How many layers of meaning lie in The Matrix? ‘More than you will ever know.’ – The Wachowski brothers (writers and directors of The Matrix) Taking the Red Pill is a thought-provoking, mind-expanding thrill ride through The Matrix, examining the technological challenges, religious symbolism and philosophical dilemmas the film presents. Renowned scientists, technologists, philosophers, scholars, social commentators and science fiction authors provide engaging and provocative perspectives. Taking the Red Pill will change how you view The Matrix – and the world around you. The Matrix hit the film-going public by surprise, much like Star Wars a generation earlier, and for many of the same reasons. It had a breathless pace, astonishing eye-candy, a sense of mythic adventure, and an acid-tinged sensibility. Like Star Wars, it opened up a new continent of imagination; in this case, a domain of cyber-existence that no movie had explored before.