Rewatching the Matrix shows that it's a great sci-fi film despite its flaws. Its sophisticated and morally complex premise makes it thought-provoking and interesting. All of this makes the film's forgettable sequels worse.
Cypher's Nebuchadnezzar crew treachery is startling and infuriating. Thinking about it, his plan has some merit. As he correctly notes, life in the real world is horrible, with no food, dank conditions, and always scraping by.
The Matrix sequels disappoint in many ways. A rewatch of the original movie shows that changing Tank after he survives was a mistake. He's more relatable than Harold Perrineau's Link in The Matrix Reloaded since he's a roguish operator.
Morpheus tells Neo that humanity's failed effort to "scorch the sky" and deprive the Machines of solar power in the epic struggle against AI. This design appears to have big issues from the start. While the Machines rely on the sun, so does every living creature on Earth.
Hugo Weaving's maniacal Agent Smith steals the show, while Joe Pantoliano's Cypher is another fantastic villain. Panoliano's talent aside, Cypher's storyline doesn't make sense. The primary issue is how he was going to meet Smith at the steak restaurant since plugging himself in alone seems improbable.
The Matrix's famous combat scene, Neo's bullet time sequence, seems to have lost its appeal. Even though parts of the images are stylized, the gunshot streaks and Neo's frenzied arm flailing seem less impressive than when first shown.
On release in 1999, The Matrix's visual effects were called groundbreaking. However, 25 years later, the movie's biggest VFX shots seem lackluster compared to recent blockbusters.
Agent Smith calls Nebuchadnezzar's captain a "terrorist" and "possibly the most dangerous man alive" before introducing Morpheus to Neo and the viewer. Smith's role as the main adversary and Morpheus' desire to free humanity make this interaction seem like Machine propaganda.