Agentsare a group of characters in thefictional universeofThe Matrixfranchise.They are guardians within the computer-generated world of theMatrix,[1]protecting it from anyone or anything (most oftenRedpills) that could reveal it as a false reality or threaten it in any other way.[2][3]Agents also hunt down and terminate any rogue programs, such asThe Keymaker,which no longer serve a purpose to the overall Machine objective.[4]They aresentientcomputer programs disguised as human government agents, physically appearing as human but with a tendency to speak and act in highly precise and mechanical ways.[2]
| Agent | |
|---|---|
| The Matrixcharacter | |
 From left to right: Agents Brown,Smith,and Jones | |
| First appearance | The Matrix(1999) |
| Last appearance | The Matrix Resurrections(2021) |
| Created by | The Wachowskis |
| In-universe information | |
| Species | Computer program |
| Gender | Male |
| Occupation | Operative, enforcer |
A notable individual Agent isAgent Smith,played byHugo Weaving.He is introduced alongside his colleagues Agents Jones (Robert Taylor) and Brown (Paul Goddard) in the firstThe Matrixfilm in 1999. Other Agent characters have appeared in various media adaptations of theMatrixfranchise.
Physical aspects
editAgents appear in the guise of human governmentagents,[2][1]wearing black-greenbusiness suitslined with a gold fabric, whitedress shirts,blackdress shoes,dark green neckties with a silverbar clip,squaresunglasses,and a communicationearpiece.These features are copied from the attire for plainclothes agents of theUnited States Secret Service,as well as those of theMen in Blackconspiracy or the stereotypicalG-Man/FBIofficial.[1]All known individual Agents withinThe Matrixuniverse appear asCaucasianmales.[5]InThe Matrix Reloaded,six months after the facts ofThe Matrix,the Source deployed the upgraded Agents Jackson, Johnson, and Thompson (portrayed byDaniel Bernhardt,David A. Kilde andMatt McColm), designed specifically by the Machines to defeatThe One.Unlike the original Agents, they had a change of appearance: their suit jackets were lighter and had more of a grayish-green tone, they were bulkier, wider and taller in appearance. The Upgraded Agents also spoke with a slight, almost unnoticeable reverb effect to their voices, which made them sound intimidating even while discussing mundane matters; unlike the regular Agents who sounded perfectly normal.[6][7][8]
Agents are, in fact, highly advancedartificial intelligenceentities,[9] programmed with a number ofsuperhumanabilities.[1]As Agents do not exist in their own bodies as other programs do, being "killed" is a temporary inconvenience. Rather, theytake overthe virtualized body of aBluepill—a human directly connected to the Matrix—which transforms into the Agent's form until the Agent leaves the body.[10]
Analysis
editWilliam Irwin said that the agents "are impersonal, generic and interchangeable" in contrast to the main characters who "are complex, different, and complementary".[11]
Lisa Nakamura said of Morpheus's initiative, "A black man leads the resistance or slave revolt against the machines, who are visible to us as Anglo-Saxon 'agents' wearing suits. They all look the same, as one would expect machines to do, but most importantly they all look white and middle class in a way that no one in the resistance does." Morpheus tells Agent Smith in one scene, "You all look the same to me." Nakamura said, "Primarily, the presence of people of color in the film lets us know we are in the realm of thereal;machine-induced fantasies and wish fulfillments, which is what the matrix is, are knowable to us by their distinctive and consistent whiteness. "Nakamura says the agents visually represent the machines' hegemonic regime in having associations with corporations and cops. The agents wear business suits, and they are" clearly allied with the hegemonic machine ". The scene in which multiple white agents beat the black Morpheus is reminiscent ofRodney Kingbeing beaten by theLos Angeles Police Department.[12]
Stephen Faller said of the Agents that "fear seems to be the entry point", that "only when someone is afraid or startled can he or she become an unwilling Agent".[13]
Glenn Yeffetch described the agents as "software modules within the Matrix" that "are intelligent but mindless automata", with the film having no mention ofquantum computingfor accessing consciousness. He said that Agent Smith saying, "It's the smell, if there's such a thing," reveals the automation in which an agent doubts that a "noncomputable quality" is real and cannot differentiate between senses, where humans can find them "irreducibly different".[14]
See also
editSources
edit- ^abcdWilliams, G. Christopher. "Mastering the Real: Trinity as the 'Real' Hero ofThe Matrix."Film Criticism 27.3 (2003): 2-17
- ^abc"The Matrix".Roger Ebert.Retrieved 3 December 2014.
- ^Wright, Richard (March 2018)."The Matrix Rules".Film-Philosophy.4(1).doi:10.3366/film.2000.0003.ISSN1466-4615.Retrieved2020-10-27.
- ^"The Matrix".Common Sense Media.Retrieved 3 December 2014.
- ^Allen, R. L. (2002). Wake up, Neo: White identity, hegemony, and consciousness in the matrix. In J. J. Slater, S. M. Fain, & C. A. Rossatto (Eds.), The Freirean legacy (pp. 104-125). New York: Peter Lang
- ^"The Matrix: Upgraded Agents, Explained".21 June 2020.
- ^"'The Matrix Resurrections': Agent Johnson from 'Matrix Reloaded' Reported to Replace Agent Smith in 'Matrix 4'".26 September 2021.
- ^"Where Agent Smith Went at the End of Matrix 4 & What His Final Line Means".Screen Rant.23 December 2021.
- ^"The Matrix Trilogy".SparkNotes.Retrieved 3 December 2014.
- ^Flannery-Dailey, Frances; Wagner, Rachel L. (October 2001). "Wake up! Gnosticism and Buddhism in The Matrix".Journal of Religion & Film.5(2).
- ^Hibbs, Thomas S. (2002). Irwin, William (ed.).The Matrix and Philosophy: Welcome to the Desert of the Real.Open Court Publishing. p.164.ISBN978-0-8126-9501-4.
- ^Nakamura, Lisa (2013).Cybertypes: Race, Ethnicity, and Identity on the Internet.Routledge. pp.75–76.ISBN978-1-135-22205-5.
- ^Faller, Stephen (2004).Beyond the Matrix: Revolutions and Revelations.Chalice Press. p. 90.ISBN978-0-8272-0235-1.
- ^Yeffetch, Glenn (2003).Taking the Red Pill: Science, Philosophy and the Religion inThe Matrix.BenBella Books, Inc. p. 123.ISBN978-1-932100-02-0.