World Record

Oh my, it's another one of those Animatrix shorts. And it's yet another disappointing one.

Dan breaks the world record 100 meters but is accused of taking drugs to enhance his performance. One day he decides to fight back and go for it again. While his muscles snap and his bones break (well, something to that extend anyway), his willpower keeps him going on. Which, obviously, in a 'real world' could not happen.

Looking at it like this, it sounds like a great story, but I was left disappointed. The animation is not my taste (to say the least) and the story somehow isn't told very well. Very confusing. Not to the point. Could have been better all around.

5/10.

When I heard the title "World Record" as part of a collection of short movies in the matrix universe, I was quite enthralled. There is a lot of potential here. Could it be about an outsider like Neo & friends achieving a world record for fun? Could it be about a person who loses their perspective of reality and does impossible things? What is it about?

The answer is something close to the latter. It's about an athlete who gets too focused on his desire to achieve a record. Or something. Quite frankly, the story is poorly told, interwoven, trying to be very clever and ending up being awkward. The animation shows craftsmanship, but at the same time, it looks surprisingly ugly and basic. But the real crux is the story - admittedly, I would not have understood it without watching a making of or a directors commentary or whatever it was, explaining a few of the final scenes. The movie, perhaps like the athlete's life, or at least his run, is a blur.

The sad thing is all the wasted potential. Where "Beyond" takes a simple idea - a glitch in the matrix producing a haunted house - and turns it into something truly special, this short movie takes a special idea - an athlete breaking the laws of the matrix by sheer willpower - and turns it into something so convoluted it's disappointingly boring.

5/10

Really ?

After all the good stories, this just felt a bit overkill and simplistic. Sorry, I don't think it is good.

Visually, it was good like the other episodes,

I didn't like this part...

On the Animatrix disc, this is the sixth short. I'm sorry to say, but this is my least favorite. I can appreciate that the animation is interesting and different. The concept is definitely deserving of attention. The voice acting is very good. However, with all the time spent on back-story, and an execution that just did not grab me(which I am willing to grant may have more to do with personal tastes), this just doesn't seem that great, especially considering what the other ones are like. This just comes off as having wasted a lot of potential. The visual style is like a grotesque caricature, and it is similar to Aeon Flux. Strangely hypnotic. It is unpleasant to watch, one bit in particular, and I would say that that is intentional. This is almost nine minutes long. The story-telling utilizes a non-linear time-line, and you have to pay attention to follow it. The DVD holds a making of, seven and a half minutes, and it, along with the commentary(not in English but with subtitles), are worth taking in. I recommend this to fans of The Matrix universe and/or science fiction. 5/10

No matter what, the Animatrix delivers some really cool ideas and concepts, even though you might not always like the other elements it presents. World Record is interesting in its idea of breaking the Matrix, but it has a lot of elements going against it that raise it over other shorts. The animation style wasn't for me, some subpar voice acting and not really feeling the weight of the introduction all affected my overall reaction, but the premise alone makes me like it.

An athlete competing in running is about to experience what can happen in the Matrix.

I was not a big fan of the animation style. It was either too stiff or too moving. I found it not that pretty to look at, but it's probably more of a style thing. It just didn't speak to me.

Some of the voice acting isn't the best here either, with some very read performances.

I think the biggest letdown was my disinterest in the main character and his conflicts. They try to set up our main character a bit, but it never really got to me. Neither for having later sympathy nor the explanation to the twist.

But the concept is still amazing. Any idea that showcases the Matrix in a different light or with different aspects is amazing, and this is one of those shorts that really does that greatly.

World Record is such a mixed bag, but I need to still give my praise. The overall idea is so great, but the surrounding execution is what takes it down a peg or two, sadly.