Okay, you know how all they needed to do to get into the Matrix simulation was get jacked in, right? Well, why did they need a land line to get back out?
Because their limited minds were unable to divorce themselves that simply from the virtual reality of the Matrix. They had to have some visual connection to the way out in order to leave. I was expecting Neo to be able to just say “Goodbye, Agent Smith” and blink out of existence.
Morpheus talks about broadcasting into the Matrix at access points. Certain points within the construct are representative of those points where they can do their pirate broadcasts. That is why they are only able to enter or leave from certain points. It works both ways … entering and leaving. Otherwise, the could just have entered the Matrix in Morpheus’s cell and grabbed him that way.