FAQ: THE MATRIX - Important Dialogues
By Jon Therkildsen
The secret to understanding the intricate storytelling and story-universe of The Matrix movies (1999-2003) is watching them numerous of times. One sitting cannot do it. Beside watching the three movies as well as “The Animatrix (2003)”, the key to understanding them lies chiefly within the dialogues Neo has with The Oracle (of which there are three) and the dialogue he has with The Architect (of which there is one) and then the final chat The Oracle and The Architect have together. Since the wisdom of this tale is hidden in those talks, I have the transcripts below - including links to Youtube clips of their enactments.
Enjoy.
THE MATRIX (1999)
The Oracle/Neo Dialogue 1/3 (Youtube clip 1/2) (Vimeo clip 2/2)
The Oracle: “I know, you’re Neo. Be right with you.”
Neo: “You’re The Oracle?”
The Oracle: “Bingo. Not quite what you were expecting, right? Almost done. Smell good, don’t they?”
Neo: “Yeah.”
The Oracle: “I’d ask you to sit down, but you're not going to anyway. And don’t worry about the vase.”
Neo: “What vase?”
[Neo accidentally breaks a vase]
The Oracle: “That vase.”
Neo: “I’m sorry.”
The Oracle: “I said don’t worry about it. I’ll get one of my kids to fix it.”
Neo: “How did you know?”
The Oracle: “What’s really going to bake your noodle later on is, would you still have broken it if I hadn’t said anything. You’re cuter than I thought. I can see why she likes you.”
Neo: “Who?”
The Oracle: “Not too bright, though. You know why Morpheus brought you to see me? So, what do you think? Do you think you’re The One?”
Neo: “Honestly, I don’t know.”
The Oracle: “You know what that means? It’s Latin. Means “Know thyself”. I’m going to let you in on a little secret. Being The One is just like being in love. No one can tell you you’re in love, you just know it. Through and through. Balls to bones. Well, I better have a look at you. Open your mouth, say Ahhh.”
Neo: “Ahhh.”
The Oracle: “Okay. Now I’m supposed to say, “Umm, that’s interesting, but…,” then you say…”
Neo: “But what?”
The Oracle: “But you already know what I’m going to tell you.”
Neo: “I’m not The One.”
Oracle: “Sorry, kid. You got the gift, but it looks like you’re waiting for something.”
Neo: “What?”
The Oracle: “Your next life maybe, who knows? That’s the way these things go. What’s funny?”
Neo: “Morpheus. He… he almost had me convinced.”
The Oracle: “I know. Poor Morpheus. Without him, we’re lost.”
Neo: “What do you mean; without him?”
The Oracle: “Are you sure you want to hear this? Morpheus believes in you, Neo. And no one, not you, not even me can convince him otherwise. He believes it so blindly that he’s going to sacrifice his life to save yours.”
Neo: “What?”
The Oracle: “You’re going to have to make a choice. In the one hand, you’ll have Morpheus’ life and in the other hand, you’ll have your own. One of you is going to die. Which one will be up to you. I’m sorry, kiddo, I really am. You have a good soul, and I hate giving good people bad news. Oh, don’t worry about it. As soon as you step outside that door, you’ll start feeling better. You’ll remember you don’t believe in any of this fate crap. You’re in control of your own life, remember? Here, take a cookie. I promise, by the time you’re done eating it, you’ll feel right as rain.”
THE MATRIX RELOADED (2003)
The Oracle/Neo Dialogue 2/3 (Youtube clip - incomplete, ending missing)
The Oracle: “Well, come on. I ain’t gonna bite ya. Come around here, and let me have a look at ya. My goodness, look at you! You turned out all right, didn’t you? How do you feel?”
Neo: “I, uh…”
The Oracle: “I know you’re not sleeping. We’ll get to that. Why don’t you come and have a sit this time?”
Neo: “Maybe I’ll stand.”
The Oracle: “Well, suit yourself.”
[Neo sits]
Neo: “I felt like sitting.”
The Oracle: “I know. So. Let’s get the obvious stuff out of the way.”
Neo: “You’re not human, are you?”
The Oracle: “Well it’s tough to get any more obvious than that.”
Neo: “If I had to guess, I’d say you’re a program from the machine world. So is he.”
The Oracle: “So far, so good.”
Neo: “But if that’s true, that can mean you are a part of this system, another kind of control.”
The Oracle: “Keep going.”
Neo: “I suppose the most obvious question is, how can I trust you?”
The Oracle: “Bingo! It is a pickle, no doubt about it. The bad news is there’s no way if you can really know whether I’m here to help you or not. So it’s really up to you. You just have to make up your own damn mind to either accept what I’m going to tell you or reject it. Candy?”
Neo: “you’d already know if I’m going to take it?”
The Oracle: “Wouldn’t be much of an Oracle if I didn’t.”
Neo: “But if you already know, how can I make a choice?”
The Oracle: “Because you didn’t come here to make the choice, you’ve already made it. You’re here to try to understand why you made it. I thought you’d have figured that out by now.”
Neo: “Why are you here?”
The Oracle: “Same reason. I love candy.”
Neo: “But why help us?”
The Oracle: “We’re all here to do what we’re all here to do. I’m interested in one thing, Neo, the future. And believe me, I know – the only way to get there is together.”
Neo: “Are there other programs like you?”
The Oracle: “Oh, well, not like me. But… look, see those birds? At some point, a program was written to govern them. A program was written to watch over the trees, and the wind, the sunrise, and sunset. There are programs running all over the place. The ones doing their job, doing what they were meant to do, are invisible. You’d never even know they were here. But the other ones, well, we hear about them all the time.”
Neo: “I’ve never heard of them.”
The Oracle: “Of course you have. Every time you’ve heard someone say they saw a ghost or an angel. Every story you’ve ever heard about vampires, werewolves, or aliens is the system assimilating some program that’s doing something they’re not supposed to be doing.”
Neo: ”Programs hacking programs. Why?”
The Oracle: “They have their reasons, but usually a program chooses exile when it faces deletion.”
Neo: “And why would a program be deleted?”
The Oracle: “Maybe it breaks down. Maybe a better program is created to replace it – happens all the time, and when it does, a program can either choose to hide here, or return to The Source.”
Neo: “The machine mainframe?”
The Oracle: ”Yes. Where you must go. Where the path of The One ends. You’ve seen it, in your dreams, haven’t you? The door made of light? What happens when you go through the door?”
Neo: “I see Trinity, and something happens, something bad. She starts to fall, and then I wake up.”
The Oracle: “Do you see her die?”
Neo: “No.”
The Oracle: “You have the sight now, Neo. You are looking at the world without time.”
Neo: “Then why can’t I see what happens to her?”
The Oracle: “We can never see past the choices we don’t understand.”
Neo: “Are you saying I have to choose whether Trinity lives or dies?”
The Oracle: “No. You’ve already made the choice, now you have to understand it.”
Neo: “No, I can’t do that. I won’t.”
The Oracle: “You have to.”
Neo: ”Why?”
The Oracle: “Because you’re The One.”
Neo: “What if I can’t? What happens if I fail?”
The Oracle: “Then Zion will fall. Our time is up. Listen to me, Neo. You can save Zion if you reach The Source, but to do that you will need the Keymaker.”
Neo: “The Keymaker?”
The Oracle: “Yes, he disappeared some time ago. We did not know what happened to him until now. He’s being held prisoner by a very dangerous program, one of the oldest of us. He is called the Merovingian, and he will not let him go willingly.”
Neo: “What does he want?”
The Oracle: “What do all men with power want? More power.”
The Oracle: “Be there, at that exact time, and you will have a chance.”
Seraph: “We must go.”
The Oracle: “Seems like every time we meet I’ve got nothing but bad news. I’m sorry about that, I surely am. But for what it’s worth, you’ve made a believer out of me. Good luck, kiddo.”
The Architect/Neo Dialogue 1/1 (Youtube clip 1/2) / (Youtube clip 2/2)
The Architect: “Hello, Neo.”
Neo: “Who are you?”
The Architect: “I am the Architect. I created the matrix. I've been waiting for you. You have many questions, and though the process has altered your consciousness, you remain irrevocably human. Ergo, some of my answers you will understand, and some of them you will not. Concordantly, while your first question may be the most pertinent, you may or may not realize it is also the most irrelevant.”
Neo: “Why am I here?”
The Architect: “Your life is the sum of a remainder of an unbalanced equation inherent to the programming of the matrix. You are the eventuality of an anomaly, which despite my sincerest efforts I have been unable to eliminate from what is otherwise a harmony of mathematical precision. While it remains a burden assiduously avoided, it is not unexpected, and thus not beyond a measure of control. Which has led you, inexorably, here.”
Neo: “You haven't answered my question.”
The Architect: “Quite right. Interesting. That was quicker than the others.”
[The responses of other Neos appear on the monitors: "Others? What others? How many? Answer me!"]
The Architect: “The matrix is older than you know. I prefer counting from the emergence of one integral anomaly to the emergence of the next, in which case this is the sixth version.”
[Again, the responses of the other Ones appear on the monitors: "Five versions? Three? I've been lied to. This is bullshit."]
Neo: “There are only two possible explanations: either no one told me, or no one knows.”
The Architect: “Precisely. As you are undoubtedly gathering, the anomaly is systemic, creating fluctuations in even the most simplistic equations.”
[Once again, the responses of other Neos appear on the monitors: "You can't control me! Fuck you! I'm going to kill you! You can't make me do anything!”]
Neo: “Choice. The problem is choice.”
The Architect: “The first matrix I designed was quite naturally perfect, it was a work of art, flawless, sublime. A triumph equaled only by its monumental failure. The inevitability of its doom is as apparent to me now as a consequence of the imperfection inherent in every human being, thus I redesigned it based on your history to more accurately reflect the varying grotesqueries of your nature. However, I was again frustrated by failure. I have since come to understand that the answer eluded me because it required a lesser mind, or perhaps a mind less bound by the parameters of perfection. Thus, the answer was stumbled upon by another, an intuitive program initially created to investigate certain aspects of the human psyche. If I am the father of the matrix, she would undoubtedly be its mother.”
Neo: “The Oracle.”
The Architect: “Please. As I was saying, she stumbled upon a solution whereby nearly 99% of all test subjects accepted the program, as long as they were given a choice, even if they were only aware of the choice at a near unconscious level. While this answer functioned, it was obviously fundamentally flawed, thus creating the otherwise contradictory systemic anomaly, that if left unchecked might threaten the system itself. Ergo, those that refused the program, while a minority, if unchecked, would constitute an escalating probability of disaster.”
Neo: “This is about Zion.”
The Architect: “You are here because Zion is about to be destroyed. Its every living inhabitant terminated, its entire existence eradicated.”
Neo: “Bullshit.”
[The responses of other Neos appear on the monitors: "Bullshit!"]
The Architect: “Denial is the most predictable of all human responses. But, rest assured, this will be the sixth time we have destroyed it, and we have become exceedingly efficient at it.”
The Architect: “The function of the One is now to return to the source, allowing a temporary dissemination of the code you carry, reinserting the prime program. After which you will be required to select from the matrix 23 individuals, 16 female, 7 male, to rebuild Zion. Failure to comply with this process will result in a cataclysmic system crash killing everyone connected to the matrix, which coupled with the extermination of Zion will ultimately result in the extinction of the entire human race.”
Neo: “You won't let it happen, you can't. You need human beings to survive.”
The Architect: “There are levels of survival we are prepared to accept. However, the relevant issue is whether or not you are ready to accept the responsibility for the death of every human being in this world.”
[The Architect presses a button on a pen that he is holding, and images of people from all over the matrix appear on the monitors]
The Architect: “It is interesting reading your reactions. Your five predecessors were by design based on a similar predication, a contingent affirmation that was meant to create a profound attachment to the rest of your species, facilitating the function of the one. While the others experienced this in a very general way, your experience is far more specific. Vis-a-vis, love.”
[Images of Trinity fighting the agent in the Matrix appear on the monitors]
Neo: “Trinity.”
The Architect: “Apropos, she entered the matrix to save your life at the cost of her own.”
Neo: “No!”
The Architect: “Which brings us at last to the moment of truth, wherein the fundamental flaw is ultimately expressed, and the anomaly revealed as both beginning, and end. There are two doors. The door to your right leads to the source and the salvation of Zion. The door to the left leads back to the matrix, to her, and to the end of your species. As you adequately put, the problem is choice. But we already know what you're going to do, don't we? Already I can see the chain reaction, the chemical precursors that signal the onset of emotion, designed specifically to overwhelm logic and reason. An emotion that is already blinding you from the simple, and obvious truth: she is going to die, and there is nothing that you can do to stop it.”
[Neo walks to the door on his left]
The Architect: “Humph. Hope, it is the quintessential human delusion, simultaneously the source of your greatest strength, and your greatest weakness.”
Neo: “If I were you, I would hope that we don't meet again.”
The Architect: “We won't.”
THE MATRIX REVOLUTIONS (2003)
The Oracle/Trinity/Morpheus Dialogue 1/1 (Youtube clip)
The Oracle: “Morpheus, Trinity. Thank you for coming… One thing I have learned in all my years is that nothing ever works out just the way you want it to.”
Trinity: “Who are you?”
The Oracle: “I'm the Oracle. I wish there was an easy way to get through this, but there ain't. I'm sorry this had to happen. I'm sorry I couldn't be sitting here like you remember me...but it wasn't meant to be.”
Trinity: “What happened?”
The Oracle: “I made a choice, and that choice cost me more than I wanted it to.”
Morpheus: “What choice?”
The Oracle: “To help you, to guide Neo. Now, since the real test for any choice is having to make the same choice again… knowing full well what it might cost… I guess I feel pretty good about that choice… cause here I am, at it again.”
Trinity: “Do you know what happened to Neo?”
The Oracle: “Yes. He is trapped in a place between this world and the machine world. The link is controlled by a program called the Trainman. He uses it to smuggle programs in and out of the Matrix. If he finds out where Neo is before you get to him...then I'm afraid our choices are going to become difficult.”
Trinity: “Why?”
The Oracle: “Because of who the Trainman works for.”
Morpheus: “The Merovingian.”
The Oracle: “He has placed a bounty on your lives. You must be careful at all times. Seraph knows how to find the Trainman. He'll go with you. For years he has protected me. I hope he can do the same for you.”
Seraph: “Please, follow me.”
Morpheus: “Oracle...”
The Oracle: “I know, Morpheus. I can see you're filled with doubt, clouded by uncertainty.”
Morpheus: “After everything that has happened, how can you expect me to believe you?”
The Oracle: “I don't. I expect just what I've always expected: For you to make up your own damn mind. Believe me or don't. All I can do is tell you that your friend is in trouble, and he needs your help. He needs all our help.”
The Oracle/Neo Dialogue 3/3 (Youtube clip)
The Oracle: “I was hoping to have these done before you got here. Oh well. Sati, honey, I think it’s time for a tasting. Take the bowl to Seraph and find out if they’re ready.”
The Oracle: “So, do you recognize me?”
Neo: “A part of you.”
The Oracle: “Yeah, that’s how it works. Some bits you lose, some bits you keep. I don’t yet recognize my face in the mirror, but… I still love candy.”
[Offers Neo a piece of red candy]
Neo: “No, thank you.”
The Oracle: “Remember what you were like when you first walked through my door, jittery as a Junebug? And now just look at you. You sure did surprise me, Neo, and you still do.”
Neo: “You gave me a few surprises, too.”
The Oracle: “I hope I helped.”
Neo: “You helped me to get here, but my question is why? Where is this going? Where does it end?”
The Oracle: ”I don’t know.”
Neo: “You don’t know or you won’t tell me?”
The Oracle: “I told you before. No one can see beyond a choice they don’t understand, and I mean no one.”
Neo: “What choice?”
The Oracle: “It doesn’t matter. It’s my choice. I have mine to make, same as you have yours.”
Neo: “Does that include what things to tell me and what not to tell me?”
The Oracle: “Of course not.”
Neo: “Then why didn’t you tell me about the Architect? Why didn’t you tell me about Zion, the Ones before me – why didn’t you tell me the truth?”
The Oracle: “Because it wasn’t time for you to know.”
Neo: “Who decided it wasn’t time?”
The Oracle: “You know who.”
[She points at the “Temet Nosce” sign above the door]
Neo: “I did. Then I think it’s time for me to know a few more things.”
The Oracle: “So do I.”
Neo: “Tell me how I separated my mind from my body without jacking in. Tell me how I stopped four sentinels by thinking it. Tell me just what the hell is happening to me.”
The Oracle: “The power of the One extends beyond this world. It reaches from here all the way back to where it came from.”
Neo: “Where?”
The Oracle: “The Source. That’s what you felt when you touched those Sentinels. But you weren’t ready for it. You should be dead, but apparently, you weren’t ready for that, either.”
Neo: “The Architect told me that if I didn’t return to the Source, Zion would be destroyed by midnight tonight.”
The Oracle: ”Please… You and I may not be able to see beyond our own choices, but that man can’t see past any choice.”
Neo: “Why not?”
The Oracle: “He doesn’t understand them – he can’t. To him, they are variables in an equation. One at a time each variable must be solved then countered. That’s his purpose: to balance the equation.”
Neo: “What’s your purpose?”
The Oracle: “To unbalance it.”
Neo: “Why? What do you want?”
The Oracle: “I want the same thing you want, Neo. And I am willing to go as far as you are to get it.”
Neo: “The end of the war. Is it going to end?”
The Oracle: “One way, or another.”
Neo: “Can Zion be saved?”
The Oracle: “I’m sorry, I don’t have the answer to that question, but if there’s an answer, there’s only one place you’re going to find it”.
Neo: “Where?”
The Oracle: “You know where. And if you can’t find the answer, then I’m afraid there may be no tomorrow for any of us.”
Neo: “What does that mean?”
The Oracle: “Everything that has a beginning has an end. I see the end coming. I see the darkness spreading. I see death. And you are all that stands in his way.”
Neo: “Smith.”
The Oracle: “Very soon he’s going to have the power to destroy this world, but I believe he won’t stop there; he can’t. He won’t stop until there’s nothing left at all.”
Neo: “What is he?”
The Oracle: “He is you. Your opposite, your negative, the result of the equation trying to balance itself out.”
Neo: “And if I can’t stop him?”
The Oracle: “One way or another, Neo, this war is going to end. Tonight, the future of both worlds will be in your hands… or in his.”
The Oracle/The Architect Dialogue 1/1 (Youtube clip)
The Oracle: “Well, now, ain’t this a surprise.”
The Architect: “You played a very dangerous game.”
The Oracle: “Change always is.”
The Architect: “Just how long do you think this peace is going to last?”
The Oracle: “As long as it can.”
The Oracle: “What about the others?”
The Architect: “What others?”
The Oracle: “The ones that want out”.
The Architect: “Obviously, they will be freed.”
The Oracle: “I have your word?”
The Architect: “What do you think I am? Human?
[The Architect walks away, and the Oracle remains sitting, enjoying a sunrise]
Photos via Google - © 1999 & 2003 WARNER BROS
Movies referenced are: “The Matrix (1999)”. “The Matrix - Reloaded (2003)”, “The Animatrix (2003)” & “The Matrix- Revolutions (2003)”. All Rights Reserved © 1999 & 2003 WARNER BROS.