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I've re-watched the Matrix films recently and I'm confused about the scene in the restaurant with the Merovingian.

He's talking with Neo when the film cuts to a woman eating a cake. I've found the bit from the script. (source: wikiquote)

I have sent her dessert, a very special dessert. I wrote it myself. It starts so simply, each line of the program creating a new effect, just like poetry. First, a rush... heat... her heart flutters. You can see it, Neo, yes? She does not understand why - is it the wine? No. What is it then, what is the reason? And soon it does not matter, soon the why and the reason are gone, and all that matters is the feeling itself. This is the nature of the universe. We struggle against it, we fight to deny it, but it is of course pretense, it is a lie. Beneath our poised appearance, the truth is we are completely out of control. Causality. There is no escape from it, we are forever slaves to it.

He wrote the cake himself? Is it a virus like Agent Smith? I'm really confused. Is he trying to 'hack' the woman with the cake?

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    Yes. Exactly. I'm not sure there's anything to add in an answer that you didn't write in the question. He wrote a program (a trojan malware, not a virus, to be more technically precise, since it didn't replicate) to have effect on that woman. Same way Architect wrote code to give someone a feeling they are tasting beef or chicken or oatmel
    – DVK-on-Ahch-To
    Jul 7, 2014 at 14:53
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    An interesting pre-portal reference to "the cake is a lie"
    – bdimag
    Jul 7, 2014 at 14:59
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    Perhaps Sally had some of the same cake.
    – Kevin
    Jul 7, 2014 at 15:28
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    c:\funky_cold_medina.bat
    – Paul D. Waite
    Jul 7, 2014 at 15:44
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    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truffle_oil
    – Chris B. Behrens
    Jul 7, 2014 at 16:03

3 Answers 3

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Hacking the Matrix is an established ability of nearly all parties involved. Agents, or their supervisors, can alter bluepills (those still hard-wired into the Matrix) and places or items, such as when the hotel windows change from accessible to bricked-over.

In the real world, Operators can hack the Matrix by placing people wherever they like (within reason apparently; Link refers to Trinity's entry in the last half of Reloaded as a messy hack) and providing them with weapons - the Operator can even 'hack' the individuals, giving them knowledge on-the-fly; the helicopter scene being a great example of this.

Neo is of course able to 'remake the Matrix' as he deems fit, though he tends to limit this to a few simple abilities like flight, telekinetics, a little bit of precognition and a very very high health meter.

With that being a recurring theme in the Matrix movies -- the cake contains a program which causes the one that consumes it to orgasm. That's it. vOv

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    I have to say that "Zionist ship" sounds quite bad. Even if true, and has nothing to do with politics and current events.
    – user24620
    Jul 7, 2014 at 16:05
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    Yeah, I guess I thought MxO referred to humans that were dedicated to fighting the Machines 'Zionists'. I'll change it, I don't want to cross the streams
    – Stick
    Jul 7, 2014 at 16:12
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    Thanks Stick. @Mr Lister: I think that "to cross the streams" has entered the idioms list of the English language.
    – user24620
    Jul 7, 2014 at 20:28
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    Wait? You censored "Zion" in reference to The Matrix? The ships as operated in "the real world", during the course of the movies are under military command of "Zion". Calling them "Zionist ships" is probably the most accurate way of describing them. Especially since there are theories that "the dessert of the real" is in fact just another layer of the Matrix.
    – user20155
    Jul 7, 2014 at 23:37
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    the cake was a lie.
    – Derek
    Jul 21, 2018 at 6:52
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The Merovingian wrote the cake program himself, but it was to give the woman an orgasm so that he could more easily persuade her to return the favor (and also to make his point about choice). Evidently she did return the favor since Persephone later references the lipstick on the Merovingian and comments that

She wasn't kissing your face, my love.

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The word everybody is looking for is Aphrodisiac. The Merovingian gave her a powerful aphrodisiac.

aph·ro·dis·i·ac
(n) a food, drink, or drug that stimulates sexual desire.
"the Romans worshiped the apple as an aphrodisiac"
      synonyms:  love potion

(ad) a thing that causes excitement.
"for a few seconds she'd fallen for the powerful aphrodisiac of music"

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