Konterr Brilliant and touching

Livestonth I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

Seraherrera The movie is wonderful and true, an act of love in all its contradictions and complexity

Casey Duggan It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

Horst in Translation (filmreviews@web.de) The concept of sports in the matrix is actually a pretty interesting one in the face of achievements that you could describe as out of this world. Such an achievement we have here by a 100-meter runner who keeps breaking world records. Unfortunately, the execution did not really convince me. The only fairly interesting thing I took from these 9 minutes is basically the relationship between world records in the real world we live in and in the Matrix universe. Is under 9 seconds possibly anyhow? Early on, it sounded already like under 9.8 was unique, but Usain Bolt got there already. So how far can we go (or jump), how high can we get? How fast can we be. It will surely be interesting to watch this short film in a couple decades from now and see if we got close to the protagonist's achievement. Anyway, this is not among my 3 favorite segments from the Animatrix, but also not among my least favorites. The Wachowskis did not write this one here. i am not familiar with the director or writer here, but it looks like they frequently work together. Anyway, I hope for them that this may be their most known achievement, but not their best.

Polaris_DiB Very interesting point: what does it take, precisely, to wake up from the Matrix? Does it require that red pill, or can it actually be caused by exertion of mind or body (or both) beyond the realm of possibility in the "real world"? These are the questions asked by both "The Kid's Story" and this short, "World Record". However, "The Kid's Story" is more like a back-story introduction to the character who appears in the sequels doggedly following Neo around like a lost puppy, whereas this short stands alone.The animation itself isn't quite as exceptional as the rest of the shorts, but it's interesting what it does with body and motion. As the narrative relies entirely on the workings of the main character's body, expressionistic use of his muscles are created by warping both while he's running and during his own backstory. It's actually a very interesting approach, and is slightly reminiscent of the much more caricaturistic "The Triplets of Belleville".--PolarisDiB

william (willsgb) this Animatrix features an athlete called Dan Davies who is trying to break a world record time in a race, even though he seems to have already qualified in a previous heat for some other race - this is not made clear, not that much is in this anime - a fact which makes his coach opposed to his taking part in this one, which he expresses to Dan in a ridiculously animated way, like a dancer in a rap video. Dan decides to race anyway, after further conversations with his dad which reveal he had a previous doping scandal and with a reporter lady during which he displays a dismissive arrogance which makes him unsympathetic. he runs the race, and his thigh muscle packs in but he keeps going, pushing himself to his limit. the narration informs us at the beginning that only the most exceptional of people become aware of the matrix but occasionally some do through different means, and three agents observe him during the race, springing into action when he freezes, the world goes pale green and his signal as the agents inform us becomes unstable.he actually wakes up inside his pod before the machines subdue him again, and back in the matrix he collapses over the line, breaking a world record and ending up later in a wheelchair. a nurse talks to him about homemade cherry pie while agents observe him but he gets up in defiance, craving freedom. he collapses again, having glimpsed the veil and peeked beyond its facade. it's also interesting that the reporter mentions that he broke 9.8 in the qualifying heat; on Earth, that figure is terminal velocity, and the suggestion may be that he, having broken a figure that is in the context of terminal velocity a mathematical constant, is breaking rules, breaking preexisting laws. the agents are watching him because he is trying to break them again, which is indeed the point, as having woken up from the matrix briefly, he is later consumed by an unconfined desire for freedom, a single-minded pursuit of rebellion. defying his physically crippled form and trying to stand whispering freedom while his nurse discusses domestic joys expresses this nicely too.it's a decent story animated solidly and variously by Mad House, the guys who did the Animatrix Program and the Final Fantasy 7 anime Last Order, but like them it falls flat for a few reasons, but is also interesting and well made, and some of the reasons for that are not mutually exclusive to those for its negative aspects. for example, the protagonist is entirely unlikeable, which is a positive and a negative facet. he wants to race for no good reason other then self-gratification and behaves with a distinct air of arrogance towards those around him. his superiority complex makes it difficult to enjoy his story and yet it's also a welcome challenge for the viewer in a franchise of otherwise noble or likable protagonists.Commander Lock plays this role in Reloaded and Revolutions, but his reasons for obtuse and pragmatic arrogance are better then Dan's, more grounded in reason and reality, and his stunned silence when Morpheus' belief in Neo is finally vindicated at the end of Revolutions is the reason for his arrogance played out to its conclusion. in this short, the reasons are less clear but they are welcome as Dan's own poor humility and stunted, restrained craving for freedom shows the range of personalities people can adopt, and that they aren't necessarily always positive.another reason for this being an interesting Animatrix is what appears to be a different, perhaps earlier version of the matrix. i think this to be the case because the numbers that appear while Dan is waking up from it are red, and more conclusively because the agents look different to their normal suited selves. this is reinforced by the fact that other Animatrix stories contain the familiar suited agents, suggesting this could be a different matrix we're watching.World Record won't set or break any records or major impressions in anime or the matrix franchise or storytelling in general; more 6 out of 10 then 9.8. it's still a competent, well made, visually interesting effort which matrix fans should enjoy all the same.

TheOtherFool 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.