20 Things You Somehow Missed In The Matrix
4. "I Have No Mouth, And I Must Scream"
Possibly the strangest tribute to the source material that influenced the film comes in the Neo/Smith interrogation scene early in the movie. As well as the many books previously mentioned, Lost City, and Alice In Wonderland, The Wachowski's also drew inspiration from Harlan Ellison's science-fiction short story I Have No Mouth, And I Must Scream.
The book details how an artificial intelligence takes over the world and all but eradicates mankind, save for a few survivors that it keeps underground. As well as the obvious comparisons you can draw to the theme of The Matrix, the movie literally depicts Neo as having no mouth and trying to scream.