Hugo Weaving: The REAL star of the Matrix Trilogy

From MSNBC:

An enemy both to the machines and to the humans, Agent Smith is pursued by other agents, but as of “Reloaded,” he has the power to take any corporeal forms and turn it into a clone of himself. In the first scene in which we see Agent Smith in “Reloaded,” another agent recognizes him and gasps, “You!” Agent Smith dryly replies, “Yes, me.” He then jams his arm into the other agent, turning him into a second Agent Smith, which then drawls, “Me too.”

The dialogue may not be much on paper, but Weaving digs into the scene with such gusto — exaggerating every pause and consonant — that you can’t help laughing. Here he is, smack in the middle of this dull philosophy lecture, gnawing through the scenery like he’s William Shatner’s illegitimate son.

Agent Smith even gets a whole cheesy monologue about the way Neo “destroyed” him in the first “Matrix” movie — “I was compelled to stay, compelled to disobey. And now, here I stand because of you, Mr. Anderson,” and so forth — that’s straight out of “Star Trek”; all that’s missing is someone screaming “KHAN!” at the end of it.

I remember the first time I saw The Matrix I was totally amazed by the SMith character. I still think he is one of the most interesting screen villains of all time. And as the trilogy unfolds, it’s becoming more and more clear that the Matrix isn’t just about Neo… it’s about Neo and Smith. I can’t wait to see where it all leads.