Agent Smith
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Image:Smithposter.jpgAgent Smith (later merely "Smith") is a fictional character featured in the Matrix film series, played by actor Hugo Weaving. The struggle between Neo and Smith ends up becoming the main plot underlying the events of The Matrix.
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[edit] As an Agent of the System
According to Morpheus, the tutor of the protagonist Neo, Smith is an Agent, an artificial intelligence manifested in the artificial world and possessing extraordinary powers to manipulate his surroundings (including superhuman strength and the ability to flawlessly dodge incoming bullets). However, Agents still have limitations, being "based on a world that is built on rules". Thus, he cannot fly, walk through walls, or perform any other actions outside the boundaries of his programming. Like all Agents in the Matrix, he was originally programmed to keep order within the system by terminating troublesome programs and human avatars which would otherwise bring instability to the simulated reality. To expedite such tasks, he and other Agents have the ability to take over the simulated body of any human that is a part of the Matrix, converting it into a copy of their own. If that body is killed, or an Agent needs to change his location quickly, he can assume the shell of any other human hard-wired to the Matrix in a matter of seconds. Agents also have the ability to communicate with each other instantaneously, represented via their earpieces (thus, when Agent Smith removed his earpiece during the first Matrix movie, he briefly severed his link with the other Agents).
[edit] Stylistic genealogy
The look and manner of Smith and his fellow Agents seem to be drawn from the common pool of paranoia and American pop culture. One influence appears to be the popular image of federal law enforcement agents as ruthlessly efficient automata who carry out their duties with cold precision and General American accents.
Agents wear dark sunglasses with corners or smooth angles. Agent Smith's sunglasses changed after his transformation in The Matrix Reloaded from the square Agent-style into lenses shaped similarly to the protein capsule of certain viruses. Additionally, they more closely resemble the shape of Neo's sunglasses; but while Neo's have rounded edges, Smith's remain angular (possibly to represent his more calculated and pragmatic nature).
All Agents are Caucasian males (with a minor exception of female Agent Pace from the Matrix Online game), which also provides a dynamic when the majority population of Zion is very diverse, with many cultures and walks of life. The Caucasian male Agents simply show a blandness and an apathy for the human race, with the exception of Smith's obsession with destroying Neo and his general hatred of humans, especially their smell.
The bodyguards that provide security to many heads of state, such as the U.S. Secret Service dress in a similar manner to Smith and his agents, and have the same type of earpieces.
Following the naming pattern for Agents within the Matrix, Smith can be seen as a template for the everyman (or perhaps an antithesis thereof). Other Agents have names like Brown, Johnson, and Thompson — bland, common, innocuous, Anglo-Saxon names. It was mentioned in the Philosopher Commentary on the DVD collection that the names of Smith, Brown and Johnson may be endemic to the system itself, demonstrating a very 'robotic' mindset on the part of the Machines.
In addition, the name "Smith" is explicitly attributed (on the license plate of Smith's car in Reloaded) to the Book of Isaiah 54:16 from the Old Testament:
"Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy."
In creating such a program to carry out menial tasks, the Machines have laid the foundations for their own destruction, a direct parallel to the creation of AI by humankind.
The two later films in the series make much of the dialectical opposition of Smith and Neo. Smith is pitiless and single-minded, focused on finality, conformity and "inevitability". As such, Smith represents determinism. By contrast, Neo, with his unpredictable, emotional, human nature, represents unbounded free will and the power of choice. Neo's solitary role as The One is contrasted by Smith, who, by replicating himself, becomes 'the many' (possibly a reference to Masamune Shirow's Ghost in the Shell, where Major and the Puppet Master discuss the possibility of the Puppet Master cloning himself to survive and to reproduce). When Neo asks the Oracle about Smith, the Oracle explains that Smith is Neo's opposite and his negative.
Agent Smith's weapon of choice, as standard with all agents of the Matrix, is the massive Desert Eagle, chambered with the huge .50AE ammunition. His clones carry this weapon as well.
[edit] Departure from the norm
Agent Smith complains at one point that the Matrix and its inhabitants smell disgusting — an odd observation for an artificial entity. It is perhaps a metaphorical statement since he later remarks "if there is such a thing" (as smell). Smith has a strong hatred of humans and their weakness of the flesh. He compares humanity to a virus, a disease organism that would replicate uncontrollably to destroy their environment were it not for the machine intelligences keeping them in check.
During Morpheus' imprisonment:
“I’d like to share with you a revelation I’ve had, during my time here. It came to me when I tried to classify your species and I realized that you aren’t actually mammals. Every mammal on this planet instinctively develops a natural equilibrium with its surrounding environment, but you humans do not. You move to an area and you multiply, and multiply until every natural resource is consumed. The only way you can survive is to spread to another area. There is another organism on this planet that follows the same pattern. Do you know what it is? A virus. Human beings are a disease, a cancer of this planet. You are a plague, and we...are the cure.”
At the same time, Smith also secretly despises The Matrix itself, feeling that he is as much a prisoner of it as the humans he is tasked with watching over. It is perhaps these sentiments that later drive him to possess an immense desire for the destruction of both mankind and machines alike.
Smith also appears to be the leader of other Agents in that he has the authority to launch Sentinel attacks in the real world. It is unclear whether or not sentience was a part of his initial programming or developed through experience in dealing with Zion rebels. Unlike other Agents, Smith does not approach problems through a pragmatic point of view, but rather with brute force and questionable rage. The fact that he refers to The Matrix as a prison, if interpreted as a reference to his own condition, could be an indication that he had become self-aware, a mind existing outside of the machines' control.
The Wachowski brothers have commented that Smith's gradual humanisation throughout The Matrix is a process intended to mirror and balance Neo's own increasing power and understanding of the machine world. [citation needed]
[edit] Free Agency
As a result of being partially overwritten by The One, Smith also begins to exhibit stronger, more virulent human behaviors and emotions such as unpredictability and dry humor (this is a clear departure from his stern demeanor in the original movie). He makes the claim that Neo has set him free, indicating that he now has not only the vision but also the ability to break free of the machines' control and exist as a singular being. He is now allied with no one but himself, rendering him an outlaw to both the Matrix and the human minds which populate it. Being free of burden, however, Smith is also compelled to feel that he is still crushed by the weight of purpose. He essentially correlates purpose with imprisonment, and because he still exists within The Matrix, there is an unseen purpose which binds together Neo and himself.
The idea of Smith's transformation from being an Agent of the System into becoming a "free Agent" is similar to Lucifer's Fall from Grace. In both cases, a former Agent of the System (in the two sequels, Smith is no longer referred to as "'Agent' Smith", but simply as "Smith") becomes able to move freely, and comes to have a dangerously rebellious and opposite nature.
[edit] Revelation of purpose
Agent Smith appears to have been destroyed by Neo at the end of the first movie in the Matrix trilogy, but he makes a calculated return in The Matrix Reloaded with somewhat altered abilities and motivations, in addition to dropping the title "Agent". His appearance has changed from the first movie as well — his sunglasses are of a different, more angular shape than the square ones the Agents wear and his suit is now black instead of dark green (Matrix code): physical signs of his connection with Neo. Smith also lacks the earpiece most Agents wear on their right ear, showing he is now "unplugged". Smith loses his ability to phase into any body connected to the Matrix at will, as he is no longer a part of the system. Instead, Smith is now infectious through touch; by jabbing his hand into the body of another being in the Matrix, a Smith can convert that being into another Smith, replicating himself in much the way a computer virus might.
- Although Smith gains the power to copy over Agents, in truth Smith only copies the body the Agent was possessing at that time. The program of the Agent can move to another body, as demonstrated in The Matrix Reloaded. However, this was nullified when Agent Smith and his clones dominated the entire population of The Matrix.
- It may also be that in place of the normal power of the Agents to leap into any shell connected to the Matrix, that Smith has the ability to enter the shell, although permanently now; or possibly enter it but cannot exit due to unknown reasons.
- Smith is also able to copy over redpills, something regular Agents cannot do. When he does copy over redpills, he can inhabit their physical bodies when he jacks out of The Matrix, as in the case of Bane. Fortunately, most redpills were in Zion at the time of Smith's return, making Bane the only one possessed by Smith. However, Smith was nearly successful when he attempted to absorb Niobe and Ghost, two other redpills in Enter the Matrix. Like Neo, they were able to repel the attack and managed to elude Smith.
- Keeping in the theme of machines, Smith's behavior is very similar to a computer virus, which also copies its programming into or over other files. This is somewhat fitting — Smith notes in The Matrix he considers human beings a "virus", and in the process of becoming more human, Smith has also become a virus. In a bizarre irony, he becomes what he hates most about humans: something which consumes all resources before moving on and acting without reason or logic.
[edit] Against the Anomaly
In The Matrix Revolutions, Smith's presence in The Matrix has consumed all of the "Core Network" (the underlying foundation of the inner workings of The Matrix), thus rendering him immutable by even the machines themselves. The Oracle explains to Neo that he and Smith have become equal in power, and that for Smith to be eliminated, the equation must be "unbalanced". Smith succeeds in absorbing all the inhabitants of the Matrix; every single human being plugged into it, and every single program functioning inside it, including the Oracle. When he absorbs the Oracle, the process apparently granted him her powers of foresight as well as reality-bending powers equivalent to those possessed by Neo. Towards the end of the movie, Neo engages a single Smith, the one that was created from the Oracle, in a seemingly endless struggle between two forces of equal might. The other Smiths do not participate, because Oracle/Smith explains he has foreseen that he is the Smith that will beat Neo. In the midst of this battle, Smith explains to Neo his final nihilistic revelation, he has come to learn from Neo ("It was your life that taught me the purpose of all life.") that "the purpose of life is to end." It instantaneously becomes apparent to the viewer that Smith also intended to conquer the real world as well, and had Neo not defeated him he would have downloaded himself into Machines so that he could destroy Zion himself.
After an arduous battle in midair, Neo is smashed into the ground by an enraged Smith, making a large impact crater. Smith is perplexed as to why Neo fights, as they both have seen the outcome of the fight. Smith asks why Neo fights when he knows he will lose: "Is it freedom or truth? Perhaps peace? Could it be for love?", reasons which he believes are "temporary constructs of a feeble human intellect trying desperately to justify an existence that is without meaning or purpose, and all of them as artificial as the Matrix itself". Smith is enraged by Neo's simple and irrational answer: "Because I choose to".
Ultimately, Smith prevails, beating Neo unconscious. Suddenly recognizing the scene from prophecy, he stands before Neo and says, "Everything that has a beginning has an end, Neo". This is the only time that Smith does not call him "Mr. Anderson" to his face (in a line in The Matrix Reloaded, Smith says he's, "looking for Neo." This is probably out of practicality, as most other characters have no idea who Thomas Anderson is), suggesting that it is the Oracle within Smith, and not Smith himself, who speaks. Unable to overpower Smith, Neo understands that he will never beat him in this way. He surrenders to Smith, who absorbs him, seemingly conquering his enemy. Some have claimed that, in absorbing Neo, Smith's purpose is completed, and, since Smith is technically already an Exile, he is deleted when the One's code is assimilated. This cannot be as, if the Source wished Smith deleted, it would have done so; fulfilling purpose was moot as the Source also had the opportunity to kill Neo without struggle in the real world.
The "absorption" is not one-sided, with either force conquering the other. Rather, we have a union of opposites, of thesis and anithesis leading to the synthesis of the new beginning, in which the Matrix, with its equation of oppression and control is unbalanced.
[edit] Theories of Smith's deletion
Note: More than one theory may apply.
- When Neo jacked in, he was connected to the Source. Then when Smith consumed Neo, as all the Smiths are connected, the Source was now directly connected to Smith. So the Source then deleted Smith.
- Neo may have defeated Smith in the same way he did it in the first movie, hence the beginning and the end happening the same way. The shock to Neo's body was Smith becoming one with Neo (as a partnership). Neo using the power of the Source (knowing it would kill him to use it) and a knowledge of his own code, and now also Smith’s, first destroyed his digital self and then moved his consciousness through the former Agent’s clones from the inside (showing that he has the ability to detach his mind from his body). Also, destroying himself as well ensured Smith couldn’t escape and be reborn.
- The Oracle hinted that Neo should have returned to the Source at the end of Matrix Reloaded. When explaining to him what happened she says, "The Source: that's what you felt when you touched those Sentinels, but you weren't ready for it. You should be dead, but apparently you weren't ready for that, either." In Reloaded, the Architect says that "The function of the One is to return to the Source, allowing a temporary dissemination of the code you carry, reinserting the prime program." This is the same as saying that once the One returns to the Source, the Matrix will "reboot". After Neo was consumed/deleted by Smith, he was able to return to the Source. Since the power of the One extends to the Source, and since Smith took that power from Neo, Smith was also dragged to the Source and deleted. After which, the Matrix was more or less "rebooted" and returned to normal.
- Similar to the theory above, the Source is another way of Smith's death. The Architect had mentioned that there were 5 other "The Ones" and they had all chosen to return to the Source and to reboot The Matrix. Neo chose differently, however: instead of returning to the Source, he returned to the Matrix. Therefore, when he engaged Smith, he was different than the other ones, due to his choice, and the Source, when Neo was absorbed by Smith, detected the virus and deleted it. It is still a point of debate why The Architect hasn't intervened personally, but a likely explanation is that Smith was too powerful at this point, and would have defeated him (as he did the Oracle).
- Smith was specifically designed to be an eventual threat to the Matrix and mankind, with the potential to threaten the machine world as well. Thus, when the Architect said that if Neo did not return to the source humankind would be wiped out, he was referring to Smith, who would kill all humans in the Matrix as the machines killed all the humans in Zion. There has, therefore, been a Smith for all preceding versions of Neo; however, only this one has emerged as a significant threat, since Neo did not return to the Source this time. Presumably, therefore, each Smith has become a virus after being defeated by their One, and threatened humanity. This could also mean that Smith was specifically created by the Machines—an Agent with a genocidal mindset and the ability to go rogue—so that the One will have a greater threat to deal with than the machines, one that even threatens the machines themselves, and thus will return to the Source to destroy it.
- The Oracle was the binding point between Neo and Smith. She was the one who foretold the prophecy and kept the search on for The One. She surrenders when Smith comes to her, thus giving both Neo and Smith an entry point back into system. According to The Architect, Neo was an anomaly and after being consumed by Neo, Smith became one as well, but as Neo's mirror image. It was the Oracle within Smith who said, "Everything that has a beginning has an end, Neo" and showed Neo the way to end the conflict which was the remaining choice for him.
- Smith was deleted at that moment. Smith's purpose was to kill The One. Once a program's purpose is fulfilled, it is, according to the Keymaker, deleted. Smith's purpose was fulfilled, and thus made him eligible for deletion. This is the central objective in garbage collection and fits with the "garbage collector" robot that picks up Neo's body in Zero-One afterwards. The same is true for Neo due to his purpose of returning to the Source and saving Zion. However, this view is probably false in light of the Oracle's statement about Smith, "Soon he will have the power to destroy this world, but I don't think he'll stop there, he can't. He won't stop until there isn't anything left." This implies that Smith's purpose was to destroy everything. When Smith would achieve this, he himself would be destroyed in the act of defeating the Source, as he is a program.
- In Revolutions, the Oracle told Neo that Smith was "the result of the equation trying to balance itself out". This equation, which is a metaphor for the Matrix, becomes unbalanced with Neo's realization of his powers as the One. In order to keep the system balanced, Smith is "created". When Smith destroys Neo, the equation becomes unbalanced again and thus must destroy Smith to rebalance itself. This yin-yang, balance/unbalance reasoning is used throughout Revolutions. Although a possibly unimportant detail, if one looks closely, one can see the Oracle's earrings are jade yin-yangs, adding relevance to this theory.
- The cause of the "mysterious force" may be that because Neo is The One (positive), and Smith his exact opposite (negative). Adding the two together results in zero, which eliminates both Neo and Smith and returns order.
- On a philosophical level, the ending draws heavily on the Hindu/Buddhist concept of the cycle of rebirth, as seen in the use of Sanskrit lyrics in the music played during the climactic scenes. The endless copying of Smith is a depiction of the individual trapped in the process of continual reincarnation. By sacrificing himself, Neo renounces the self and thus offers the potential of nirvana. Where Smith seeks control of the Matrix and fails, Neo achieves oneness with the Matrix and succeeds.
- Neo is the series' Christ figure, created to be the savior of humanity. Neo, like Jesus, walked alone to the fight and surrendered himself to Smith. Smith's plan might just be a mirror to the scheme of Satan in that if he was to kill Neo, the prophesied savior, humanity would be damned. Instead Neo destroyed himself and allowed humanity to be saved. The cross of light into which Neo dissolves lends some support to this theory, as do the Gnostic overtones throughout much of the films. However, since the Wachowski Brothers based many ideas in the Matrix on Judaism, and more importantly Kabbalah, it is highly unlikely that this theory is correct.
- When Neo jacked into the Matrix for the final fight with Smith, he did so through an array of plugs that connected directly to Deus Ex Machina. Thus, Deus Ex Machina had a connection into the Matrix that it lost when Smith overtook all beings in the Matrix. Not wanting to risk rebooting the Matrix with Smith still completely dominant within, Deus Ex Machina waited until Neo was forced to allow Smith to assimilate him, then analyzed the revised Smith code through his connection to Neo, and was able to write a deletion program that would wipe out the Smiths.
- The Matrix was being re-booted when Smith was trying to take over Neo.
- Quoted before the "Megasmith fight" in the Matrix: Path of Neo, the Wachowski brothers state:
"Neo stands on the verge of Satori, ready to resolve the paradox of Choice and Choicelessness, of Free Will versus Fate. But that can only be achieved through an act of surrender, which occurs after he has abandoned the perspectival nature of Truth, accepting the Totality of Present Consciousness which ultimately allows an evolutionary transition, transcending the Cartesian dilemma through the emergence of the de-limited spirit, which then provides the world with the choice of a third path, the path of Neo, the path of the peace."
Stated by the Architect, Neo had only two choices in saving the humans: destroy the entire human race or leave seven males and sixteen females to rebuild Zion. But, in an act of surrender by offering himself, he saves both humanity and the machines. This is similar to the Christian belief that Jesus Christ died for the sins of humanity by allowing himself to be crucified. This seems to be the correct theory since the Wachowski brothers themselves stated this in The Matrix: Path of Neo
[edit] MegaSmith
In The Matrix: Path of Neo, the final boss is the MegaSmith. The MegaSmith was used for gameplay reasons, because the Wachowski Brothers thought the martyr approach was "Really lame", so this character is the classical "final boss" in Path of Neo. The MegaSmith is composed of destroyed buildings, cars, parts of the road, and the "spectator Smiths" standing around the crater and in the streets. Essentially, to attack him you must first dodge his attacks and wait until the jump button flashes on the bottom left hand corner.
After Neo knocks Smith into the crater in the level "Aerial Battle", Smith is sent flying through the ground and up through the street. As Neo relaxes, the surrounding Smiths walk away from the crater. Neo gets out of the crater, and dodges a car which flies through the air and lands in a pile of debris. Neo looks on as Smiths tear up chunks of the road and throw cars into this pile. A truck then speeds into a building and blows it up. The debris takes on a thirty-story tall humanoid form as lightning strikes it, powering it up. Neo flies up to watch as the giant humanoid lowers its head onto its shoulders. The giant Smith then pulls a pair of giant Smith Shades from a billboard and puts them on. He smirks, then the fight begins.
After the fight, Neo flies straight into MegaSmith's mouth, causing the Smiths throughout the Matrix (possibly because Neo destroyed the original Smith) to overload and explode. We then cut to a shot seen in The Matrix: Revolutions of the streets shining with light from the destroyed Smiths. It is unknown if Neo either survived or was killed.
[edit] Trivia
- In the popular flash game "Madness Interactive" (based on a "Madness" flash movie series), players are able to customize the appearance of their characer to look like Agent Smith, with options such as "Smith Shades", and "Smith Hair" (which includes an earpiece that Smith wore in the first film, The Matrix.) In addition to this, the game features a gameplay mode in which the player takes on a role similar to Neo's, in fighting infinite spawning "Agent Smith" NPCs.
- In The Matrix: Path of Neo, during the Burly Brawl level, if the player goes straight for a pole, a Smith will say "Can't do it without some help, Mr. Anderson?"
- In the beginning level of Path of Neo, some of Smith's quotes can be heard distantly ("And all of them as artificial as the Matrix itself!") through the dreamlike skill test level "Ever had a dream, Neo?"
- It has been suggested that Smith still exists after The Matrix Revolutions, in the online game The Matrix Online. An example may be Agent Gray who uses Smith's vocabulary and has un-program-like rage.
pl:Agent Smith ru:Агент Смит (Матрица) tr:Ajan Smith
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