The machines are self-aware, and so may have different motivations, allegances, and beliefs. Humanity is enslaved to this concept which puts them into an utterly convincing simulation of ~1999, where the rules can be bent. This is both a prison, and a playground: inside the matrix, you can be whatever you want to be, whereas outside the matrix you're stuck with grubby jumpers and plugs all over your body.

The first film left us with some pretty good loose ends to tie up and I thought there was a lot of potential for a great sequel.

(more text for spoilers)

However in a nutshell I was dissapointed. Matrix-inside-a-matrix is such an old-hat concept, that if it turns out this is the big twisty-plot thing I will be pretty annoyed. (ref 'ExistenZ', 'Videodrome', '13th floor'...). We've got some programs with different ideas about the way things should work, but they may end up all being puppets to this guy who looks like Attenborough. The fight scenes felt tired and the CGI puppet-people stuck out like a sore thumb.

I always though of the kung-fu concept as being a skill which ordinary human beings have , and yet an understanding (albeit incomplete) that the rules of the matrix could be bent lent them an edge. So when one guy can do basically anything, I don't see why he'd resort to the same old slappy-punch noises and hoo-har that he does.

consider the following register article: http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/55/30747.html

Is that not a classic example of bullshit journalism? There's nothing covered there that hasn't been covered elsewhere, and no new spin on the material. We are given a quote about 'several exploits for the CRC bug being in circulation', although the hole was patched in 2001, a fact not revealed, for obvious reasons.

Also they are wrong to say that MR is the first film to feature a reasonably accurate computer hack scene. the nmap page linked even mentions battle royale, which is at least one precursor.

Posted by Jon from 81.26.106.28 @ 05/26/2003 02:33 PM CST

There are still some CRC exploits in circulation.

And exactly how many people do you think have patched SSH for the latest exploits anyway?

Posted by arioch from 10.0.0.100 @ 05/27/2003 11:41 AM CST