In 2001, Reeves continued to explore and accept roles in a diverse range of genres. The first was a romantic drama, Sweet November, a remake of the 1968 film. This was his second collaboration with Charlize Theron; the film was met with a generally negative reception.[101] Desson Thompson of The Washington Post criticized it for its “syrupy cliches, greeting-card wisdom and over-the-top tragicomedy”, but commended Reeves for his likability factor in every performance he gives.[102] Later that year, Hardball marked Reeves’s attempt in another sports comedy. Directed by Brian Robbins, it is based on the book Hardball: A Season in the Projects by Daniel Coyle. Reeves plays Conor O’Neill, a troubled young man who agrees to coach a Little League team from the Cabrini Green housing project in Chicago as a condition of obtaining a loan. Film critic Roger Ebert noted the film’s desire to tackle difficult subjects and baseball coaching, but felt it lacked depth, and Reeves’s performance was “glum and distant”.[103]
By 2002, his professional music career had come to an end when Dogstar disbanded. The band had released two albums during their decade together; Our Little Visionary in 1996 and Happy Ending in 2000.[104] Sometime afterwards, Reeves performed in the band Becky for a year, founded by Dogstar band-mate Mailhouse, but quit in 2005, citing a lack of interest in a serious music career.[105][106] After being absent from the screen in 2002, Reeves returned to The Matrix sequels in 2003 with The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, released in May and November, respectively. Principal photography for both films was completed back-to-back, primarily at Fox Studios in Australia.[107] The Matrix Reloaded garnered mostly favourable reviews; John Powers of LA Weekly praised the “dazzling pyrotechnics” but was critical of certain machine-like action scenes. Of Reeves’s acting, Powers thought it was somewhat “wooden” but felt he has the ability to “exude a charmed aura”.[108] Andrew Walker, writing for the Evening Standard, praised the cinematography “visually it gives full value as a virtuoso workout for your senses” but he was less taken by the film’s “dime-store philosophy”.[109] The film grossed $739 million worldwide.[110]
