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The Matrix Reloaded
Promotional film poster
Directed by	The Wachowski Brothers
Produced by	Joel Silver
Written by	The Wachowski Brothers
Starring	Keanu Reeves Laurence Fishburne Carrie-Anne Moss Hugo Weaving Daniel Bernhardt Monica Bellucci Jada Pinkett Smith
Distributed by	Warner Bros., Village Roadshow Pictures
Release date(s)	May 15, 2003
Running time	138 min.
Language	English
Budget	$150,000,000 (estimated)
Gross revenue	$738,599,701
Preceded by	The Matrix
Followed by	The Matrix Revolutions
IMDb profile

The Matrix Reloaded is the second installment of The Matrix series, written and directed by the Wachowski Brothers. It premiered on May 7, 2003, in Westwood, Los Angeles, California, and went on general release by Warner Bros. in North American theaters on May 15, 2003, and around the world during the latter half of that month. The video game Enter the Matrix, which was released May 15, and a collection of nine animated shorts, the Animatrix, which was released on June 3, supported and expanded the storyline of the movie. The Matrix Revolutions, which completes the story, was released six months after Reloaded in November 2003.

Contents 1 Plot 2 Production 2.1 Sound Design 2.2 Soundtrack 3 Cast 4 Reception 5 See also 6 References 7 External links

The plot summary in this article or section is too long compared to the rest of the article. Please edit the article to focus on discussing the work rather than merely reiterating the plot.

Six months after the events of the first movie, Captain Niobe (Jada Pinkett Smith) of the Logos calls an emergency meeting of all Zion's Hovercraft Ship Fleet. She has successfully recovered the information left by Captain Thaddeus (in the Animatrix short film "Final Flight of the Osiris," recovered in the video game Enter The Matrix): 250,000 Sentinels are tunneling towards the underground city of Zion and will reach it in 72 hours. Commander Locke, the ranking military officer of Zion, orders all ships and their crews, including Neo, Trinity, and Morpheus, to return to Zion to prepare for the onslaught of the machines. The Caduceus receives a message from the Oracle, and the Nebuchadnezzar, in defiance of Locke's order, ventures out to allow Neo to contact her. Meanwhile, one of the Caduceus' crew members, Bane, encounters Agent Smith, who takes over Bane's body. Bane/Smith then leaves the Matrix via the hard line.

Before the meeting, Neo and Trinity make love, but Neo is having trouble sleeping and has recurring dreams about Trinity falling out of a building while being shot by an Agent. After the meeting, he enters the Matrix to meet with the Oracle. Upon arriving, he encounters and spars with Seraph, the Oracle's bodyguard. Seraph is convinced that Neo is who he claims to be, and opens a back door, leading Neo to an isolated courtyard, where he meets with the Oracle. They have a conversation where the Oracle confirms that she is not human, and indeed a program of the Machine World. She also explains that self-aware programs exist in the Matrix besides the Agents that do not function properly, called Exiles. Finally, she says that to reach the Source, effectively the center of the Matrix, Neo needs the assistance of the Keymaker, another rogue program. He can access "back doors" such as the one Seraph used to take Neo to the Oracle. He is held captive by the Merovingian, a powerful and dangerous Exile.

The Oracle wishes Neo good luck and exits the courtyard just before Agent Smith arrives. Smith demonstrates his ability to infect other residents of the Matrix with his program, turning them into copies of himself. He attempts to compromise Neo, and the encounter soon becomes a fight between Neo and hundreds of Smith clones. After an extended, one-sided fight, Neo abandons the battle by flying away, something Smith apparently can't do.

Neo, Trinity, and Morpheus visit the Merovingian, who exists in the Matrix mainly for his own enjoyment; he is accompanied by his wife Persephone and a veritable army of skilled bodyguards. When the protagonist trio requests the Keymaker, the Merovingian is not compliant.

Persephone turns on her husband and takes the three to the Keymaker. Morpheus and Trinity flee the scene with him, while Neo remains behind to combat the Merovingian's henchmen, who use medieval weaponry to little effect.

Morpheus and Trinity take their cargo to the freeway, beginning a chaotic conflict between the heroes, the Merovingian's most skilled bodyguards, and agents loyal to the Matrix (therefore, not including Smith). Collateral damage is massive, but Trinity escapes while Morpheus and the Keymaker are saved in the nick of time by Neo.

Shortly afterwards, the Keymaker explains how to reach the Source. Three ships work together to get Neo to his destiny. The team responsible for taking down the power grid fails when their real-world selves are killed by Sentinels. With the power up, Neo will be unable to reach the source without triggering a fatal alarm system. Therefore, Trinity, against Neo's wishes, perilously enters the Matrix to take down the power.

The Keymaker leads Morpheus and Neo to the necessary door, where they are confronted by the Smith army. The keymaker opens the door safely thanks to Trinity, but dies holding the door for Neo and Morpheus. Neo walks through the final door while Morpheus leaves the Matrix.

Confronting the Architect, who describes himself as the creator of the Matrix, Neo asks the main question: "Why am I here?". The Architect says Neo is "the eventuality of an anomaly" he has been trying to eradicate from the Matrix program. Neo responds by saying the Architect has failed to answer his question, to which the Architect agrees with a slight smile in recognition that Neo was "quicker than the others". Neo is caught off-guard by what he is hearing, but the Architect continues, saying that "the Matrix is older than you know".

The Architect tells Neo there have been many versions of the Matrix, and many predecessors to Neo himself. The wall of monitors surrounding the Architect's room shows possible reactions Neo has to the Architect's revelations. In the course of the dialog Neo realizes "Choice. The problem is choice." The Architect proceeds to detail the history of the Matrix and just how this problem of choice affected its design.

After some modifications, about 99.99% of the pod-born humans accepted the program, bringing stability to the Matrix. Neo concludes that the point-zero-one percent who refused the program (and their offspring) constitute the population of Zion. It now becomes clear that the prophecy about "the end of the war" was designed merely as a measure to control both the Zionite rebels and The One.

The Architect continues to reveal that Neo's final task will be to "select from the Matrix 23 individuals – sixteen females, seven males – to rebuild Zion." The Architect then warns Neo "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 tries to call the Architect's bluff saying that humans are necessary for machines to survive, but the Architect merely rebuts the claim, saying that machines are prepared to accept "certain levels of survival" and re-states Neo's dilemma, whether he is or is not ready to accept the responsibility for the death of every human being in this world. As a side-note, he adds that Trinity entered the Matrix to save Neo's life at the expense of her own, and shows Trinity being attacked by an Agent just as Neo had seen in his dream. Despite all logical reasoning, Neo chooses to try to save Trinity over the rest of humanity, and for the first time every screen shows the same decision: Neo walking to the door leading back to the Matrix. After warning the Architect that they had better not meet again (the Architect assures him that they will not), Neo reciprocates Trinity's saving of his life in the first film and uses his powers to remove the bullet and restart her heart.

Morpheus is dismayed when he hears that the Prophecy has been unfulfilled. Neo tells Morpheus that the Prophecy was just a lie and "another system of control." Morpheus refuses to believe it and, echoing the words of his mentor in the first film, Neo says "I know it isn't easy to hear, but I swear to you it's the truth."

The Nebuchadnezzar comes under attack by Sentinels outside the range of their EMP and the crew must abandon ship. As the ship goes down, Morpheus references the story of Nebuchadnezzar from the Bible: "I have dreamed a dream, but now that dream is gone from me" (Daniel 2:3&5). Neo then drops the Sentinels to the ground via a bio EMP (showing for the first time his super-powers in real life, outside the program) and immediately loses consciousness. Morpheus and Trinity proceed to pick up the unconscious Neo and return to Zion. The Hammer then rescues them and brings them aboard. The crew of the Hammer talk to Morpheus and Link, explaining they are the last remnants of a counter-attack organized by Lock in an effort to try driving back the machines in order to buy more time. However, an EMP was detonated, crippling most of the ships in the attack, and the Sentinels slaughtered them in their vulnerable state. Following the battle, the Hammer made a sweep of the battlefield and found a single survivor: Bane. This "chapter" ends with the revelation of Neo laying unconscious on the Hammer next to the now "human" Agent Smith, who has taken control of Bane in order to Kill Neo. The story is concluded in the last film of the trilogy, The Matrix Revolutions.

The Matrix Reloaded was largely filmed at Fox Studios Australia in Sydney, concurrently with filming of the sequel Revolutions. The freeway chase scene was filmed at the decommissioned Naval Air Station Alameda in Alameda, California. Producers constructed a 1.5-mile freeway on the old runways just for the movie. Portions of the chase were also filmed in Oakland, California, and the tunnel shown briefly is the Webster Tube connecting Oakland and Alameda. Some post-production editing was done in old aircraft hangars on the base as well. Although two Ford Taurus, one Dodge Ram and one Dodge Stratus are briefly seen, every other vehicle in the chase scene is a General Motors brand. The film is noted for its use of a Cadillac CTS, a Cadillac Escalade EXT, and several Chevrolet Impala and Chevrolet Caprice police cars. Additional vehicles include the Oldsmobile Intrigue, Oldsmobile Aurora, a Chevrolet Tahoe and also an Audi A8.

The city of Akron was willing to give full access to Route 59, the stretch of freeway known as the "Innerbelt", for filming of the freeway chase when it was under consideration. However, producers decided against this as "the time to reset all the cars in their start position would take too long".^[1] MythBusters would later reuse the Alameda location in order to explore the effects of a head-on collision between two semi trucks.

97% of the materials from the sets of the movie were recycled. For example, tons of wood were sent to Mexico to build low-income housing.^[2]

Sound editing on the Matrix Trilogy was completed by Danetracks in West Hollywood, CA.

See also: The Matrix Reloaded: The Album

Don Davis, composer on The Matrix, returned to score Reloaded. For many of the pivotal action sequences, such as the "Burly Brawl", he collaborated with Juno Reactor. Some of the collaborative cues by Davis and Juno Reactor are extensions of material by Juno Reactor; for example, a version of "Komit" featuring Davis' strings is used during a flying sequence, and "Burly Brawl" is essentially a combination of Davis' unused "Multiple Replication" and Juno Reactor's "Masters of the Universe". One of the collaborations, "Mona Lisa Overdrive", is titled in reference to the cyberpunk novel of the same name by William Gibson, a major influence on the directors. Leitmotifs established in The Matrix return, and some used in Revolutions are established.

As with its predecessor, many tracks by external musicians are featured in the movie, its closing credits, and the soundtrack album, some of which were written for the movie. Many of the musicians featured (for example Rob Zombie, Rage Against the Machine and Marilyn Manson) had also appeared on the soundtrack for The Matrix. Rob Dougan contributed again, licensing the instrumental version of his eponymous "Furious Angels", as well as being commissioned to provide an original track, ultimately scoring the battle in the Merovingian's chateau. "Another Kind of Blues" by electronic artist Fluke was used during the rave scene.

Also, the key of the theme heard at the beginning of every Matrix film ascends by one semitone with each movie. In The Matrix, the music starts in the key of E, The Matrix Reloaded in F and The Matrix Revolutions in the key of F-sharp.

Linkin Park contributed their instrumental song "Session" to the film as well, though it did not appear during the actual runtime.

• Keanu Reeves as Neo
• Laurence Fishburne as Morpheus
• Carrie-Anne Moss as Trinity
• Hugo Weaving as Agent Smith
• Gloria Foster as The Oracle
• Helmut Bakaitis as The Architect
• Lambert Wilson as The Merovingian
• Monica Bellucci as Persephone
• Adrian Rayment as Twin #2
• Neil Rayment as Twin #1
• Daniel Bernhardt as Agent Johnson
• Sing Ngai as Seraph (as Collin Chou)
• Nona Gaye as Zee
• Anthony Zerbe as Councillor Hamann
• Roy Jones Jr. as Captain Ballard
• David A. Kilde as Agent Jackson
• Randall Duk Kim as The Keymaker
• Harry J. Lennix as Commander Lock
• Matt McColm as Agent Thompson
• Harold Perrineau Jr. as Link
• Jada Pinkett Smith as Niobe
• Cornel West as Councillor West
• Bernard White as Rama-Kandra
• Anthony Wong as Ghost

Cornel West, a professor at Princeton, makes a special appearance in the Zion "council" scene. Another notable cameo is boxing great Roy Jones Jr., who appears in the opening scene with a number of other ship's captains, right before Smith makes his appearance. Zee was originally to be played by Aaliyah, who died in a plane crash in the summer of 2001.

Reloaded earned an estimated $42.5 million on its Thursday opening day in the United States, a new record surpassing the one set in May 2002 by Spider-Man, which took in $39.4 million on its first day. The movie earned $91.8 million over its first Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, establishing it as the second-best opening weekend ever after Spider-Man's 2002 (inflation unadjusted) record of $114.8 million in ticket sales during its three-day opening weekend. Reloaded garnered the biggest (inflation unadjusted) debut ever for an R-rated film (The Passion of the Christ is a close second at $83.8 million, and 300 came in third with $70.9 million). Although the film exceeded box office records during its first week, it fell the number two spot on the box-office totals the following week when it was beat by the Jim Carrey movie Bruce Almighty. The film earned $281 million in the US and $738 million worldwide.[1] It is currently the 27th highest grossing film, and is one of the highest grossing rated-R features of all time.

The Matrix Reloaded had a positive critical reception in most of the media, with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 74%.

Criticisms and acclaim, on record, are at times similar to those leveled at the movie's predecessor.^[3]

Positive comments included commendation for the quality and intensity of its action sequences^[4][5] and intelligence.^[6] Some critics have exceptional praise for it, saying that "its character development and writing...is so crisp it crackles on the screen" and have said that "Matrix Reloaded re-establishes the genre and even raises the bar a notch or two" above the first movie, The Matrix.^[7]

Negative comments included the sentiment that the plot was alienating,^[8][9] with some critics taking the view that the focus on the action came at the cost of the movie's human element.^[10][11] Some also said that the dialogue focus on exposition scenes^[12] worked against the film. Although it was well-known that the plot of Reloaded would be resolved in Revolutions, the many unresolved subplots and the cliffhanger ending were criticised by some.^[13]

The film was banned in Egypt because of the violent content and because it put into question issues about human creation "linked to the three monotheistic religions that we respect and which we believe in".^[14] Egyptian media claimed it promoted Zionism since it talks about Zion and the dark forces that wish to destroy it. However, it was later allowed to be shown in theatres and was later released on DVD and VHS.^{[citation needed]}

The Matrix Reloaded also made $145 million USD in DVD sales in October 2003.

• Simulated reality

• The Matrix Revolutions

• The Matrix

• The Matrix Reloaded Official Website
• The Matrix Reloaded at the Internet Movie Database
• The Matrix Reloaded at Rotten Tomatoes
• The Many Meanings of The Matrix, Larry Wachowski in a dialogue with Ken Wilber.
• The Matrix Reloaded Explained - a comparative-literature-style exegesis of selected parts of Matrix Reloaded.
• Newsweek: The Matrix Makers - A look behind the scenes at the Matrix sequels.
• The Matrix Reloaded October 27, 2001 draft script by Andy & Larry Wachowski
• Joanne Morra and Marquard Smith The Matrix: Morpheus in Exile

Preceded by "X2: X-Men United"

List of Box Office #1 Movies May 18 2003

Succeeded by "Bruce Almighty"

v • d • e The Matrix series
The Matrix • The Matrix Reloaded • The Matrix Revolutions
The Animatrix:	Final Flight of the Osiris • The Second Renaissance • Kid's Story • Program • World Record • Beyond • A Detective Story • Matriculated
Soundtracks:	The Matrix: Music from the Motion Picture • The Matrix: Original Motion Picture Score • The Matrix Reloaded: The Album • The Animatrix: The Album • The Matrix Revolutions: Music from the Motion Picture • Enter the Matrix: Original Soundtrack from the Videogame • The Matrix: Path of Neo - Music from the Video Game
Video games:	Enter the Matrix • The Matrix Online • The Matrix: Path of Neo
Characters:	Neo • Trinity • Morpheus • Agent Smith • Agents • Oracle • Architect • Niobe • Merovingian • Persephone • Sati • Seraph • Twins • Deus Ex Machina • Minor human characters • Programs and machines
Locations:	The Matrix universe • Mega City • Club Hel • Mobil Ave. • Zero One (Machine City) • Zion • New Zion • Ships from The Matrix series
Cast and crew:	Wachowski Brothers • Keanu Reeves • Laurence Fishburne • Carrie-Anne Moss • Hugo Weaving • Jada Pinkett Smith • Owen Paterson • John Gaeta • Geof Darrow • Steve Skroce
Other topics:	The Matrix Comics • Matrix digital rain • The Matrix character names • The Matrix Revisited • The Zion Archive • The Ultimate Matrix Collection • Matrix cell phone • Bluepill • Redpill
Related topics:	Bullet time • Cyberpunk • Digitalism • The Hero's Journey  • Martial arts film • Simulated reality • Virtual reality • The Official Matrix Exhibit • Cadillac CTS