Can You Get 100% On This Matrix Quiz Or Did You Take The Blue Pill?
- by Jessica
- – on
- in Movies and TV
What do you get when you think of the aesthetics of trench leather jackets, gel slicked black hair, and the tiniest glasses without frames?
Obviously the Matrix. The Wachowskis brought us this cyberpunk series about the technological fall of man where computing systems are personified and philosophy meets action-adventure. The directors took a creative nod from William Gibson's work Neuromancer, and made The Matrix world built out of binary code where only hackers can navigate and threw in a little Keanu Reeves-Carrie Anne Moss romance.
The series was an inspiration to sci-fi because it incorporated philosophical themes of free will, determinism, and causality with main characters Neo, Agent Smith, and The Merovingian. Not to mention the visual effects in The Matrix were off the charts! Probably why the first movie in the series swept four technical Academy Awards. I mean, they came up with "bullet-time" so that Neo could be seen navigating the binary system with a special prowess, how rad is that? This quiz will include questions about the (historical) Second Renaissance , The Matrix, The Matrix Reloaded, and The Matrix Revolutions.
What is the truth? Has our reality really been concocted by machines? Can you get 100% on this Matrix quiz or did you take the blue pill?
Who is the most prominent Agent of The Matrix system?
This Agent is in many ways the antithesis of The Matrix protagonist Neo. While it is prophesied that Neo is "The One" this Agent can turn into "the many" by cloning himself. In the first movie he is the physical instantiation of duty and inevitability. However, he does express to Morpheus that he detests humans because he finds them weak and unable to deal with reality. He is the smartest and most memorable of the Agents and he stays on Neo's trail throughout the series.
What did Morpheus live for?
Morpheus is a pretty legendary character. He captains the Neb and serves Zion as a defence force. He used to have a romantic relationship with Zion captain Niobe but then he found one purpose in life that he would drop all others to complete. Morpheus has a good relationship with the Oracle as he believes she will help him with his mission. He is stoic, resilient, and loyal to his cause-- one time he tried to attack Smith unarmed to protect someone.
What does follow the white rabbit end up referring to?
When Thomas Anderson is first suspecting things about his universe and reality a message flashes on his screen to follow the white rabbit. Later when waiting to sell something through his hacker job he catches a glimpse of a white rabbit somewhere and follows it to meet Trinity. Obviously Trinity has done her homework and set up the chain of events so Thomas will meet her at the club. This is the first scenario where Thomas Anderson decisively chooses reality over ignorance.
What does Thomas Anderson do for a living?
Before joining the Resistance, Thomas Anderson has a normal desk job and social security number like any upstanding citizen in his society. However, he is a hacker in his free time and in this capacity has come across clues of the Matrix. He begins a search for Morpheus, "the most dangerous man alive," because as Tom Anderson he is certain there is something off about the world he inhabits. He receives some mysterious clues from hacker clients and follows them to a club where he first meets Trinity.
What year does the Matrix simulate?
The Agents let go of Tom Anderson (Neo) when he refuses to tell them about Morpheus' whereabouts. Morpheus tells him about the Matrix and explains how it's like a prison for the mind. Then the iconic cultural moment comes, when Morpheus offers Anderson a red pill or a blue pill. Morpheus explains if he chooses the latter he'll just go back to sleep but if he chooses the red one he'll stay in "Wonderland" and discover the depths of the Matrix.
Where is the human's last refuge in the real world?
This refuge is the launching point of the human resistance against the Machines. It is near the earth's core, close to warmth and hidden from the Machines. This city hosts about 250,000 humans. It contains a the Dock, a defensive site where ships go for repair and launching, Living Levels where the population resides, and the Mechanical level, where waste is reclaimed and water purified. The community also has a government, council and library. The library contains the history of humanity from before the first Machine War.
How does Neo come back to life?
In the very beginning Thomas Anderson is called "saviour" by a grateful client, and is later referred to as "The One" especially in Zion. So it's not hard to see there will be a Jesus resurrection narrative. Late in the first movie Trinity and Neo enter the Matrix to save Morpheus and Neo is ambushed before he can leave. Though he has gotten more used to the simulated reality, Neo cannot hold up against Agent Smith and dies. Something happens to his body in the Real World that jolts him back to life.
Who betrayed the ship in the first Matrix?
In the first movie Matrix one of the crew members of the Nebuchadnezzar goes rogue. This kind of creepy resistance fighter allied with the Agents. Over a luxurious dinner of steak and wine he tells Smith he would rather know nothing of the Matrix, but live in it unawares. He also requests to be reborn as someone important because he knows Smith will be able to manipulate the codes and make this happen. Smith only wants to get at the Zion mainframe codes.
At the end of The Matrix what machines are closing in on their ship?
These "squiddy" creatures in are an extension of the Matrix in Real Life that prevents resistance forces from unplugging too many humans. Though their initial purpose was to maintain the physical framework of the Matrix after the Machine War they have been used as search-and-destroy units. They have clawed tentacles and fire laser beams that can slice through a ship's hull. At the end of the Matrix Reloaded Neo mysteriously is able to command and reprogram these machines with only his mind.
Who is the creator of the Matrix?
Ok, so this creator is technically a program but doesn't he remind you of a certain President Snow from a new trilogy? Anyways, this guy is an anthropomorphized representation of the Machine mainframe. He is only human so that he could better understand how to build the Matrix. His first try at a Matrix resulted in a perfect world, while his second try was too corrupt. The Matrix that exists today was this person's third creative attempt. This creator acknowledged the only flaw in the current system is the problem of human free choice.
What is the Oracle's favorite thing to bake?
The Oracle is a program with the greatest understanding of human psychology. She was instrumental in the creation of the third iteration of the Matrix (the current one). She aids the resistance and Morpheus with her skill of clairvoyance. However, she often speaks in cryptic messages that can only be understood in hindsight. This grandmotherly woman lives in Exile. She is an extremely powerful program and the deliverer of the Prophecy to Zion. In her spare time you can assume she'll be baking...
What is the name of their ship in The Matrix?
After Neo wakes up in a Pod in the Real World Morpheus' ship collects him from the elaborate electrical structure used to power machines. Neo is then introduced to the hovercraft's crew and he, Trinity, and Morpheus use it as their home base when going in and out of the Matrix. However at the end of the first movie the Sentinels attack when Morpheus, Trinity, and Tank are waiting for Neo to come back to the real world. The ship is still used in Matrix Reloaded.
What does the Second Renaissance refer to?
This term refers to a historical period between 2090 and 2139. It is before everything that is happening in the Real World. However the society and civilization in The Matrix dates to before this period. The name "Second Renaissance" with the Matrix comes out of the short film series the Animatrix. These sci-fi animated films blossomed after Matrix directors were doing a promotional tour in Japan. The directors visited the artists and anime directors who inspired the Matrix and the international artists collaborated.
Who directed the Matrix?
Ok, so technically this isn't part of the Matrix plot but it's important to give credit to directors. Without their vision the Matrix would never be. It is especially important to talk about the directors of this film because they had so much creative control. They wrote the entire story and hired an underground comic book artist to storyboard the entire film. The directors also included numerous philosophical works and required key actors to read things like Simulacra and Simulation, Out of Control, and Introducing Evolutionary Psychology before casting.
Who is commanding the counterassault in The Matrix Reloaded?
This Commander is Zion-born and the top military officer in the resistance. He is practical, not especially verbose, and wary of the Prophecy. His main priority is to keep Zion's location a secret and he often disagrees with the strategic style of the Zion defence council and Morpheus. He is now romantically involved with Niobe though can be quite patronizing and controlling towards her. When the erection of a new city, New Zion was created for protection, this commander stayed behind in Old Zion with a small defence force.
Why do the machines need humans?
Intelligent machines have imprisoned humans and kept them in a simulated reality called The Matrix. This is what Neo wakes up from when he finds himself in a liquid pod amongst millions of other pacified humans. This is what Morpheus means when he tells Neo (as Thomas Anderson) that he is in fact a slave and his mind functions as a prison. During the first Machine War humans darkened the sky to cut off any solar power source. Since then the machines have taken control of the Earth.
What is the Merovingian's alternate name?
The Merovingian is described by The Oracle as an ancient program that provides data trafficking of exiled programs. He believes causality is the true nature of existence and gives off the air of a nonchalant bourgeois. In short, he is insufferable and loves himself more than any cause he could contribute to. His infidelity and attitude cause his wife Persephone to detest him and she leads Trinity, Neo, and Morpheus to The Keymaker. However, he remains an important character in the Matrix even after this betrayal.
What do the Agents call Neo when they learn he's The One?
Since Agents are regulators of the Matrix they are programmed to get rid of any dissenter who might spread the truth of the Matrix. They are especially sensitive to Neo because he is supposed to bring the downfall of all machine-led programs. Agents are also especially sensitive to exiles like the Twins. As told by the Architect, all six of "the One" have been called this name by the Agents. The name folds into the plot well because the Agents, though they may actually be different, all look like copies of each other.
Where do Neo, Morpheus, and Trinity meet with the Merovingian?
When Neo, Morpheus, and Trinity first meet with the Frenchman and Persephone they are at an opulent restaurant. The Resistance fighters came to have a diplomatic talk about the Keymaker and backdoors. Before the trio arrive the Frenchman secretly orders a cake for a woman in their sight. However the cake contains codes that cause this woman to orgasm and she has to leave the table. This all plays in directly with the Frenchman's causality lecture. He refuses the trio a deal because he thinks their mission is naive.
What is The Twin's special power?
After the Frenchman excuses himself, Persephone leads the resistance trio to the Keymaker to spite her husband. On the way she kills one of the Frenchman's henchmen, Abe. After this the Frenchman sends the Twins to retrieve the Keymaker. The Twins are exiles who came from the machine's second iteration of a Matrix. They are skillful fighters and do not feel pain. They are especially well known by the Agents so when the Frenchman directs them to tail the Keymaker Agents appear from everywhere.
Where is Neo going when he meets The Architect?
After the freeway chase the Keymaker opens the door right before he is killed. The Architect tells Neo there were multiple versions of the Matrix and with them many versions of "the One". He reveals there is no actual prophecy and "the One" is a tool of control. Instead the Architect states that the sole purpose of "the One" is to rebuild Zion after battle with sixteen females and seven males. He then gives Neo a choice to save Trinity or recreate Zion.
Who are the Exiles?
Exiles are people who have defected from the Source. The often have metaphysical qualities because they are programmed and predisposed to be good at certain things. They often hide in a human "shell" and bluepills (ignorant humans) usually can't tell the difference. Most exiles make their way to the Frenchman who can ferry people back and forth from the Machine World to the Matrix by operation of the Trainman, another exile. Exiles never age and would not die unless deleted.
Who is The Keymaker killed by?
The Keymaker was created specifically to open up the door to the Source for the One. Or at least that's this program's supposed purpose. The Keymaker opens up back doors to allow programs or people access to certain areas. He has appeared earlier to save resistance fighters Ghost and Niobe. The Keymaker was kept prisoner in the Frenchman's chateau until Trinity, Neo, and Morpheus sprung him with help from Persephone. Even in death he was calm enough to provide instruction.
Which is NOT the name of a resistance ship?
Hovercrafts serve as the home base of resistance fighters who access the Matrix from space in their hulls. They also are the main defence force of Zion. Certain ships are used for specific purposes to match their size and design. For example, Niobe's ship is more of a carrier (of messages and individuals) because it is the smallest and fastest in the Zion fleet. Roland's ship is the largest in the fleet and serves as a home base for abandoned fighters.
How many versions of The One has The Architect seen?
Since there were several iterations of the Matrix there were also several instances of "the One". No doubt he instantiated himself in different ways each time but none of them are in historical memory nor the Zion library archives. In every instance the Architect tells Neo that the function of "the One" remains the same, to save humanity. For each "One" that found the Architect the program provided two choices. The choice is metaphorically decided each time as a decision between which door to take.
Who is the final survivor from the Caduceus in the Matrix Reloaded?
After Commander Lock has ordered all ships to return to Zion for defence both the Caduceus and Nebuchadnezzar stay behind in defiance of this order. Neo needs to see the Oracle who eventually leads him to the Architect. Neo helps his ship escape the sentinels again at the end of the film by some newfound power where he can shut them down telepathically. The Hammer picks them up and also does a sweep and rescues one surviving resistance member on the Cadeceus.
Where is Neo at the beginning of The Matrix Revolutions?
The Matrix Reloaded closes with Neo unconscious on the Hammer. The Matrix Revolutions opens with Neo missing, in a way. That is to say, Morpheus and the others aren't sure where he is or how to get him back. Morpheus is still stunned by the Architect's truth about the prophecy but he enters the Matrix to look for Neo nonetheless. In the limbo Neo meets a "family of programs" who inform him this location is under control of The Frenchman. The Oracle (in a new shell) informs Morpheus and Trinity of Neo's whereabouts.
Where do the trio and the Merovingian negotiate for Neo's freedom?
When Trinity and Morpheus learn where Neo is they go straight to the Frenchman to demand Neo's freedom. However, the Merovingian demands the Oracle's eyes in return. Trinity is not in the mood for running errands and chooses instead to leverage the one thing the Merovingian cherishes most in the world, his life. She gets the Merovingian to release Neo at gunpoint. Before returning to the Real World Neo visits the new Oracle to better understand his powers and position as "the One."
In the Matrix Revolutions who has plans to destroy the three worlds?
After exiting limbo, the Oracle talks to Neo about his opposite and warns him that this antagonist is also growing in power. He has gained the capacity to assimilate other people's powers after he clones them. No program, human, or redpill is safe with him around. She warns Neo that this force has gone rogue and wants to destroy the Matrix, the Source, and Machine City. This depiction reminds me of that Batman line, "some men just want to watch the world burn."
Where are Trinity and Neo heading off to in the Logos?
This land is sometimes referred to as 01 or ZeroOne as well as its second name provided below. It was around before the machines took over and had actually instantiated because man refused to live in cooperation with machines. Very quickly this city became a rising superpower and leading economy. It pled for co-existance and equality but out of fear man turned away from these compromises and instead tried to destroy this prosperous haven with bombs and other violent methods.
Who is Mifune's protege?
Captain Mifune initially frowned on this young person's involvement because he thought the boy was too inexperienced to get involved. However, the boy argued that machines don't discriminate based on age and won Captain Mifune over. In the Battle of Zion Mifune was resigned that he would die defending the Dock. He dies heroically fending of a massive group of Sentinels while members of his fleet get away into a more defended sector of Zion. Right before he turns to his protege and encourages him on.
What would Smith repeat to Neo in their earlier face-offs?
In the first Matrix movie Agent Smith would always spout cheesy bureaucratic lines about purpose, reason, and the intangibility of freedom. In the second movie Smith has defected from the system and has become somewhat more human-- he has become more unpredictable and adopted a dry sense of humour. Even with these human characteristics he holds the same philosophy and still repeats the line when fighting against Neo. However this line is no longer repeated in the third film when Smith is at his strongest.
What will become of the humans who want to be unplugged from the Matrix?
After the final battle with Smith and Neo at the end of The Matrix Revolutions (*spoiler alert*) the Architect and the Oracle meet to discuss. She returns to normal with all the other programs, redpills, and humans who had been taken over by Smith. She and the Architect hang in more of a balance than Smith and Neo ever did as the two are willing to compromise. The Architect notes she played a dangerous game by trying to change how the Matrix worked.
Which duo sacrifice themselves at the end of the Matrix Revolutions?
Though Neo saved Trinity from her premonition of death in the Matrix Reloaded he cannot save her every time. After this Neo leaves the bounds of Machine City to make a deal with Deus Ex Machina. With knowledge from the Oracle's prophecy Neo can promises he will defeat Smith if the machines stop attacking Zion. A truce is thus created between the humans and the machines against a greater evil that threatens to take over the entire Matrix and then the Source.
Which Academy Award did the first Matrix NOT win?
The Matrix series was praised for its cinematography and all of the cool after effects it pioneered in the film industry. When the first of the series came out before 2000 it truly felt futuristic with the pairing of "bullet-time" and CGI effects. All the editing details as well as the leather trench coats made the action movie a truly new genre. The story's plot and style incorporated cultural references like Alice in Wonderland, Plato, Lewis Carroll, and spaghetti Westerns.