Analysis Of 'he Matrix By The Wachowski Brothers, And Its Exploration Of Christianity

Analysis Of 'he Matrix By The Wachowski Brothers, And Its Exploration Of Christianity

'The Matrix', a 1999 film by the Wachowski Brothers, is a

psychologically disturbing film that questions the reality of our

existence. This film is a story with a moral plot, about a group of

renegades fighting a noble battle for truth, and the liberation of the

human race.

The film revolves around a character called Thomas Anderson (also

known online under the alias of 'Neo', a hacker) who appears to be

completely normal - he has a normal, dull desk job by day, and at home

he leads another life in front of his computer. However, everything

changes when a person called 'Trinity' - an apparently quite

well-known and infamous hacker - asks to meet with him. The events

that follow reveal to 'Neo' that the world he accepts as reality is in

fact a computer program. The world has long since fallen to a form of

Distopia - Artificial Intelligence reigns as the superior race, using

humans as a power source, keeping them restrained in 'pods', sending a

computer program of the 'real world' into their brains to keep them

content and quiet.

With the help of Trinity, Neo meets with the group of renegades and

their leader, Morpheus, who have freed themselves of the brainwashing

program (called the Matrix). Morpheus tells Neo about the Matrix and

Neo joins them in the 'real' world. Morpheus then explains everything

to Neo - about the Matrix, about the robots, about their terrible past

and their ultimate 'apocalypse' in which the humans fell. Since the

sun was burned from the skies in a vain attempt to thwart the solar

powered robots, they had to retreat to ...

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...ing, with a gripping plot and sensational special effects and

stunts, whilst still carrying a moral, sub-textual message. Although

the underlying Christian (and even Buddhist) connections were not

instantly recognisable, if they had been too obvious I felt the

subtext would not have been as effective. Instead of an obvious

connection, the viewer has to put in an effort to discover a subtext

via many cleverly placed signs and hints. The hidden meaning and

deeper plot, including the message of the power of hope, love, and a

belief in oneself, seems to come to life upon deeper reflection.

The film raises many questions and presents new and original

viewpoints on the definition of the reality of our existence, that

involve the viewer and we find ourselves appreciating the film on many

levels, both entertaining and moral.