The Matrix — Exposition in Action

The Matrix is one of the most groundbreaking films of all time. Many of us can remember where we were when we first saw it, and it’s hard to imagine that there was once a time before we followed the white rabbit… …before we knew the true nature of our reality… …
and before we knew the truth about spoons. “There is no spoon.” But audiences sitting down in the theater in March of 1999 didn’t know any of this, and the Wachowskis had to find a way to fit a tremendous amount of exposition into the script while also delivering plenty of action. So today, I want to explore how a movie can ignite an audience’s curiosity about a story and characters… To examine how the history and rules of a world can be made visual and exciting… And to demonstrate how to cleverly deliver exposition late into a story in a way that doesn’t disrupt the flow of the action.

Let’s take a look at The Matrix.

In his book, Story, Robert McKee writes: “If at a certain point in the telling, a piece of exposition must be known or the audience wouldn’t be able to follow, create the desire to know by arousing curiosity. With a hunger for information, even the most complicated set of dramatized facts will pass smoothly into understanding.” The Matrix is great at arousing curiosity. In the first moments of the film, the audience finds itself eavesdropping on a private conversation. “You like him, don’t you?

You like watching him?” “Don’t be ridiculous.” “We’re going to kill him. Do you understand that?” “Morpheus believes he is the One.” If we examine even just these four lines, we see they are designed to provide enough information to vaguely understand the situation yet withhold enough information to make us curious.

We get a hint at the emotional connection Trinity feels for this person they’re discussing… We’re told the stakes… And are provided with a tease of someone and something that sounds important but is currently meaningless. We’re seconds into the film and already we have questions. The rest of the opening scene takes this even further.

I’m going to let fellow video essayist and filmmaker Patrick Willems —who recently came on our podcast, Beyond the Screenplay— summarize all the questions the opening scene creates. “So I think the opening ten minutes, the sort of Trinity prologue is so essential to this, because it tells us nothing… It’s all there, but we don’t know what it means yet…It’s just like a little short film about this woman who did something illegal…she seems like she’s maybe a bad guy but we like her anyway… cops try to arrest her, she has super powers, the FBI agents have super powers? She runs to a phone and disappears?

And we just want to know everything. We just have this laundry list of questions that we want answered.” A link to our full conversation with Patrick is in the description below, along with a link to his video on the opening sequence of The Matrix. The point that Patrick is illustrating here is that The Matrix arouses curiosity in the audience. And not just in this opening sequence.

All thirty pages of the first act are designed to create a hunger for information, so that we can’t wait for all the exposition that comes when it’s finally time to answer the most important question: “What is the Matrix?” Just like Neo, the audience is ready to take the red pill.

But when the time comes to deliver exposition, the Wachowskis go beyond simple dialogue explanations. “Unfortunately, nobody can be told what the Matrix is, you have to see it for yourself.” There are times when a story simply can’t avoid the need to convey a ton of information to the audience.

The Matrix uses these moments as opportunities to provide compelling spectacle and fulfill its genre requirements.

After Neo takes the red pill, both he and the audience are suddenly exposed to the startling reality that is beyond what we could have imagined. In this moment, there is no dialogue in this moment to help us understand this revelation, we’re simply experiencing this exposition through visuals and sound. “Welcome to the real world.” While the first thirty pages of the script were all about questions, the twenty pages after Neo wakes up are all about answers.

Morpheus explains the past two hundred years of history, the rise of the machines, and the creation of The Matrix.

But rather than simply using dialogue to provide these answers, the film uses the tools of the story world to make them visually interesting. I’m going to go ahead and throw it over to Patrick again. “A big part of why the exposition dump works is because there are visuals to all of it. So it’s not just someone just talking, just dropping a bunch of information, we see all of it.

It’s just so satisfying because we’ve been waiting for these answers, and then they come, and they’re better than we could hope.” “Welcome to the desert of the real.” But the Wachowskis don’t just rely on visuals. The Matrix is an action movie, so what better way to keep exposition exciting than by embedding it in action sequences? As Morpheus trains Neo in the sparring program, he teaches Neo about the rules of the Matrix.”Do you believe that my being stronger or faster has anything to do with my muscles in this place?” “You think that’s air you’re breathing now?” The mechanics of the training program also allow for cutaways to the other characters, who provide further exposition and context. “Jesus Christ! He’s fast!

Look at his neural-kinetics! They’re way above normal!” As this sequence progresses, it demonstrates the relationship between the Matrix and the mind…Explains the threat of the agents… And uses a tense moment to introduce the Nebuchadnezzar’s EMP device, something that will come back later in the film. “It’s the only weapon we have against the machines.” At this point, we’ve spent an hour —almost half the movie— learning the rules of the world.

But by arousing curiosity and embedding the exposition in visually-stunning action, the writers have made sure that every moment of it has been engaging. But we’re still not done learning. The story world of The Matrix is unique in that all these new rules we’ve learned are actually quite flexible. “Some of them can be bent.

Others can be broken.” So while all the major exposition is now in place, new information will still be communicated to the audience right up until the last moment of the film by building on the established rules. Returning to Story, McKee writes: “Save the best for last.

For if we reveal too much too soon, the audience will see the climaxes coming long before they arrive.” In the second half of the film, the Wachowskis continue to deliver surprises about the Matrix, but instead of incessantly adding new rules, they deftly extend the boundaries of established ones.

Because we were told that… “The body cannot live without the mind.” …we can deduce why Cypher is able to kill Apo and Switch simply by unplugging them. Because we were introduced to the construct and the ability to rapidly download new skills… “I know kung fu.” …it isn’t strange when Neo calls for…”Guns. Lots of guns.” …or when Trinity is able to instantly learn how to fly a helicopter. “Let’s go.” And finally, because Morpheus hinted at Neo’s potential… “What are you trying to tell me? That I can dodge bullets?” “I’m trying to tell you that when you’re ready, you won’t have to.” …we know it’s just the next logical step in his evolution when he does this: By laying the groundwork early on, these rule extensions don’t take us out of the action… they simply make it that much more awesome.

The Matrix is a masterclass in many, many aspects of filmmaking. But the film is especially adept at filling the audience’s head with questions, and—even more impressively—actually delivering compelling answers.

The Wachowskis use every filmmaking tool at their disposal to convey exposition, treating the action sequences as learning opportunities for both us and the characters. And they manage to provide new information and thrilling surprises all the way to the very last moments of The Matrix. We’re not quite at the point where we can plug ourselves into a computer and instantly download an entirely new skillset into our brains. But luckily, we do have the next best thing: Skill share.

Skill share is an online learning community for creators, with over 25,000 classes in design, writing, filmmaking, and more.

Premium Membership gives you unlimited access, so you can join the classes and communities that are just right for you and your goals. Regardless of your goals in life, being productive is an essential part of reaching them, which is why I highly recommend Thomas Frank’s class “Productivity Masterclass: Create a Custom System that Works.” A self-proclaimed “productivity nerd,” Thomas has a bunch of useful advice on how to thoughtfully create a system that optimizes the way you’re pursuing your goals.

I’ve actually had the pleasure of chatting with Thomas on several occasions, and he’s actually shared advice on productivity that I use to run this channel, the podcast, and many other aspects of my life.

So, check out his Skill share class, you won’t be disappointed.

You can start the class today for free by heading to the link in the description below. By signing up with that link you get two months for free— plenty of time to start optimizing your life. So, head to Skill share and start learning today.

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