DIRECTOR'S INTENT
Lily Wachowski states “We had the Matrix stuff which was about the desire for transformation … we had a character of Switch who was a character who would be a man in the real world and a woman in the Matrix. Both were where our headspaces were.” While the Wachowski sisters are transgender, the imagery of transformation is very prominent in the film. There were many uses of Judeo-Christian imagery used in the film, specifically the rebirth of Neo. Neo takes the red pill and awakes in his pod. Morpheus and his crew scoop him out of the water and bring him back to full functionality. Neo has kung fu uploaded into him and returns into the Matrix and defeats Agent Smith.
Along with Neo’s transformation, Morpheus desires to change humanity's position in the machine war. With the machines and sentinels subjugating humanity, the One can free everyone. Morpheus is willing to die for the cause. Neo truly believes in saving Morpheus in order to protect Zion. Zion itself represents a paradise where people act however they want.
Alongside transformation, the Wachowskis “wanted the film to be a journey of consciousness.” Neo begins the film naive regarding the matrix. He is then given a choice between the two pills from Morpheus. The blue pill allows Neo to continue his ordinary life and the red pill reveals the truth to Neo and us the audience. The next decision Neo makes is saving Morpheus. The Oracle gives him an ultimatum of leaving him to die to save everyone or jeopardize everything by putting his own life in danger. Neo’s decision of saving Morpheus pushes his character to selflessness to the cause. He is no longer the truth-seeking hacker but humanity’s savior.
Alexia Fernández August, et al. “The Matrix Franchise's 'Original Intention' Was a Transgender Allegory, Director Says.” PEOPLE.com, https://people.com/movies/the-matrix-franchise-original-intention-was-transgender-allegory-director-says/.
Christopher Probst, ASC. “The Matrix: Welcome to the Machine.” American Cinematographer, The American Society of Cinematographers, 11 Sept. 2021, https://ascmag.com/articles/flashback-the-matrix.
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https://matrix.fandom.com/wiki/Switch
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