Black Mirror: “Black Museum” (Season 4, Episode 6) The outcome is far from the happy ending one would hope for, but in a haunting twist, it appears to be a success by the societal norms of, not only his world, but ours, too.ħ. When Bing helps her get a spot on the talent show, it backfires, inspiring a plan to rebel against this oppressive system. ![]() Like other average citizens in his strange society, Kaluuya’s “Bing” spends each day riding an exercise bike, playing video games, and consuming mindless entertainment to earn enough credits to appear on an America’s Got Talent-esque show that he really has no interest in, unlike the beautiful aspiring singer Abi (Jessica Brown Findlay). Either scenario sounds awfully similar to real life and the Black Mirror Season 1 classic “Fifteen Million Merits” is brimming with ideas that are all too realistic, but presented in strikingly inventive, allegorical means. Years before playing a prisoner to racial discrimination in Get Out, Daniel Kaluuya played a prisoner to media-influenced standards of image, talent, and social status. Black Mirror: “Fifteen Million Merits” (Season 1, Episode 2) However, at its strongest, “Playtest” is an investing cautionary tale warning how quickly even the most needed escape can grow into something dangerously inescapable.Ĩ. The concept is plausible on its own, but the indelibly frightening images make it an even scarier experience. The bulk of the episode is set in the creepiest Victorian manor you could ever imagine, where Russell’s character encounters virtual reality obstacles so realistic and increasingly familiar that he loses grip on what is virtual and what is reality. Yet, in typical Black Mirror fashion, in succeeds in being more. That is essentially what “Playtest,” about a cash-strapped American tourist getting more than he bargained as a VR game guinea pig, aims to be. Trauma is also a major theme in the second episode of the fan-favorite third season, helmed by 10 Cloverfied Lane director Dan Trachtenberg and led by Wyatt Russell, whose father, Kurt, knows a few things about horror movies. Black Mirror: “Playtest” (Season 3, Episode 2) ![]() Admirers of Black Mirror’s shockingly dark perspective on human nature may find “Crocodile” satisfyingly bold, if they can withstand the trauma.ĩ. Complicating things is an insurance agent (Kiran Sonia Sawar) investigating a traffic accident Mia happened to witness, leaving her no choice but to participate in a thought examination procedure that only adds length to her bloody trail. In a role retroactively preceding her futuristic assassin character in Possessor, Andrea Riseborough is a tour de force as Mia, a successful businesswoman with a family who goes to devastating means to preserve her reputation and secrete her guilt when sins of the past catch up with her. In fact, I distinctly remember how the episode left me distraught, disillusioned, and desperate to take a pause from my Black Mirror binge, but earned my utmost respect in the process. “Crocodile” (from John HIllcoat, Australian director of Lawless and The Road) is most definitely not one of them. Season 4 notably has its fair share of crowd pleasers. Black Mirror: “Crocodile” (Season 4, Episode 3)
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