The issue is whether or not there is a Messianic message beneath the surface?

Rating: 7/10 (13 April 2000)

Some people believe that there is a Messianic message in this movie because of the fight between Matrix's campaign of domination in the "real" world and "Thomas A. Anderson / Neo," Keanu Reeves (A Walk in the Clouds, Much Ado About Nothing) the man who is to save the world. He joins warriors "Morpheus " Laurence Fishburne (Searching for Bobby Fischer), and "Trinity" Carrie Ann Moss (Lethal Tender) in their warfare against the Matrix.
Neo does die and comes back to life and at one point he believes that "He is the One" to save the world. If that was the intent of the writer, the message is not clear as far as I am concerned. There are Messianic elements in many of the super-heros such as Superman, with his powerful vision, Batman who fights the evil and forces of darkness of Gotham City and I just think that Neo is another super-hero with some type of Â‘god like' characteristics. To characterize the movie as a Christian movie is really stretching it. There is an element of deception such as the woman in red, is she real or is she a deceiver? There is deception in Batman when all the enemies come wearing a camouflage such as Mr. Freeze, The Riddler, etc. I believe that there is an element of deception or even mistaken identity, if you will, in many movies. I really enjoyed the movie for its special effects and so did the members of the Academy of Motion Pictures as the movie won an Oscar for Special Effects among many other Oscars. I am not much into science fiction but I bought the tape because it was recommended by a bunch of Christian friends. The movie is fine, but I found that the movies such as "The Sixth Sense" also have a religious side to them as the boy seeks peace and shelter in a church. There is definitely a struggle between good and evil, but everyone is dead already. In "The Sixth Sense" nobody gets that there is no big mystery about the movie except that they are all dead and are talking. Does the dead talk? The Bible indicates that they do. Look at Lazarus. And that was the catch, in The Matrix, that many are led to believe: whether or not there is a Messianic message beneath the surface. Perhaps, there is, but I do not see that as a Christian movie, just a science-fiction movie which you can analyze anyway you want to. I had a hard time identifying scenes that were thoughts and scenes that were part of the "realm of reality in the movie." Anyway, I thought that The Truman Show had a big element of the "eternal" versus the "temporary" in the realm of reality. Favorite Scenes: Trinity jumping from one building to another. Obviously no human can do that without some type of super power. But I don't think that it would be fair to compare her to the Trinity known by Christians. Favorite Quotes: Trinity: " You're looking for him. I know because I was once looking for the same thing. And when he found me, he told me I wasn't really looking for him. I was looking for an answer. It's the question that drives us. It's the question that brought you here." Morpheus:" I'm trying to free your mind, Neo. But I can only show you the door. You're the one that has to walk through it." This type language sounds really Messianic. I guess one could watch the movie from that perspective. Perhaps it should be fun to have a discussion on the topic of the Christian message in "The Matrix." We will have to wait until the sequel to see if that was indeed a much larger Messianic side to the story. I am not sure! Just watch and make your own analysis now and of any future Matrix. Actually I could argue both sides of the issue.