The Matrix Reloaded

Written and directed by Andy Wachowski and Larry Wachowski
R	for sci-fi violence and some sexuality
Starring: Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Hugo Weaving, Carrie-Anne Moss, Gloria Foster

Reviewer: Nate Clarke

The Matrix franchise has become Philosophy 101 for video game freaks. It seems profound enough to spark hours of discussion and be used by countless speakers at college fellowships and youth groups, but action packed enough to occupy even the most discerning of ADD sufferers. To some, The Matrix Reloaded is a ruse – full of philosophical gobbledygook and heartless action. But to others, the combination of spiritual themes and revolutionary action sequences is a triumph of science fiction film making.

In the first film, Neo (Keanu Reeves) discovered he is "the One," able to bend and destroy the laws of physics in the computer-created control agent known as the Matrix. He has defeated the machines' most advanced defenses and as the film ends, Neo promises retribution. As The Matrix Reloaded begins, the remnant of humans in the "real" world are preparing to defend their hamlet, Zion, against an onslaught of approaching machines. Neo and his band of leather-clad friends must enter the Matrix to reconnect with the Oracle (a type of prophet and sage). They believe she will lead them to the secret of the destruction of the Matrix, but once again, not everything is as it appears. Along the way, Neo, Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) and Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) engage in serious (and at times over extended) kung fu fights with villains who have significantly more character and charm than the mechanical, ho-hum humans. (The irony that machine created programs like Agent Smith and Merovingian are so much more compelling than Neo and Trinity left me wondering who was more human?) Sound simple? Well on one level it is, but plot twists and monologues about philosophy make this film intensely cryptic and tough to take in upon first viewing.

The first film was so intriguing because while the audience wandered through confusion with Neo, we were forced to ask the question, what is real? In the sequel, the film-makers exchange the primary question of the first film for a new one, do we have choice? The Matrix Reloaded is filled with conversations on choice and causality, and in a nice development we begin to see the world view of the machines. For these mechanical beings, the world is only a series of chemical reactions and nerve impulses. Choice is a whiff of falsehood introduced into the Matrix to keep humans under control.

By contrast the humans are a confused mess. Some, like Morpheus, are rather sure of a prophecy that foretells the destruction of the machines, but most don't know what to believe. Survival is the primary driving force to human life and if believing in a prophecy will help humanity survive, then many in Zion are willing to believe. Add to this mix revelations explained by the Architect (of the Matrix) to Neo concerning choice and free will and even Morpheus's once confident demeanor is frayed.

The Matrix Reloaded also picks up the first film's theme of control. The makers of the Matrix have consolidated control to such a science that even perceived success on the point of the humans is part of their pre-organized scheme to manage their energy source. In fact, we are even left to wonder if the machines have a high degree of control over the humans outside the Matrix. I wanted to dislike The Matrix Reloaded. The hype, the overuse of images in Christian circles, and the claims of "reinventing cinema" all made me Matrixed out. So I was pleasantly surprised when about half way through the film, I began to genuinely engage with The Matrix Reloaded. Sure, the fight scenes are too long, the rave / orgy scene looks like the Britney Spears video, "Slave for You," and the hyped Virtual Cinema was easily pegged. But the plot pulled me in and the visual stylings of the Wachowski brothers left me itching to see the final conclusion. Perhaps the greatest feat of this film is that it leaves viewers ready to discuss with one another not only what happened in The Matrix Reloaded, but what might happen in The Matrix Revolutions.

Post script: The Matrix Reloaded is not a Christian film (and neither was The Matrix for that matter.) Certainly it uses rich Christian images and ideas, but as part of a complex post modern philosophical framework that includes strong Eastern influences. The Matrix has become (for good and bad) a major fixture on the landscape of Evangelical communication which often causes us to miss important critiques of the ideas the film-makers present. That is not to say that the questions raised by the Wachowski brothers are not important. On the contrary these questions are core to orthodox Christian theology. However, there is a difference between engaging in dialogue and co-opting a film. The Matrix Reloaded offers countless themes to discuss and probe, but, we must be cautious about reading our own doctrinal agenda into the intentions of the film-makers

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