how on earth do you people go almost an entire page without mentioning Agent Smith?
do i even HAVE to support my case? he's, like, the quintessential bad-ass. because he can take out anyone, in any given situation, at any given time (we'll talk about neo later). he's so feared he's almost respected by the good guys ("you meet an agent, kid, you do what we all do -- you run. run your ass off"

. he's got this cool, hard, steel look that shows absolutely no fear. and you know he's not human, which makes him seem like an even tougher opponent to beat. he takes a kick to the face, smiles, and throws you across the street without blinking.
but he's not brute force. they don't put him in a vader outfit, or some evil-overlord suit of armor-type deal. they've got him in a suit. a BUSINESS SUIT. cool and cunning. the guy's smart, and logical. mix that with the ability to crush your face in his hand, and that's a pretty lethal concoction.
and he is, of course, neo's perfect foil. he's the cain to neo's abel, the cowboy to neo's indian, the goliath to neo's david. without smith, neo is not cool. without the perfect villain, a hero is nothing, because he has nothing to prove himself against.
to wrap it all up, he's got a way with words. "human beings are a DISEASE. we . . . are the cure." that line is cool, but the way he delivers it just makes it ten times better. and how bad would this movie suck if they had someone that sounded like mickey mouse say, "mr. andersoooooon . . . "
plus . . . "i've seen men empty entire clips at them and hit nothing but air."
i rest my case, your honor.
*blows smoke from barrel*