Scene Unseen: The Matrix Revisited: The Woman In The Red Dress

Film Simon Pegg the creator of Spaced said recently: "You've got to hand it to the Wachowski brothers, because it took George Lucas twenty years to kill his baby and they did theirs in three and that's good going." I mention that quote because (a) it's very funny and (b) it's very true and underlines the sense of disappointment we all felt at the end of this trilogy. The problem with having the two average sequels is that it means we'll never again look at the first film in quite the same way. One of the strengths of that first time was the anticipation what Neo would do next. Now that anticipation has dissipated, we're left with the sad sense that in fact yes, it was only a movie.

And DVD. Or rather many dvds. Apart from the films, there's been The Animatrix (which I'll cover some other time) and The Matrix Revisited, a cheeky way of selling what should have been a bonus disc with the first film as a separate entity. The main documentary is actually really very good. It lacks the editorialising of something like The Hampster Factor (which considers the making of Twelve Monkeys) or Hearts of Darkess: A Film maker's Apocalypse (Apocalypse Now) and does have an irritating issue with inter-titles appearing every few minutes. But it's entertaining - I don't think I've ever seen producer Joel Silver so passionate about anything and there is the added bonus of letting you ponder again as to whether the rumours about the brothers are true.

There is also a fascinating easter egg. From the Main Menu, select Go Further. Pressing Right on your remote control should reveal The Woman In Red on the right-hand side of the screen. Pressing Enter and a short featurette appears in which Kym Barrett, the film's costume designer, describes the day the actress playing The Woman In The Red Dress visited the set and the effects she had on the men. It's extra-ordinarily funny and in an odd way a real world equivalent of what happens during her scene in the film. And to be honest I can't imagine a male crew member being able to tell the story in quite the same way . . .