The Matrix Revolutions - What does it all mean?

[RB_Williams]

..So I woke up early this morning, and decided to watch this, as I don't fully understand the movie tbh.

Is it really just a load of CGI masking the lack of substance that was so abundant in the first movie?... Anyway, I don't think it quite answers all the questions, so does anyone here have any other theory on what the entire trilogy is all about?

[FIDDYPOP]

I found myself lost in dialog, same as in Metal Gear games. From what I gathered though is that Neo was the one because humans need to feel hope to be more efficient in producing energy. So he was part of the plan. Agent Smith was not part of the plan and was ruining the plan. That is why him and Neo fought at the end.

[Petra_Kalbrain]

Originally Posted by FIDDYPOP

I found myself lost in dialog, same as in Metal Gear games. From what I gathered though is that Neo was the one because humans need to feel hope to be more efficient in producing energy. So he was part of the plan. Agent Smith was not part of the plan and was ruining the plan. That is why him and Neo fought at the end.

So far off... not even close.

To truly get a better sense of it all, you need to watch all three within a span of a week and you really have to open up your mind to ANY possibility. Ask questions as you watch them and see how they get answered.

If you are really keen to know, I also suggest watching them with the commentaries by the worlds leading philosophers. They go into great detail surrounding the REAL meanings of the material and how the Wachowski Bros. mastered an amalgamation of philosophical and spiritual content.

I would try to explain it all, but even getting into the minor details mentioned in the post which I quoted, I would feel obligated to write a 5 page essay on it. I neither have the time nor inclination to do so at this time.

[Geezer00003]

Originally Posted by Petra_Kalbrain

So far off... not even close.

Well put

[space2001]

Here I will try and sum it up.

The matrix was created to control the humans so the Machines can get energy from them.

The problem is that the humans knew it was fake beacause they had no control over there destiny. That is why they allowed the humans to have a choice of what they want to do in the matrix. This created the Anomaly(neo). So the Path of the One(neo) is to get to the Source to reboot the matrix. This has happen 5 times already. The oracle play's trinity in to the mix and make neo choose a diffrent path.

In the end neo sacrifices him self to show the robots what they are willing to do to save humanity.

There are more details I can go into but that will just screw you up. there is really deep things that go on with smith, oracle and choice.

Love all the movies.

[Chordata]

Originally Posted by Petra_Kalbrain

So far off... not even close.

To truly get a better sense of it all, you need to watch all three within a span of a week and you really have to open up your mind to ANY possibility. Ask questions as you watch them and see how they get answered.

If you are really keen to know, I also suggest watching them with the commentaries by the worlds leading philosophers. They go into great detail surrounding the REAL meanings of the material and how the Wachowski Bros. mastered an amalgamation of philosophical and spiritual content.

I would try to explain it all, but even getting into the minor details mentioned in the post which I quoted, I would feel obligated to write a 5 page essay on it. I neither have the time nor inclination to do so at this time.

LOL. The best part is ripping off a line from "A Few Good Men" at the end. Other than that, a purely snobbish response.

[Petra_Kalbrain]

Originally Posted by O_V_N

LOL. The best part is ripping off a line from "A Few Good Men" at the end. Other than that, a purely snobbish response.

Sort of does sound like that I guess... But, seriously... It really isn't that difficult to figure out when you pay attention. I just hate it when people try to destroy the intellectual merits of a work of art by ignoring the details.

To enjoy The Matrix fully as a TRILOGY, one cannot simply turn one's brain off and munch popcorn like a zombie.

P.S. Good call on the "A Few Good Men" catch! *high five*

[Jorge Cordeiro]

Please watch the animatrix too and everything makes more sense!
The matrix can have many possible explaination, that is on of the beauties of the film.
So many and sometimes so awkward that one can even say that neo is the jesus of modern times.

preformed miracles ( things that only sentinels could do )
Was betrayd ( cyrus )
Was killed
Resurrected
became allmighty powerfull

i don't want to start any bad discussion, just one of MANY points of view

[Mouse]

I love the whole Matrix trilogy except for the rave scene in Reloaded. I think they just didn't have enough content to fill a whole movie slot so they threw in some junk as filler. Anywho! I agree with Petra that it can't really be summed up in just a few words.

Also, I'm smarter than the machines. I would totally of built multiple Matrixes so just incase something like Agent Smith happened or a rogue program was hiding in one, I could just shut it down and kill everything inside without losing too big of a "crop".

[mikejet]

Harry Knowles said in the end it's a superhero movie. I think they were heading in a different direction and I really do like Reloaded but I think Revolutions could have ended better. I thought Neo would show that the "real world" is also an illusion and that there was something mind blowing behind that facade. It never happened though.

[Chordata]

Originally Posted by Petra_Kalbrain

Sort of does sound like that I guess... But, seriously... It really isn't that difficult to figure out when you pay attention. I just hate it when people try to destroy the intellectual merits of a work of art by ignoring the details.

To enjoy The Matrix fully as a TRILOGY, one cannot simply turn one's brain off and munch popcorn like a zombie.

P.S. Good call on the "A Few Good Men" catch! *high five*

Guilty as charged! I still wonder what it was all about. Still good flicks, though.

[Jorge Cordeiro]

please do not shot me because of this but...since we are discussing this...
what do you all think about a new matrix ( just speaking of course ) ?
Would the story be "more complete" ? does it have the room for such thing ?

[RB_Williams]

I have watched all 3 movies countless times, and never really came to a one stop conclusion on the last movie, maybe that is how it's meant to be perceived... but the bery last bit with the Oracle on the bench, kinda suggests to me it's an on going thing, and they've both seen and been in that situation before.

[CYMBOL]

Originally Posted by mikejet

Harry Knowles said in the end it's a superhero movie. I think they were heading in a different direction and I really do like Reloaded but I think Revolutions could have ended better. I thought Neo would show that the "real world" is also an illusion and that there was something mind blowing behind that facade. It never happened though.

I agree, I was waiting for something grander - not Neo fighting on Smith.

I didn't care for the ending of Reloaded or Revolutions. In general I didn't care for Revolutions at all. A lot of the dialouge started getting extremely reduntant.

And I never understood why these guys had incredible technology (spaceships, robots, weaponry, medical facilities, advanced interactive computers, EMP's, etc. etc. - but lived in caves and dressed like they all hand-made their own clothes. . . . just sayin'. )

[kpkelley]

This may be wrong, but it was just how I interpreted it.

As mentioned previously the Matrix was flawed upon conception and required that it's captives have a choice to remain enslaved. Neo is that choice, a being created by the machines to stabalize the matrix. As such, Neo is not human, but a hybrid creation of some sort. This is what gives him his abilities outside of the matrix and why he is more powerful than any other of the resistance. While he is a machine, he is also human. This human side provides him with the compassion and empathy for those who suffer as he did. As such, he is compelled to save all those who are enslaved to the will of the machines.

The matrix created another program to control the power of the resistance so that they did not overwhelm and destroy the matrix, the agents. The agents were designed to imprint themselves on whatever being they were taking control of at that time. When Agent Smith is "killed" in the first movie, part of Neo's source code is imprinted on Agent Smith. This creates a super agent, no longer limited by his original source code, but empowered through the superhero code of Neo's Messianic Matrix persona. As such he sets out to consume all those trapped inside the matrix all while searching for a way out.

The machines did not anticipate such a change in events and could not control their former enforcer. Their was one failsafe built into the Matrix, the source. At the end of Reloaded neo goes to the source and is given his choice, fight or rebuild a destroyed Xion. He chooses the former. Revolutions is Neo's slow realization that Smith is beyond the control of the Matrix and can destroy all those humans which Neo is attempting to save. He finally comes to the stark realization that there is only one chance to destoy Smith and save all those still trapped inside the Matrix, he must sacrifice himself to Smith while he is tapped into the Source.

[dubldown]

Originally Posted by Petra_Kalbrain

I would try to explain it all, but even getting into the minor details mentioned in the post which I quoted, I would feel obligated to write a 5 page essay on it. I neither have the time nor inclination to do so at this time.

So you don't know either huh?

That's all you had to say.

[Zvi]

I personally think that after the success of Matrix, which IMHO was about human spirit triumph over the machines Wachovski brothers got the same problem as bunch of other directors/acters did. E.g. Jim Carrey desperately trying do serious/drama characters.

So, the W. brothers attempted to make "serious" and "deep" movie. Although, because of the original Matrix, they still had to stick to the SFX,fighting sequences etc.

I don't see anything seriously new, or ogirinal in Reloaded and Revolutions. Philosophy 101 + a lot of unnecessary, sometimes really stupid stuff. Rave scene, Neo vs. 100 smiths and so on. The oracle, who became so annoying and didn't have a single answer to any question, I suspect because W. brothers didn't have them either. Dumba$$ humans, building 20 ton fighting robots, with open cockipts to expose themselves better? Not a single EMP on the defence perimeter, knowing that's the only effective way against the machines. Dumba$$ machines, knowing their vulnerability to EMP and still not utilising EMP shields, even though that's available since 20th century...

So, in the end, I have no idea what did they want to say with those 2 movies, besides proving the point that they can make serious movies. In which they failed, IMHO.

[bruce_pullen]

I'll be blunt.

The Matrix (1999). - Masterpiece. The Christ tale in miniature. Good vs. Evil. Coming of age, Wizard of Oz (1939), a script with countless literary and religious references: that took years to make and perfect.

A happy accident with firm genius behind it.

The Matrix Reloaded (2003) Masterful. An upending of prophecy. Enter moral equivalence, reversal of roles, and more Wizard of Oz (1939). The man behind the curtain? The biblical and philosophical concerns deepen and expand.

As the brothers called it, the “Life” to Revolutions “Death”.

The Matrix Revolutions (2003) Disappointing. Greater philosophy, lesser cinema. Choice takes the forefront. Dogma can’t be alone. Absolute faith must be personal. The Matrix becomes one of a larger picture. The deep dogma finds an end.

[Petra_Kalbrain]

Originally Posted by kpkelley

This may be wrong, but it was just how I interpreted it.

As mentioned previously the Matrix was flawed upon conception and required that it's captives have a choice to remain enslaved. Neo is that choice, a being created by the machines to stabalize the matrix. As such, Neo is not human, but a hybrid creation of some sort. This is what gives him his abilities outside of the matrix and why he is more powerful than any other of the resistance. While he is a machine, he is also human. This human side provides him with the compassion and empathy for those who suffer as he did. As such, he is compelled to save all those who are enslaved to the will of the machines.

The matrix created another program to control the power of the resistance so that they did not overwhelm and destroy the matrix, the agents. The agents were designed to imprint themselves on whatever being they were taking control of at that time. When Agent Smith is "killed" in the first movie, part of Neo's source code is imprinted on Agent Smith. This creates a super agent, no longer limited by his original source code, but empowered through the superhero code of Neo's Messianic Matrix persona. As such he sets out to consume all those trapped inside the matrix all while searching for a way out.

The machines did not anticipate such a change in events and could not control their former enforcer. Their was one failsafe built into the Matrix, the source. At the end of Reloaded neo goes to the source and is given his choice, fight or rebuild a destroyed Xion. He chooses the former. Revolutions is Neo's slow realization that Smith is beyond the control of the Matrix and can destroy all those humans which Neo is attempting to save. He finally comes to the stark realization that there is only one chance to destoy Smith and save all those still trapped inside the Matrix, he must sacrifice himself to Smith while he is tapped into the Source.

That's a pretty bare bones assessment, but is pretty close.

The only major point changes that I would make to your analysis are the highlighted parts.

#1. Neo wasn't created by the machines. He is a necessary build up of the "resistence to enslavement" code created by humans having some subconscious level of choice to accept the reality before them. Once that build up "overflows capacity" is when the One emerges. And, essentially, that coding then has to be used to purge the entire system and start the whole cycle over again. Being human, he then sympathizes with human life in general and allows humanity to survive through enslavement rather than let all traces of human life die. In the case of this particular Neo storyline, he has managed to become a lot more selfish regarding his own existence and the people he cares about. Therefore, his impulsive decision to try and save the one he loves most over countless thousands he doesn't know. Thus, letting the fate of all humanity rest in a possible later solution.

#2. Smith's "death" in the first film was representative of what the Oracle was talking about in Reloaded with Neo in the park. He was a program who knew what he was supposed to do, but didn't. It's because of the rebellious nature of Neo's coding, yes. However, he isn't empowered at all by Neo's coding. All of the powers that each acquire are a simple matter of awareness, knowledge, and understanding the limitations of the matrix itself. Smith is self empowered through the perception of his non-reality.

#3. Neo didn't realize that he had to sacrifice himself to save the humans trapped in the matrix. Neo realized that he had to sacrifice himself (at the last minute, by the way) in order to save ALL LIFE (human AND machine) on the planet. It is his unprejudice sacrifice that makes the machines come to understand that a co-existence is possible without war and control. This is the ultimate parallel to the Jesus myth. Jesus died to save ALL humanity. Neo died to save all sentient beings.

It's only in those last few moments that Neo comes to realize that his "coding" is the only thing that can cure the Smith "virus," since a small part of his code is what has created the Smith "virus." Every vaccine has a small amount of the virus in it, does it not??? Ergo, the reason why Neo allows the final imprint to take place. Otherwise, there would have been no fight since he would have just let the imprint happen immediately (or back in Reloaded during the burly brawl when Smith first tried to imprint him and he resisted).

As for the individual complaining about the "rave" scene in the cave? That scene is one of the most important in all three films. It is a representation of the celebration of the human spirit. In ancient times, these types of celebrations took place in order to spiritually enhance ones sense of everything good in life, thus empowering the spirit to want to fight for survival. That scene may have been a tad embellished, but it is the equivalent of what goes on at modern nightclubs across the entire globe. It is also highly reflective of the most basic and primal urges of human nature, which is one aspect of life that can never be taken away from us humans under ANY circumstance. It's a re-affirmation of existence for those on the brink of possible extinction.

See what I mean? These are all surface points and it took nearly a page for me to discuss. A full dissertation would be a gruelling multi-day process of writing/editing/re-writing/re-editing/etc.

P.S. I have a very good understanding of the films... I've watched them back to back in one sitting at least a dozen times and each individually at least 20 times each. I've also watched all of the extra features in the Ultimate Collection several times, including ALL commentaries.

[thedarkangel1975]

The Matrix is easily one of those films you need to have multiple viwimngs to understand fully. When I first watched the Matrix i hated it, thought the movie was dumb. Then I watched the movie two more times and got a better understanding and enjoyed them. The first one is obviously the best. I liked the second especially the freeway scene and third too. I think everyone gives them a hard time because they are popular like The Dark Knight, Indiana Jones, Star Wars, etc and they fell like a rebel to hate instead of like.