THOMAS ANDERSON (Neo’s real name)
- Thomas – The name Thomas reminds us of the disciple of Jesus that history has nicknamed “Doubting Thomas.” Similarly, Thomas/Neo often struggles with belief – first as a lost man coming to the truth, then as a saved man doubting his position.
- Anderson – “Andros” is Latin for man, so "Neo Anderson" could translate to new son of man.
- Neo – The word “Neo” means new. Also, Neo is an anagram of “One.”
______________________________________________________________________
ANDERSON’S APARTMENT
- When we first meet Thomas Anderson in his apartment, the very first thing we see is his computer screen, which reads: “searching...” This possibly refers to Anderson’s discontent in life and his search for the truth.
- After the knock on the door, Anderson takes the money from the man (named Choi) and places it in a book where he hides his computer discs. This book is called "Simulation and Simulacra". The chapter in which they are hidden is called Nihilism, which often involves a sense of despair coupled with the belief that life is devoid of meaning – something that Anderson desperately believes at the moment.
- Anderson’s apartment number is 101 – a number featured heavily throughout the trilogy, most often referring to Neo.
- Choi calls Anderson his “own personal Jesus Christ” for providing him with the disk – alluding to the fact that Neo will one day save humanity. Choi then tells Anderson that “the only way to fly” is mescaline. However, Anderson/Neo literally does fly at the end of the film, but only as a result of walking in the truth, not hallucination or illusion. Finally, Choi suggests that Anderson “unplug” (an obvious foreshadowing and reference to Anderson/Neo literally being unplugged from the Matrix) and join his group to go out that night. This is the first choice Neo must make in his journey – to “follow the white rabbit” or not (an allusion to Alice following the white rabbit down the rabbit hole in Alice in Wonderland). Choice is one of the main themes, if not the main theme prevalent throughout the trilogy. And it just so happens that the names Choi and DuJour (the woman with Choi) are French for “choice of the day.”
______________________________________________________________________
METACORTEX
- Metacortex is the name of the computer company Thomas Anderson works for. If it’s divided into two words, “meta” and “cortex,” here are their separate definitions...
META – beyond, after, outside
CORTEX – outside part of the brain, or the "boundary" of the brain
So, we could take the name “Metacortex” to mean "beyond the boundaries of the mind,” which is precisely where Neo’s destiny leads him.
- When Anderson is being reprimanded by his boss for being late to work, his boss tells him, “You have a problem with authority, Mr. Anderson. You think that you are special, that somehow the rules do not apply to you.” Ironically, his boss is exactly right.
______________________________________________________________________
THE RED PILL
- Later, when Morpheus offers Anderson the choice to be told the truth or not, to take the red or blue pill respectively, the red pill is offered from Morpheus’ right hand – the red pill being the “right” way to go (also possibly referring to the red apple Eve partook of in Genesis which caused her to learn the “truth” of the world). In another interesting parallel of right and left, Jesus describes the final judgment at God's throne, where believers are put on the right side of God to be eternally blessed, and unbelievers are directed to the left side to be eternally punished (Matthew 25:31-46).
______________________________________________________________________
THE NEBUCHADNEZZAR
- Nebuchadnezzar was king of the ancient Babylonian empire. He was a powerful man who had vivid dreams (note that “Morpheus” was the mythical Greek god of dreams) that the prophet Daniel interpreted. There is strong scriptural evidence (Daniel chapter 4) that Nebuchadnezzar became a believer in God, while he was king of the empire that dominated the ancient world.
- A plaque we see in the Nebuchadnezzar reads "Mark III, 11." In the Bible, Mark 3:11 says, "Whenever the evil spirits saw Him [Jesus], they fell down before him and cried out, 'You are the Son of God!'" Because Neo can also be allegorized in some aspects as a Christ figure, perhaps the choice of this verse foreshadows the victory that Neo as "the One" will have over the evil agents and the Matrix.
______________________________________________________________________
THE ORACLE’S MUSIC
- When Neo is meeting with the Oracle in her apartment, the music playing in the background in her apartment is Duke Ellington's "I'm Beginning to See the Light."
______________________________________________________________________
CYPHER
- When Cypher makes his betrayal speech and kills Switch and Apoc, we notice that Cypher’s red over-shirt has a big hole in it - over his heart. Judas, who betrayed Jesus, was “heartless” – someone who was selfish and had no love for God or others.
- When Cypher meets with Agent Smith for dinner in the Matrix to make their deal, we learn that Cypher’s real name is Reagan. Reagan says that after he gives up Morpheus and re-enters the Matrix, he “wants to be someone important, maybe an actor,” and that he wants to "remember nothing." This is an obvious poke at Ronald Reagan being someone important (the President), a former actor, and that his Alzheimer’s disease causes him to “remember nothing.”
______________________________________________________________________
THE ENDING
- At the end of the film when Neo is running from the Agents from the subway to and throughout the apartment building, watching from the real world Trinity says, “Jesus – they’re killing him.” Another allusion to the fact that Neo is a savior.
- In room 303 (a reference to Trinity; also the same room she was in at the beginning of the film) of the apartment building, after Agent Smith shoots Neo, he is dead for roughly 72 seconds before being “resurrected” by Trinity’s love. One could interpret this as 72 seconds equaling 72 hours, which equals three days, which is the amount of time Christ was dead before being resurrected.
- The blocking moves Neo uses against Agent Smith upon his realization of being "the One" (after he stops the bullets) are the exact same techniques Daniel LaRusso uses against Mr. Miyagi (sand the floor, paint the fence, wax on, wax off, etc) upon his realization that he has in fact been karate training all along in The Karate Kid.
______________________________________________________________________
