Skip to main content

the matrix - Why did the mirror repair itself in front of Neo?


Just after Neo takes the red pill, Morpheus leads him into another room with the rest of the team. As Neo sits, waiting, he observes a broken mirror. Suddenly to his surprise the mirror heals itself. After which he touches it, and it then consumes his arm and enters his body. This causes him to wake up in the real world.


You can see this played out here:






Watching the scene again made me wonder if it was a part of the trace pill, or if Neo was subconsciously using his powers to repair this in the Matrix.


How would the trace pill be able to repair (or change) the Matrix, even from Neo's perspective? It seems to me if it could do that, you could make programs to change the Matrix in a lot of ways.



Answer



In a rare webchat, the Wachowskis gave viewers some additional info about the mirror scene. In short;




  • It's just a mirror





  • The fact that it fixes itself, flows and melts is merely a result of Neo hallucinating.





ThedrickFel: What exactly was the mirror made of? Was it the same stuff they injected into Morpheus? Why silver?


WachowskiBros: The mirror is actually a mirror. When Neo sees it it’s a hallucination, but it’s the direct result of the pill Morpheus has given Neo. Reflections in general are a significant theme in the film. The ideas of worlds within worlds..



Comments

Popular posts from this blog

story identification - Animation: floating island, flying pests

At least 20 years ago I watched a short animated film which stuck in my mind. The whole thing was wordless, possibly European, and I'm pretty sure I didn't imagine it... It featured a flying island which was inhabited by some creatures who (in my memory) reminded me of the Moomins. The island was frequently bothered by large winged animals who swooped around, although I don't think they did any actual damage. At the end one of the moomin creatures suddenly gets a weird feeling, feels forced to climb to the top of the island and then plunges down a shaft right through the centre - only to emerge at the bottom as one of the flyers. Answer Skywhales from 1983. The story begins with a man warning the tribe of approaching skywhales. The drummers then warn everybody of the hunt as everyone get prepared to set "sail". Except one man is found in his home sleeping as the noise wake him up. He then gets ready and is about to take his weapon as he hesitates then decides ...

harry potter - Did Dolores Umbridge Have Any Association with Voldemort (or Death Eaters) before His Return?

I noticed that Dolores Umbridge was born during the first Wizarding War, so it's very likely she wasn't a Death Eater then (but she is pretty evil -- who knows?). After that Voldemort was not around in a way that could affect many people, and most wouldn't know he was planning to rise again. During that time, and up through Voldemort's return (in Goblet of Fire ), did Umbridge have any connection with the Death Eaters or with Voldemort? Was she doing what she did on her own, or was it because of an association with Voldemort or his allies? Answer Dolores Umbridge was definitely not a good person. However, as Sirius points out, "the world isn't split into good people and Death Eaters". Remember that he also says that he doesn't believe Umbridge to be a Death Eater, but that she's evil enough (or something like that). I think there are two strong reasons to believe that: Umbridge was proud to do everything according to the law, except when she trie...

aliens - Interstellar Zoo story

I vaguely remember this story from my childhood: it was about an interstellar zoo that came to Earth with lots of bizarre and unusual species, and humans would file through and gape at all the crazy looking creatures from other planets. The twist came at the end when the perspective shifted to the other side of the bars and we discovered that the "creatures" were traveling through space on a kind of safari. They thought they were the visitors and we were the animals. Neither side knew that the other side thought they were the zoo creatures. Answer Got it. Zoo, by Edward D. Hoch. Published in 1958. Link to Publication History Link to PDF