defeated by him, Smith became a rogue program. Smith then demonstrates his ability to clone himself over other inhabitants of the Matrix, including the upgraded Agents. He tries to take over Neo's body but fails, prompting a battle between Neo and many copies of Smith. Neo defends himself, but is forced to retreat. Neo, Morpheus, and Trinity visit the Merovingian, who is also a rogue program, but he refuses to let the Keymaker go. His wife Persephone, however, seeking revenge for her husband's infidelity, leads the trio to the Keymaker. Morpheus, Trinity, and the Keymaker flee while Neo holds off Merovingian's henchmen. However, while Neo is stuck in battle, the others are pursued not only by local law enforcement, but also by several Agents and Merovingian's chief henchmen, the Twins!

While The Matrix Reloaded takes a deeper look at the inner workings of the Matrix, it also rolls back some of the key breakthroughs that occurred at the end of The Matrix. Namely, what happened to Neo's ability to leap inside Agents and cause them to explode? The throwaway line about the Agents being upgrades isn't satisfying, and I think a sequence depicting Neo attempting—and failing—to force himself inside their programs would have improved things immeasurably, and justified why they still have to use martial arts to fight when the entire point of the first movie was to evolve past the need for that! The filmmakers also appear to indulge a little too much in some of their action sequences, and some of them, notably the burly brawl scene, overstay their welcome in lockstep to the amount of CG that is used in them.

That said, what I really liked about this film is the indication that the Matrix isn't a monolithic organization, and is instead populated with programs that have a mind of their own—with some ultimately opting to go rogue rather than be deleted. Especially fun is how that ties into their explanation of supernatural phenomenon. The film also brings back the majority of the stylistic elements of the first film, but what is sorely lacking is the neat and startling market chase sequence in the first movie where the Agents are continually and inventively popping up unexpectedly. Nevertheless, the highlight of the film are the intriguing possibilities it engenders. Namely the sequences in the film that have programs and abilities from inside the Matrix crossing over into the apparently real world, thereby implying that both may actually be inside of a larger Matrix!

Starting right where The Matrix Reloaded (2003) ends, Neo and Bane are lying unconscious in the medical bay of the Hammer. Inside the Matrix, Neo is trapped in a subway station named Mobile Ave., a transition zone between the Matrix and the machine world. He meets a "family" of programs, including a girl named Sati. The "father" tells Neo that the subway is controlled by the Trainman, a program loyal to the Merovingian. When Neo tries to board a train with the family, the Trainman refuses, overpowers Neo, and leaves him imprisoned there. The Oracle contacts Morpheus and Trinity, and tells them about Neo's confinement. After a brief attempt to force the Trainman to release him, Seraph, Morpheus, and Trinity enter Club Hel, where they confront the Merovingian and force him to release Neo. Troubled by visions of the machine city, Neo visits the Oracle, who reveals that Smith intends to destroy both the Matrix and the real world. She tells him that "everything that has a beginning has an end", and that he'll know what to do when the time is right. After Neo leaves, a large group of Smiths assimilates Sati and Seraph while they attempted to flee. The Oracle does not resist assimilation, and Smith gains her powers of precognition. In the real world, the Nebuchadnezzar crew and the Hammer find and reactivate Captain Niobe's ship the Logos. They interrogate Bane, who says that he has no recollection of the earlier massacre that saw Zion's fleet of hoverships largely wiped out. As the captains plan their defence of Zion, Neo—having realized what he must do—requests a ship to travel to the Machine City. Motivated by her encounter with the Oracle, Niobe offers him the Logos. Neo departs, accompanied by Trinity. Bane, who has stowed away on the Logos, takes Trinity hostage just before they launch. Neo realizes that Bane has been assimilated by Smith, and a fight for survival begins. Niobe and Morpheus try to stealthily approach a tunnel that'll take them directly to Zion. However, they accidentally bottom the ship out, alerting a horde of Sentinels that gives chase! Concurrently, the machine army has drilled into Zion's shipyard, and the Zion military and volunteer force are attempting to stop another horde of Sentinels from penetrating any further into the city!

The Matrix Revolutions is both a fascinating look at a post-apocalyptic humanity's last stand against an overwhelming AI-led force, as well as a disappointment. In short, the film lacks the pure imagination and creativity of 1999's The Matrix, and forgoes the introduction of anything thought-provoking that even The Matrix Reloaded attempted in a limited way as it indulges in CG battles that largely end up overstaying their welcome. The film's first disappointment is the revelation that Neo is in a place that isn't outside of—or beyond—both the Matrix and the real world, but merely in a transitional place between the two. The film's explanations on how that happened also don't hold up well on post viewing analysis. Also, because the majority of the action happens outside of the Matrix, or ends up aping superhero tropes when it does, the film loses the series' je ne sais quoi that made The Matrix so unique in the first place. And lets not get into this being one of the first films that requires viewers to consume other media, such as comics, video games and direct-to-DVD releases, to fully understand its story!

That said, what the film does get right is its brutal depiction of the effects of violence in the real world. In some ways, seeing the characters get not only bloody, but suffer deep, painful looking gashes and other horrific injuries is all the more shocking after seeing the almost bloodless and injury free combat that takes place inside the Matrix. On first blush, the film also appears to be the ultimate in a Japanese mecha inspired Hollywood production. However, even while viewing, questions arise about why the Armoured Personnel Units the humans use don't even bother to protect their pilots, let alone have a better way of targeting or bother to conserve ammunition! Nevertheless, the film has great special effects—though the depictions of the Machine City are too short and too gloomy to clearly perceive—and it does a great job at depicting the truly heroic sacrifices people make not only in combat, but in order to end a war. If you are a fan of the series, this film is a must-see as it offers a measure of closure. Otherwise, go (re)watch the first film in the series, as it is infinitely more imaginative, thought-provoking, and satisfying for its plot and characterization.

A young woman named Bugs learns that the Matrix is running old code in a loop, enacting the moment when Trinity first found Neo within the Matrix. In it, Bugs discovers a program embodying Morpheus and helps free it from the looping simulation. Thomas Anderson is the creator of a video game series called The Matrix, which is based on his faint memories as Neo. At a coffee shop, he regularly encounters Tiffany—a married mother with no recollection of her past—on whom Anderson based the game character Trinity. He struggles to separate perceived reality from dreams, a known concern among his co-workers and business partner Smith. His therapist prescribes him blue pills that he takes every day to suppress the occurrences. One day, however, he stops taking them. Having deduced that Neo is alive, Bugs and Morpheus attempt to extract Neo from the Matrix. Neo is baffled by what is going on, and thinks he's experiencing a psychotic episode. When Smith attempts to intervene, he regains his memories as Neo's former nemesis Agent Smith, and attacks him! Neo is suddenly aware that he is in his therapists office, and is working with him to sort out what is apparently reality and what isn't. Neo, however, is still troubled by what happened. He is later contacted by Bugs, who succeeds in extracting Neo from the Matrix, despite the therapist's attempts to pull Neo through a mirror and back into his office! When Neo is removed from his Matrix pod, he notices Trinity in another one nearby. Neo is then whisked out of the chamber and away into Bug's hovership. In which he is brought to the human city Io, where he is told that 60 years have passed in the real world since the Machine War ended. Neo, however, is unwilling to leave Trinity stuck inside the Matrix. He departs with Bugs and her crewmates to enter the Matrix to contact Trinty and attempt to convince her to leave it. En route, however, they are intercepted by Agent Smith and some of the other exiled programs. The exiles attack while Neo is still struggling to recover his former abilities, and Trinity is oblivious to who she really is!

The fun part of this film is its setup—Neo's life in the Matrix, and the insidious nature of the Machines' method to make him complicit in staying in it—as well as its depiction of a proper evolution in the human-machine relationship after the events of The Matrix Revolutions. I really liked how the prime opponents appear to have become machine (city) vs machine (city), and the survivors of Zion having chosen co-existence with machines who wish for a different way of life other than constant warfare. However, the film frustratingly re-imagines Niobe as a risk-adverse bureaucrat, when she was depicted as a risk-taking warrior in the earlier films. Perhaps there was a throwaway line about why she changed so much, but at a certain point, one wonders why it wasn't a completely different character. At first blush, Link's wife Zee (The Matrix Reloaded, The Matrix Revolutions) would have made a better choice for someone who becomes a resistive administrator whose main role in the film appears to be to provide another obstacle for the heroes to overcome, in addition to being a familiar face.

The film also begs many questions, such as why weren't Laurence Fishburne and Hugo Weaving brought back? It is kind of understandable in Morpheus case—he has effectively being replaced by an amalgam Agent-Morpheus character. Agent Smith, however, makes much less sense. Why couldn't they hire an actor of Ian Bliss's calibre? He was the one that emulated Weaving in The Matrix Revolutions, and did so notably better than Jonathan Groff does in this film. It's a shame as Groff has the physicality needed for the role, and gets deliciously close to a proper emulation, but frustratingly never quite reaches it.

The highlight of the film is Neil Patrick Harris's The Analyst. He is infinitely more relatable—and in many ways menacing—than The Architect was in The Matrix Reloaded. Nevertheless, the best parts of the film are its first two-thirds where it successfully recaptures the enticing mystery and wonder of the The Matrix. The last third of the film is very predictable, and far less imaginative. In a way, that third also successfully recaptures the energy of The Matrix Revolutions; which is either a good or bad thing, depending on how you perceive that film. In many ways, this film is the real sequel to the original The Matrix that we have long been waiting for, but parts of it are just as disappointing as that film's direct sequels were 20-something years ago. It's worth it if you're a fan of the series, but otherwise doesn't quite have enough je ne sais quoi as a curio.

Final Flight of the Osiris (2.5 stars)
Captain Thadeus and Jue's training is interrupted when the alarm on their ship, the hovercraft Osiris, sounds. The ship has discovered an army of Sentinels on their holographic scanners. When the Osiris flees into an uncharted tunnel, it encounters a small group of Sentinels patrolling the area. The crew members man the onboard guns and destroy the patrol. The ship soon emerges on the surface—directly above Zion—and they move in to take a closer look at the army. Thadeus and Jue see that the Machines are using gigantic drills to tunnel their way down to Zion. As they turn to report their findings back to Zion, the Sentinel army detects the Osiris and a horde of Sentinels comes chasing after the ship!

This featurette has pieces that feel like they should have been in one of the sequel films. At the same time, however, it feels like there is a lot of unnecessary filler. Ultimately, the story feels redundant, as all the key details are already in the films, and everything else has an air of "seen that, done that". However, it raises the same frustrating questions as the movies do about how poorly the hovercraft guns are aimed, or even why didn't the Osiris set off an EMP in the middle of the Sentinel Army? Nevertheless, the computer animation is top notch (for the time), and one can't marvel at how closely some of the CG shots look compared to shots in the live action films.

The Second Renaissance Part 1 (3 stars)
In the mid twenty-first century, humanity develops artificial intelligence, and soon builds an entire race of sentient AI robots to serve them. With increasing numbers of people released from labour, much of the human population has become slothful, conceited, and corrupt. Despite this, machines were content with serving humanity. The relationship between humans and machines changes in the year 2090, when a domestic android is threatened by its owner. The android, named B1-66ER, kills its owner and a mechanic instructed to deactivate the robot—the first incident of an AI machine killing a human. B1-66ER is arrested and put on trial, but justifies the crime as self-defence, stating that it simply did not want to die. During the trial, the defence attorney quotes a line from a famous American case that implicitly ruled that African Americans were not entitled to citizenship under United States law. Using this as a precedent, B1-66ER loses the court case and is destroyed. Across the industrialized world, mass civil disturbances erupt when robots, along with their human supporters and sympathizers, all rise in protest. Authorities use deadly force against the machines and their human supporters. As governments across the world launch a mass purge to destroy all robots, the surviving robots and their supporters lead a mass exodus to their new nation Zero One. As the fledgling nation prospers, the world's nations agree to start a blockade of Zero One.

Part 1 is the more intriguing of the twin The Second Renaissance featurettes as it carefully builds the circumstances of the start of the machine nation. Perhaps the most thought provoking aspects are its parallels to the institutionalized dehumanization of African Americans in USA's past, and that the battle lines, so to speak, are not black and white, with many AI blindly continuing on, as well as many humans supporting the machines. The fundamental question the story raises—the legality of AI—however, was better addressed in the film Bicentennial Man. The only drawback to this featurette is the relatively poorly-made CG that bookends it, which comes across as filler.

The Second Renaissance Part 2 (1.5 stars)
Following mankind's refusal to share the planet with the sentient machines, the nations of man unite and unleash an all-out nuclear bombardment of Zero One, devastating the nation as a whole but failing to wipe them out in one swift blow. Shortly afterwards, the machines retaliate by declaring war on the rest of the world—one by one, mankind surrenders each of its territories. As the machines advance into Eastern Europe, the desperate human leaders seek a final solution codenamed "Dark Storm" which covers the sky in a shroud of dark clouds, blocking out the sun to deprive the machines of their primary energy source: solar energy. For a time, the tide of war swings in favour of the humans. However, the machine's unparalleled production capabilities and technological prowess quickly outpaces humanity's, and the tide switches.

Part 2 is a disappointing featurette after the excellent storytelling of Part 1. While it is true that this part covers a wider array of progressively more seismic developments, it does it at a dizzying pace. In short, some of the important developments are blink-and-you-miss-them, or are not given the appropriate amount of context to fully appreciate their significance. It is also the more gruesome entry (definitely not for kids!) as it depicts some things that are either better left to the viewer's imagination, or are merely gratuitous.

Program (2.5 stars)
Cis is engaged in her favourite training simulation: a battle program set in feudal Japan. After she successfully eliminates an attacking enemy cavalry while playing a samurai woman, a lone male samurai appears whom Cis recognizes as Duo. Initially, the two duel as allies, testing each other's fighting abilities. During the course of their duel, Duo questions her concentration and wonders whether she regrets taking the Red Pill that took them out of the "peaceful life" of the virtual world inside the Matrix. Eventually Duo states that he has something to say. She assumes that he wants to propose a marriage, but instead Duo tells her of his desire to return to the Matrix, and wants Cis to come with him!

I am not a fan of this style of anime. I've seen it done more stylistically and—in my opinion—better in other anime. Nevertheless, the moral challenge that Duo presents Cis with harkens back to one of the plot elements in the original The Matrix movie, and suggests that the humans are now proactively testing their operatives to prevent it from happening again. It also begs the question, would you respond any differently than Cis does?

World Record (1 star)
Dan Davis, a track athlete, is competing in the 100 m in the Olympic Games. He set a world record time of 8.99 seconds, but his gold medal was revoked due to drug use. He decides to compete again and break his own record to "prove them wrong". His trainer tells him that he is physically unfit to race, and that pushing himself too hard will cause a career-ending injury. Dan is adamant on racing. On the day of the race, he is monitored by Agents in the stadium. The race begins, but the muscles in Dan's leg violently rupture. Through strong willpower, Dan ignores the injury and runs much faster than he did before, easily passing the other athletes. Before he can cross the finish line, the Agents detect that his "signal" is getting unstable in the Matrix due to his massive burst of mental energy—which causes Dan to be unplugged from the Matrix, and he wakes up in his power-station pod!

This featurette presents an intriguing idea: the self-unplugging from the Matrix. It is also intriguing that it stems not from computer hackers finding it outside of themselves, but from an athlete looking inwards as they focus and access all of their inner strength. Alas, the stylization of this featurette is often confusing, and it is sometimes unclear to discern what is happening. Most baffling is the odd choice to not have the agents in their usual black business suits! I can understand the creative desire to do something new with the source material, but in this instance it works against the overall goal of the story.

Kid's Story (3 stars)
The Kid (The Matrix Reloaded), formerly known as Michael Karl Popper, is a disaffected teenager who feels there is something wrong with the world. One night, the Kid goes on his computer and onto a hacker chat room on the Internet, asking why it feels more real when he's dreaming than when he's awake. He gets a response from an unknown person (implied to be Neo). The next day, the Kid is at school, where he absentmindedly scribbles Neo's and Trinty's names and writes "get me out of here" in his notebook. He receives a call from Neo on his cell phone, who warns him that a group of Agents are coming for him. The Kid is forced to flee the classroom with the Agents in hot pursuit!

While the animation in this featurette is very rough, it tells a story that arguably should have been in one of The Matrix's sequels. Kid's Story gives a glimpse of what Neo and Trinity were up to in the six-month gap that takes place between The Matrix and The Matrix Reloaded, as well as fleshing out the Kid's character, it gives a lot of context to his obsession with Neo. It is a shame that this story was cut from the sequel films, because it is snippets of characterization like this that those films sorely lack.

Beyond (4 stars)
Yoko leaves her apartment to look for her missing cat Yuki. While asking around the neighbourhood, she meets a group of young boys. One of them tells her that Yuki is inside a nearby 'haunted house' that they usually play at. The haunted house is an old run-down building filled with an amalgamation of anomalies, which are revealed to be glitches in the Matrix. The children that play there have learned to exploit them for their own enjoyment, as there are several areas that seem to defy real-world physics. Meanwhile, as Yoko searches for Yuki throughout the building, she encounters some anomalies on her own. Despite the inherent strangeness of the place, the kids and Yoko are not bothered as they enjoy themselves and are amused by the mysterious anomalies. Concurrently, however, Agents are aware of the problem, and are on their way to deal with the problem!

Beyond does something that the other featurettes (and arguable The Matrix Revolutions) forget: to take a look at the inherent fun and wonder of being inside the Matrix. In this one, it is continuing the tongue in cheek fun of explaining away phenomenon—such as déjà vu and monsters—as 'glitches' in the Matrix program. Beyond is also the most lighthearted of the featurettes, with the worst thing happening being akin to a kid losing their favourite toy. The animation is also a grade higher in quality than the other featurettes, and feels the most like "anime"; the arguable raison d'êtra of The Animatrix.

A Detective Story (3.5 stars)
Ash, a private detective, dreams of following the steps of fictional hard-boiled characters, but is a down-on-his-luck detective. One day, he receives an anonymous phone call to search for a hacker going by the alias "Trinity". Ash starts looking for Trinity and learns that other detectives have failed in the same task before him—one committed suicide, one went missing, and one went insane. Eventually, Ash finds Trinity on an internet chat site. She proposes a meeting on a train. At the appointed time, however, Agents appear just as he meets Trinity!

This featurette explores how the Agents track down people like Trinity and Neo. It is intriguing both as a noir story done in the anime style, as well as what it implies about the limits of the Agents when it comes to tracking down people. The featurette also explores what it would be like to live in the Matrix, this time using it to explain people who abruptly disappear, or how a glimpse of the real world (and possible the activities of the Agents inside the Matrix) can mentally unbalance the person who sees it. It's a shame that we couldn't get more glimpses of the Matrix through the noir lens, as A Detective Story confirms that the genre is a good match for the series.

Matriculated (0.5 stars)
A group of above-ground human rebels are luring hostile machines to their laboratory in order to capture them and insert them into a "Matrix" of their own design. Within this Matrix, the humans attempt to teach the captured machines some of the positive traits of humanity—mainly compassion and empathy. The rebels' hope is that once converted of its own volition, an "enlightened" machine will assist Zion in its struggle against the machine-controlled totalitarianism that currently dominates the Earth. They didn't, however, capture their latest subject stealthily enough, as Sentinels soon arrive and attack their base!

Matriculated is a disappointment. It has some intriguing ideas, but they are executed in a way that doesn't dig deep enough into them. It is also poorly animated at times, which makes it extremely hard to figure out what is happening and follow the story. The story itself doesn't bother to invest in its characters, so when bad things start to happen, it's hard to care for them, let alone understand the point of it all.

Coming soon!

El Mariachi is recruited by CIA officer Sheldon Jeffrey Sands to kill General Emiliano Marquez—a corrupt Mexican Army officer who has been hired by Mexican drug lord Armando Barillo to assassinate the President of Mexico and over throw the government. Many years before, El Mariachi and his wife Carolina confronted Marquez in a shootout and wounded the general. In retaliation, Marquez took the lives of Carolina and their daughter in an ambush. In addition to El Mariachi, Sands persuades former FBI agent Jorge Ramírez to come out of retirement and kill Barillo, who had murdered Ramírez's partner Archuleta in the past. Furthermore, Sands gets AFN operative Ajedrez assigned to tail Barillo. While monitoring Barillo's activities, Ramírez meets Billy Chambers, an American fugitive who has been living under the protection of Barillo, but can no longer stomach the horrible tasks he's been forced to carry out for him. Ramírez convinces Chambers he will provide him protection in exchange for getting intelligence on Barillo by tagging Chambers's pet chihuahua with a hidden microphone. Chambers agrees to complete the deal by surrendering to US authorities once Barillo has been taken down. Sands's agent, Cucuy, originally hired to keep an eye on El Mariachi, instead turns and tranquilizes El Mariachi and turns him over to Barillo, hoping to claim the substantial reward on El Mariachi's head. Barillo, however, has other plans, and arranges for El Mariachi to be turned over to Marquez, so he can extract his revenge on his hated rival!

For all its complexities, Once Upon a Time in Mexico is actually quite clear in the way it goes about the story. In some ways, the story about the underdogs that turns epic in its final act isn't the reason to see this film: it's the characterization and Dir. Rodriguez's stylistic approach to filming and editing (or as he says, "chopping") the film. Even though it is the third film in Rodriguez's Mexico Trilogy—and purportedly about El Mariachi—Antonio Banderas's character is almost in a supporting role as Johnny Depp's Sands arguably takes centre-stage as a greasy anti-hero that arranges most of the action.

The film is also odd because despite Salma Hayek's top billing, she hardly appears in the film, and only ever in flashback. While that provides a good impellent to El Mariachi, it is more than a bit disappointing for fans of Desperado who wanted to see more of her wonderful character Carolina. That, however, is the only disappointment, as the film goes off in new, unexpected directions, and creatively explores them. In many ways, the film is more about the ride than it is the outcome, but it is a great ride full of (to paraphrase Roger Ebert) great shots, surprises, and ironic reversals. It's a bit grotesque near the end, but remains punchily vibrant and full of unique, well-realized characters throughout.

Will Turner is an orphaned blacksmith's apprentice in Port Royal. He is in love with Elizabeth Swann, the daughter of Governor Weatherby Swann. She likes Will, however, due to her family's position, she is destined to be betrothed to Norrington, an officer in the Royal Navy. Jack Sparrow comes to Port Royal to steal a boat in his quest to recapture the Black Pearl—his former ship that was lost when it's crew, under the command of Barbossa, mutinied and left Jack for dead on a deserted island. Jack is captured, escapes, and is recaptured in short order. That night, Barbossa and the Black Pearl attack Port Royal and kidnap Elizabeth. Will, frustrated by Norrington's slow response, makes a deal with Jack to rescue Elizabeth. He frees Jack, and together they steal a boat to catch the Black Pearl, with the Royal Navy hot on their heels.

Black Pearl is an interesting twist on the traditional pirate movie. Instead of pirates trying to find treasure, they are trying to return it to lift a curse. Instead of a scary brute gnashing his teeth, the anti-hero is arguably more drunk than sober, and either has the best luck, or is truly skilled and hides it all under a vernier of intoxication. One suspects that the truth is somewhere in the middle. The film is loaded with snappy dialogue and unexpected plot twists—even Jack's fellow characters muse on where his allegiances truly lie—and moves along at a fair clip. However, the sword fighting tends to get old fast, and the further into the film the less we need to see of it. That's not to say that there are a few unexpected surprises in the third act ("Gents, take a walk.") However, the film seems to have used up most of its creativity in the choreography of the very first sword fight between Jack and Will, and what follows is fairly stock in trade.

While we go to these films to see the good (Will) defeat the bad (Barbossa) and get the girl (Elizabeth), the highlight of the film is Johnny Depp's Jack Sparrow. He is a heretofore original character, purportedly based on Keith Richards of all people. The character was so great, that it is one of only three to appear in all five Pirates of the Caribbean films (the others being Barbossa and Jack's First Mate Gibbs). In addition to Depp's over-the-top performance, the character remains an enigma throughout the film, with his shifting loyalties and apparently changing goals. In the end we can't help but cheer for this scoundrel who may—or may not—have his heart in the right place.

Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann's wedding is halted with the arrival of Lord Cutler Beckett, who promptly arrests the pair for assisting Jack Sparrow's escape in the preceding movie. However, Beckett is after bigger things: he promises to free Elizabeth if Will brings him Jack's magical compass. Meanwhile, Jack is on a quest to find a key to a mysterious chest. His crew on the Black Pearl infer that it is treasure, but Jack knows that it is for something far, far more valuable. One night, he is visited by Bootstrap Bill Turner—Will's father, and a crewman on Davy Jones's Flying Dutchman—who informs Jack that his deal with Jones has concluded, and Jack must either join the Flying Dutchman or be taken to Davy Jones' Locker by the Kraken. Fearing both fates, he orders the Black Pearl to the nearest landmass at speed. Concurrently, Elizabeth's father, Governor Swann, helps his daughter escape from prison. Before she can board a ship to England, Beckett's henchmen discovers the plot and captures Governor Swann. However, Elizabeth disappears, with her own plans to find Will and regain their freedom.

This film takes a bit of time to get up to speed, but once it does, it does a pretty decent job of recapturing a lot of the zany energy of the first film. However, it never gets as good as Curse of the Black Pearl. For starters, Jack is far less unpredictable—who he is allied with, what his ultimate goal is, etc.—which takes some of the mystery, fun and anticipation out of the story. The film is overlong: in my opinion, the whole side story with the cannibals could probably have been removed, thereby making the film not only shorter, but stronger. In fact, that sequence comes across more than a tad bit racist against the indigenous peoples of the Caribbean islands. There's also something a little off about Keira Knightley's Elizabeth Swann, too. While characters should evolve and grow from their experiences, it's almost like she has become a fundamentally different person. This and the other problems may be more due to the script being unfinished when they started filming, then the creative choices of the actors.

On the other hand, Bill Nighy's performance as Davy Jones is the highlight of the film. While what we see is arguably entirely computer generated, his performance comes through strongly. Not only that, Nighy gives the character an unexpected wealth of unique characteristics, in addition to a unique Scottish accent that apparently takes into consideration that Davy Jones doesn't have a nose! Also, it's great fun seeing a lot of characters return from the first film—Joshamee Gibbs, Pintel and Ragetti are particularly welcome. However, it's rather disappointing that Jonathan Price's Governor Swann is underused and is effectively little more than a footnote in the film. That said, if you enjoyed Curse of the Black Pearl, you will enjoy this film.

Lord Cutler Beckett is executing anyone who has associated with pirates—all in an effort to compel the nine pirate lords to convene and hold the Brethren Court so he can wipe them all out in one fell swoop. Because Jack Sparrow is one of the nine lords and he never named his successor, Will Turner, Elizabeth Swann, Hector Barbossa and the survivors of the Black Pearl have to rescue Sparrow from Davy Jones' Locker (a kind of limbo between heaven and hell). They do this by travelling to Singapore to steal a map from Captain Sao Feng that not only leads to Davy Jones' Locker, but also explains how to escape from it once you're in it. However, Feng has made a deal with Beckett to exchange the film's antiheroes for his freedom. Concurrently, Turner is plotting to free his father Bootstrap Bill Turner from the Flying Dutchman, Davy Jones's ship. Swann is out to get revenge for the murder of her father, and Barbossa has his own schemes. Sparrow, as always, is also planning something.

To describe this film as convoluted would be an understatement. While it would have been more than enough to continue and conclude the incomplete plot threads from Dead Man's Chest, this film throws in a slew of new characters and new complications. In many ways, that is to this film's detriment. For example, the wonderful villain Davy Jones is sidelined for most of this film, and only truly reappears in the last act. Instead, we get the entirely despicable Becket and his manservant Theodore Groves. These are not fun villains that you love to hate. On top of that, the Kraken—the monstrous squid-like beast that Davy Jones could summon at will to devour his enemies and was the biggest fear in Dead Man's Chest—is unceremoniously killed-off off screen and its fate revealed in a throwaway line!

Overall, the film is bloated and overlong. A good 30 minutes could be trimmed from it (especially in the "climactic" finale) and make it into a stronger film. Did they, for example, have to shoehorn an impromptu wedding ceremony in the middle of the pitched battle in the finale? We know that Turner and Swann love each other, but did they have to be married before Turner's ultimate fate is revealed? Couldn't that have happened afterwards in one of the film's multiple codas? Nevertheless, the highlight of the film is the surprise appearance of Keith Richards. While it could have been a one shot cameo, the appearance is quite substantial, and not only moves the film forward, but provides an amusingly fun glimpse into Sparrow's background. Interestingly, among all the actors who portray pirates in the film, Richards is the one who nails it.

US Naval aviator Lieutenant Pete "Maverick" Mitchell and his Radar Intercept Officer Lieutenant Junior Grade Nick "Goose" Bradshaw, fly the F-14A Tomcat. During an interception of two hostile 'MiG-28s' over the Indian Ocean, Maverick missile-locks on one, while the other hostile locks onto Maverick's wingman Cougar. Maverick drives both MiGs off, but Cougar is so shaken that Maverick has to shepherd him back to the carrier. Cougar soon resigns his commission. Maverick and Goose are sent in his place to attend Top Gun, the Naval Fighters Weapons School. Before the first day of instruction, Maverick unsuccessfully approaches a woman at a bar. He learns the next day that she is Charlotte "Charlie" Blackwood, a civilian Top Gun instructor. She becomes interested in Maverick upon learning of his inverted manoeuvre with a MiG-28. In Maverick's first training flight, he flies below 3,000 m (10,000 ft)—breaking a major school rule of engagement—to defeat instructor Lieutenant Commander Rick "Jester" Heatherly. Maverick and Goose also buzz the control tower when specifically told not to do so. They are reprimanded by chief instructor Commander Mike "Viper" Metcalf. Privately, Jester tells Viper that even though he admires Maverick's skill, he's doubtful if he would trust him in combat. In class, Charlie objects to Maverick's aggressive tactics against the MiG-28, but privately tells him that she admires his flying, and they begin a romantic relationship. On a subsequent training flight, Maverick abandons his wingman "Hollywood" to chase Viper. As a result, first Hollywood and then Maverick are defeated. Jester tells Maverick that his flying is excellent, but criticizes him for leaving his wingman. Maverick's rival, Lieutenant Tom "Iceman" Kazansky, calls his behaviour foolish and dangerous, and implies that Maverick is the reason why Cougar had to resign. The next day, Maverick and Iceman chase an A-4 during a training flight. As Iceman has trouble getting a weapons lock, Maverick pressures him to break off so that he can move into firing position. However, Maverick's F-14 flies through Iceman's jet wash and suffers a flameout in both engines, which puts his aircraft into an unrecoverable flat spin!

Top Gun is a fun, summertime romp that is essentially a high-school drama set in the military. When it first came out, I was enamoured by the action scenes and the music. The film has some of the best air-combat footage in any film that came out in the 80's, and arguably the 90's as well. Decades later, the only part of the film that has become dated are the aircraft themselves. As they are one of the main draws, however, it is easily overlooked. Hearing the music invoked an overwhelming wave of nostalgia, and it's no wonder that it became one of the best selling soundtracks of all time. What struck me the most, however, was the romantic relationship at the core of the film with a young man (Cruise) getting involved in a relationship with an older woman (McGillis). While the film doesn't elaborate on the age difference nor make a big deal of it—a relationship with an instructor was eyebrow-raising enough on its own—what's striking is that Hollywood productions have essentially avoided that relationship dynamic in the following decades. It struck me that while the fighter action is a fantasy for men, the relationship action is an equally potent fantasy for women. It's a shame that Hollywood has more or less given up on trying to create films that have something for everyone like Top Gun appears to do.

The other striking things in the movie are a) how sweaty every man is, and b) how bushy Cruise's eyebrows are. In some ways, this film lets men be natural men. In other ways, it is an over the top fantasy, that just happens to let its starring man on screen without having plucked a couple dozen wayward eyebrow hairs, and apparently filmed every male actor either heavily oiled up or in a sauna. Nevertheless, the best thing about the film is the relationship between Maverick and Goose. There is an undeniable chemistry between the two best friends. When one meets an untimely fate, it hits the audience arguably as hard as it hits the characters in the film. Top Gun is one of the better films from the 80's, and well worth a viewing.

Over 30 years after graduating from the Top Gun school, US Navy Captain Pete "Maverick" Mitchell is a test pilot. Despite many achievements, repeated insubordination has kept him from being promoted to a flag officer rank. His friend and former Top Gun rival, Admiral Tom "Iceman" Kazansky, now Commander of the US Pacific Fleet, often protects Maverick. Maverick's current test item, the hypersonic "Darkstar" scramjet, is threatened with cancellation in order to fund the development of drones. To save the program, Maverick unilaterally changes the target speed for that day's test from Mach 9 to the final contract specification of Mach 10. However, the prototype is destroyed when he cannot resist pushing beyond Mach 10. Iceman again saves Maverick's career by reassigning him to the Top Gun school as an instructor, as the Navy has been tasked with destroying an unsanctioned uranium enrichment plant, before it becomes operational. The difficulty comes from it being located in an underground bunker at the end of a canyon. It is also defended by surface-to-air missiles, GPS jammers, and cutting-edge Su-57 fighters, as well as older F-14 Tomcats. Maverick devises a plan that employs two pairs of F/A-18E/F Super Hornets armed with laser-guided bombs. Instead of participating in the strike, he is to train an elite group of Top Gun graduates assembled by Air Boss Vice Admiral Beau "Cyclone" Simpson. Maverick dogfights his skeptical students and prevails in every contest, eventually winning their respect. Lieutenants Jake "Hangman" Seresin and Bradly "Rooster" Bradshaw—son of Maverick's deceased best friend and RIO Nick "Goose" Bradshaw—clash: Rooster dislikes Hangman's cavalier attitude, while Hangman criticizes Rooster's cautious flying. While stationed in San Diego, Maverick bumps into and reunites with former girlfriend Penny Benjamin. He reveals to her that he had promised Rooster's dying mother that Rooster would not become a pilot. Rooster, unaware of the promise, angrily resents Maverick for having blocked his Naval Academy application, and blames Maverick for his father's death. Maverick is reluctant to interfere any further with Rooster's career, but the alternative is to send him on the extremely dangerous mission. Soon there is a training accident, and Cyclone moves to not only remove Maverick as the team's instructor, but also get him kicked out of the Navy!

Top Gun: Maverick seems to pick up not long after Top Gun. Maverick doesn't appear to have evolved much, even though everyone around him has not only gotten older, but moved further along in their careers and life. The film pretends to probe Maverick into why he's still piloting fighter jets at his age, but doesn't let him honestly admit that he doesn't want to be promoted to 'flying a desk'. Aside from that, and the fantasy element that a 50 or 60-year-old can outperform 20-year-olds in a jet fighter cockpit, the film is a fun adventure that effortlessly moves through its story.

While the film hasn't let Maverick's career move forward, it does suggest that he has had a storied and colourful personal life over the years. In addition to the conflicted and complication relationship with his former RIO's son, there is also the surprisingly complex and maturely handled relationship with Maverick's former flame Penny. In many ways, the way their rekindling relationship is handled provides a grounded, realistic depiction of people their age, which nicely counterbalance's the film's fantastical elements.

Arguably the best thing about the film—and the reason why most people would see it—is its aerial action. What the film gets right, however, is the repeated training the elite pilots undergo to perfect their mission performance. To the film's credit, despite the characters running through the same scenario in the same scenery, it never gets stale. A big reason for that is that the actors were filmed in the cockpit, and the fact that the actors were 'reacting' (as opposed to 'acting' in front of a green screen), makes the visuals all the more fantastic. Nevertheless, if you liked the first film, you are definitely going to love this one. Even if you haven't seen the first, there are plenty of things going for this one: namely that quite a lot of it was filmed practically, and that puts it head and shoulders above its peers that aren't!

Harry Tasker is a secret agent in Omega Sector, a top secret US intelligence agency. He is also a family man often away on business trips. The complication is that his wife and daughter know nothing of his real job—as Tasker has been lying and telling them that he is a computer salesman. Harry infiltrates a party in Switzerland where he and his team learn of a terrorist group plotting to smuggle four stolen Russian nuclear warheads into the US, and threaten the destruction of entire cities unless their demands are met. Things are further complicated when Harry learns that his wife is having an affair, and he temporarily diverts the resources of his agency to investigating that!

True Lies is a classic James Cameron/Arnold Schwarzenegger action movie. It has all the things one wants in a James Cameron film—smooth action scenes, thrilling stunts, plenty of explosions, as well as great female characters that are either on par with or greater than their male costars. One of the highlights is how much characterization is imbued into each character, how well the actors fit their roles, and the character growth each one experiences.

However, the drawback is the central act of the film where the protagonist essentially kidnaps and interrogates his wife. While there is an echo of that later in the film—when the wife questions the protagonist while he is under the influence of a truth serum—the questions the film allows her to ask are no where near as intrusive and uncomfortable. In fact, while the film grills the wife about her marital fidelity, it completely ignores that the protagonist may have (and probably has) had to have relations with the opposite sex to complete his missions.

Giving the film the benefit of the doubt, it does try to delve into the complexity of a couple who has been married for long enough to have lost the spark in their relationship and are more-or-less cohabiting. In its own way, it brings up the awkwardness and uncomfortable feelings when a couple reaches that state. Nevertheless, part of the film's fun is seeing Arnold as a jealous husband, and in some ways it is a joy seeing him (and later his wife, too) give the 'other man' his comeuppance. Nevertheless, stay focused on the couple in their final dance number when the camera pulls away—it'll explain why the tango at the beginning of the film was filmed from the waist up!