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by Lori
(quotes)

Just a bit. Thanks. Where'd you get it from, or are you writing a thesis on the films?

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lol nah, I found it on a message board, source unknown sadly

There's also a smaller theory going around that Seraph is another former One, possibly the first (although that's purely subjective), which would explain several things

-His fighting ability
-Why in Reloaded he appeared to Neo as golden rather than standard Matrix code (even the Oracle appeared as standard code)
-His exchange with Smith in Revolutions when Smith mentions them having "done this before" implying they have fought before

Additionally the Seraph name is defined as being derived from the word Seraphim in Christianity, which is the first of the nine orders of angels in medieval angelology.

It might also offer some backstory to Merovingian's comment about Seraph being the 'prodigal son' - presumably alluding to the fact that they had some sort of alliance previously before Seraph worked for the Oracle. The theory is that when Seraph's time came to choose in the source to rebuild the Matrix that he didn't like the idea of being deleted and so went to the Merovingian to attempt to escape his fate, so to speak.

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by Wiggy
There is no ending to this film, there is no winner, no loser, just a truce, a truce that keeps the human race still enslaved,

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So you missed the part where the Architect says that any humans who want to leave the matrix will be allowed to do so? Even given the choice, like Cypher in the first film, many would probably choose to stay, especially once they've seen the state of the 'real' world.

The final scene was incredibly cheesy, but I actually found the overall nature of the ending quite satisfying. It's not a truce, it's the end of the war, and while some may find the peaceful solution a letdown, I thought it was a fairly bold move and far more interesting than the tedious and predictable matrix-within-a-matrix idea everyone was expecting.

Overall, I enjoyed the film a lot more than Reloaded, and a lot more than I was expecting to given the general reaction to it. Yes, the religious imagery was silly, yes the Wachowski brothers seemed once again to be competing with George Lucas for a 'Worst Dialogue Evar!' prize, yes the philosophical aspects were shallower than your average puddle, but all those apply to the the other films as well. Some random stuff I liked:
- Hugo Weaving steals this film even more than he did the previous two. Every single line is chewed up and spat out with the contempt it deserves, and the evil laugh after he's turned the Oracle is genius, as is his reaction after the Oracle starts to take him over.
- The fact that most of the action takes place in the real world. While not exactly 'Kill Bill', the fight between Neo and Smith/Bane in particular is quite brutal, especially as compared to the stylised violence inside the matrix.
- That they managed to put Monica Bellucci in an even more revealing outfit than last time.
- The Indian family in the train station. Programs maybe, but they were the most believably human characters in the trilogy since Cypher.
- The incredibly over the top score in the Smith/Neo fight.
- Trinity kicking the guy into the wall.

None of those are particularly deep I admit, but then neither was the film.

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by In a State of Dan
While not exactly 'Kill Bill', the fight between Neo and Smith/Bane in particular is quite brutal

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Interesting point. I found the neo/bane fight MUCH more shocking and brutal than anything in Kill Bill because it was much more believable than the comedy or off camera violence shown in Kill Bill - but I guess thats an issue for another thread...

That Neo/Smith/Bane scene did surprise me a little bit.
The other 2 films, & the rest of this film, were much more styalised during the fight scenes, but this one seemed more...naked, more raw to me.

That said, I'll just add my tuppence worth & say that, despite the heavy-handed religious imagery (Neo cruciform at the end was a bit much in my opinion!), I liked this film.
Despite knowing what was coming, I was hooked by the visuals.
The army of APU's(?) was just fab! I think I actually gasped & cheered a little when they all 'stood' together readying themselves for battle.

All in all, not as bad as I had heard it was.