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Film Discussion => The Small Screen => Topic started by: wilder on January 26, 2012, 09:15:01 PM

Title: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: wilder on January 26, 2012, 09:15:01 PM
Charlie Brooker, the writer of E4's Dead Set, returns with a suspenseful, satirical three-part mini-series. An Endemol press release describes the series as "a hybrid of The Twilight Zone and Tales of the Unexpected which taps into our contemporary unease about our modern world", with the stories having a "techno-paranoia" feel. Channel 4 describes the first episode as "a twisted parable for the Twitter age".

"Black Mirror" - Series Trailer (http://youtu.be/S8I8uZ0TpoU)
"Black Mirror" - IMDB (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2085059/)


Episode 1 - "The National Anthem"

-Part 1 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xfn4Xj3D8NM)
-Part 2 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjWyYagjAvU)
-Part 3 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7N-tHkmDjc)


Episode 2 - "15 Million Merits"

-Part 1 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_c_Kf8NtOg)
-Part 2 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zK_YAoTaL0I)
-Part 3 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaT_ukT6zdI)
-Part 4 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWVxe6FTwl0)
-Part 5 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmBBEGgdrjM)


Episode 3 - "The Entire History of You"

-Part 1 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvFsGtGlQTM&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL)
-Part 2 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmozYHiVm8s)
-Part 3 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_5GGV_ws34)
-Part 5 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEtesTuPdgY)

Warning: Episode synopses contain potential spoilers


Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: wilder on January 23, 2013, 07:41:35 PM
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: polkablues on February 09, 2013, 12:54:39 PM
I just watched "15 Million Merits" for the first time last night.  These sort of reductio ad absurdum science fiction stories have a tendency to fall back on easy allegory ("In Time", "Gamer", "Idiocracy"), but this one manages to avoid that, it creates a world that feels more like a legitimate continuation of our own than simply a comment on it.  It's also the bleakest story I've seen since "Dancer in the Dark", which earns it a big thumbs up from me.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: wilder on February 13, 2013, 01:22:31 AM
I just watched the first episode of season 2 and it's absolutely terrifying, made me feel sick to my stomach.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: BB on February 13, 2013, 02:24:02 AM
Thank you so much for this, wilderesque! The twelve-year-old Twilight Zone freak in me just found his new favourite show.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: picolas on September 29, 2013, 02:49:17 PM
just put on the first ep of black mirror based on Pubrick's non-recommendation. holy shit. it's like an inverted dr. strangelove. a seemingly hilarious premise delivered with total seriousness/honesty.. mindblowing
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: wilder on February 03, 2014, 09:23:56 PM
Black Mirror series 3: Charlie Brooker confirms at least two more episodes
9 January 2014
via Metro

Charlie Brooker has promised more Black Mirror, saying that two 'helpings' of the Channel 4 drama are on the way.

The Weekly Wipe host said he couldn't be specific on details, but intimated that there would be another two dark and dystopian stories, though the show has previously come in threes.

'There will be more – I don't think I'm allowed to say quite when,' Brooker told Lauren Laverne on her BBC Radio 6Music show).

'There's going to be some and then there's going to be some more – you'll get one helping and then there'll be another helping.'

Robert Downey Jr purchased the rights to 2011 episode The Entire History of You last year, but Brooker said he remains in the dark over RDJ's plans for it.

'I'm not really involved in that – that was Jesse Armstrong's episode,' he added. 'People always mention that, like I'm now best mates with Robert Downey Jr. I've never met him!'

Brooker said he was 'not adverse' to further film adaptations though, explaining: 'We've had all sorts of conversations along those lines. 'They're high-concept ideas and that's the sort of thing that lends itself to being remade as a film.'
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: wilder on December 02, 2014, 03:45:37 AM
Now on Netflix
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Axolotl on December 02, 2014, 03:59:19 AM
Also there's a 90 minute Christmas special later this month. Starring Jon Hamm
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: wilder on December 05, 2014, 10:10:14 PM
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: BB on December 22, 2014, 10:54:36 PM
Allow me please to echo the sentiments above. So so so good. Will be an annual tradition. My favourite TV thing I've seen this year.

Curious about this plot hole you speak of. Wondering if it's what I think it is. But yeah, doesn't matter.

Really hope they make a few more episodes. While we're waiting, should I check out Dead Set?
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: 03 on December 23, 2014, 03:12:05 AM
yeah please tell me the plot hole cause i feel stupid
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on August 16, 2015, 01:58:37 AM
Quote from: polkablues on February 09, 2013, 12:54:39 PM
I just watched "15 Million Merits" for the first time last night.  These sort of reductio ad absurdum science fiction stories have a tendency to fall back on easy allegory ("In Time", "Gamer", "Idiocracy"), but this one manages to avoid that, it creates a world that feels more like a legitimate continuation of our own than simply a comment on it.  It's also the bleakest story I've seen since "Dancer in the Dark", which earns it a big thumbs up from me.

Just watched "15 Million Merits" and it destroyed me. This has to be one of the sharpest dystopian stories ever. Don't want to spoil much here, so I'll just agree with you wholeheartedly and say it's a must-watch.

The first episode was also brilliant. I feel like this show was designed for me. I definitely put it off for too long. Does it stay consistent?


SPOILERS

"We medicate against that" — Most chilling line of "15 Million Merits"? The compliance milk is so unsettling too. (And makes it more poignant/heartbreaking when Bing makes his decision not under the influence.) I think this is going to be in my nightmares: "Resume viewing. Resume viewing. Resume viewing."
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: cronopio 2 on August 16, 2015, 11:32:53 AM
Quote from: Jeremy Blackman on August 16, 2015, 01:58:37 AM
Does it stay consistent?




and then some
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Drenk on August 16, 2015, 05:25:44 PM
15 Millions Merits is the only episode I like from this show with the 2X01. I can't stand the rest.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: cronopio 2 on August 16, 2015, 05:37:04 PM
i had forgotten about The Waldo Moment. i stand corrected.

Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: polkablues on August 16, 2015, 09:08:37 PM
The first season is great, all three of them. The second season is spotty: "Be Right Back" is fantastic, probably my second favorite episode overall, "White Bear" is interesting, ugly, and dark as fuck, and "The Waldo Moment" is pretty much terrible. I haven't seen the Christmas special yet for some reason.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on August 16, 2015, 11:34:21 PM
Good to hear. I'll watch all of them for sure.

Watched "The Entire History of You" tonight. (SPOILERS) It's a lot smarter than it seems in the first 15 minutes, so much groundwork is being laid constantly. The rest of the episode is this sort of mindblowing meticulous construction of a deconstruction. Also I found myself switching sides back and forth through the whole thing... that was so carefully and cleverly done.

I'd like to see what they could do with a feature film, say 2 1/2 hours and a very large budget.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Garam on August 17, 2015, 04:37:27 PM
Peaked with the first episode IMO, though the Christmas Special was pretty good.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on August 19, 2015, 12:11:11 AM
I just watched "White Bear" and my brain has been burnt to a crisp. This is not only my favorite episode of the show, but one of the most brilliant things I've ever seen. :shock:

VAGUE SPOILERS

I haven't even fully absorbed the intended emotion of the episode yet, because I was so delighted and overstimulated by everything. This is definitely one I'll be re-watching.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on August 19, 2015, 11:25:43 AM
I'm still obsessing about "White Bear" the next day. I am giddy every time I think about it. This and "15 Million Merits" are among the only things I've watched on TV that have approached the effect of a LVT or Lynch film... that feeling of being assaulted and delighted that lingers for days.

Here's what Charlie Brooker wrote about "White Bear" for an interview. Moderate spoilers:


http://www.channel4.com/programmes/black-mirror/articles/all/charlie-brooker-interview

The first series of Black Mirror featured three stories which were pretty much different genres (political thriller / dystopian sci-fi / relationship crisis), although they all shared a similar tone and sensibility. We're doing that again this year. If Be Right Back is a romance (of sorts), then White Bear is an apocalyptic thriller.

A young woman wakes up, apparently following some kind of suicide attempt, unable to remember her own name. She stumbles outside looking for help, but no-one will even speak to her. Instead they all stand around filming her on their mobiles. Then a man with a shotgun appears and gives chase - and the crowd continues to film, as if idly watching a sporting event.

I was thinking of the ubiquity of camera phones here. The audience at any gig is a sea of little blue lights. During the riots over student fees, there were scenes on the news where you'd have one person smashing in the window of a bank while 50 people filmed it on their phones. During the Libyan uprising you could see people walking around filming the aftermath of attacks, almost like tourists. When Gaddafi's body lay on display for a couple of days, people crowded round it with their phones out. It all looked pretty nightmarish. Almost like a zombie movie, I thought.

And then I thought, what if rather than a zombie movie, you had a story in which 90% of the population just became emotionless voyeurs. They'd just film whatever was happening in front of them, especially if it was horrible. What would happen to the remaining 10%? Some of them would go nuts and start doing terrible things to amuse the 'audience'. White Bear explores that nightmare -- and then hopefully creates a new one.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on August 20, 2015, 02:15:36 PM
I recommended this to my dad, since he's a big Twilight Zone fan and is generally dystopian-minded. He texted me this: "Watching Black Mirror. You're right. It's amazing."

I told him not to watch more than one per day. His response: "Sorry, I can't help it."

Moral of the story, everyone recommend this to your dads.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on August 22, 2015, 01:19:47 AM
After some thought, here's my ranking...

1. White Bear
2. Fifteen Million Merits
3. The National Anthem
4. The Entire History of You
5. Be Right Back
6. White Christmas
7. The Waldo Moment


"White Bear" and "Fifteen Million Merits" are unmitigated masterpieces, and I will return to them for years to come. The next four I loved. I'm sure my various affection levels for them will shift slightly upon rewatch, but they're all great.

It's probably best that we don't talk about "Waldo." But I guess I will, for a moment (with spoilers). It's sufficiently poignant and depressing, with a suitably painful ending, but it's still so profoundly ill-conceived. There's a moment when Jamie is embarrassed by Waldo's political rant and regrets not having been funny, but the problem is, Waldo was never funny at any point. To muddle things further, Jamie, and I think the script itself, acknowledge that Waldo is kind of dumb and terrible in general. So what's the point? This story has no idea where it's going. There are arcs and straight lines that lead nowhere and just kind of collide into sad mush.

SEVERE SPOILERS for White Christmas

Really liked White Christmas...

I think I predicted the girl's suicide wish and the confession way earlier than I was supposed to. I rarely predict things like that... Either my Black Mirror sense was activated, or those twists were overly telegraphed. However, the Asian twist was absolutely brilliant and came out of nowhere for me.

There were a bunch of other fun little reveals, like the fact that John Hamm was omitting details of the botched date not really to hide them from his supposed co-worker, but because he was embarrassed to repeat them to the people in the room.

And then, in true Black Mirror fashion, in turns out that all tangents were 100% relevant and would come into play in delightful and surprising ways. If only more movies and TV shows cared as much.

I didn't buy that a "cookie" could replicate one's consciousness, for many reasons. I just kind of had to go with it.

As Garam said, the imagery of being blocked was probably the highlight of the episode. Reminds you just how visual this show is. The things that linger and haunt me from each episode tend to be visual.

Quote from: Garam on December 30, 2014, 07:40:20 PMI thought the plothole was the kid. I didn't get why she was unblocked when the ex died, but maybe I missed a bit of dialogue explaining it.

They say a block "extends to offspring." It extends the wife's block to her daughter, but doesn't duplicate it. So when that (single) block is nullified, so is the extension. It's software logic, which I absolutely buy in this universe.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: wilder on September 08, 2015, 11:22:44 PM
Netflix to Produce New Episodes of 'Black Mirror' (http://collider.com/black-mirror-netflix-to-produce-new-episodes/)
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on September 08, 2015, 11:50:53 PM
*gasp*

See, my belated interest was actually a premonition!

I would like at least 7 more episodes please.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Garam on September 25, 2015, 12:19:27 PM
Quote from: Jeremy Blackman on September 08, 2015, 11:50:53 PM
*gasp*

See, my belated interest was actually a premonition!

I would like at least 7 more episodes please.

You've got your wish, plus an extra 5 on top. Cool, hope it doesn't get too Americanised in the process.



oh and did I mention that DAVID CAMERON FUCKED A DEAD PIG
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on September 25, 2015, 12:27:24 PM
Sweet Jesus, 12 episodes? TWELVE? I honestly thought 7 was asking for too much. This is insane. :bravo:

Quote from: Garam on September 25, 2015, 12:19:27 PMoh and did I mention that DAVID CAMERON FUCKED A DEAD PIG

I did look it up when you posted that. It's a rumor in a book... I want it to be true, though.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on September 25, 2015, 12:57:49 PM
"It's all very exciting — a whole new bunch of Black Mirror episodes on the most fitting platform imaginable," said Brooker. "Netflix connects us with a global audience so that we can create bigger, stranger, more international and diverse stories than before, whilst maintaining that 'Black Mirror' feel. I just hope none of these new story ideas come true."

source (http://www.theverge.com/2015/9/25/9397087/netflix-black-mirror-season-3)
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on December 26, 2015, 06:29:27 PM
"White Christmas" is now on Netflix.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on April 29, 2016, 01:07:30 PM
'10 Cloverfield Lane' Director Dan Trachtenberg To Helm 'Black Mirror' Ep For Netflix

http://deadline.com/2016/04/netflix-10-cloverfield-lane-dan-trachtenberg-black-mirror-1201733648/

EXCLUSIVE: 10 Cloverfield Lane director Dan Trachtenberg is set to helm an episode of Netflix's Black Mirror reboot. He joins an increasingly high profile list of directors and filmmaking talent that includes Joe Wright and Jakob Verbruggen.

Created and written by Charlie Brooker, Black Mirror taps into our collective unease with the modern world and each stand-alone episode is a suspenseful tale exploring themes of contemporary techno-paranoia. The series, which premiered on Channel 4 in 2011 and aired for two seasons, has received an international Emmy Award, a Peabody Award, a Rose D'Or and been nominated for a BAFTA.

Netflix is assembling a top class talent pool for the new series. Deadline previously broke the news that Bryce Dallas Howard, Malachi Kirby and Alice Eve were set to star in episodes of the new series. It was announced last year that Netflix would be ordering 12 new episodes of the acclaimed series from Brooker's House of Tomorrow. Brooker and Annabel Jones, who exec produced the first seven episodes of the series, will continue to serve in that capacity as well as be showrunners for the new shows, which Brooker has written. House of Tomorrow is a part of the Endemol Shine Group.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: wilder on July 27, 2016, 06:21:07 PM
Black Mirror returns on October 21st
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Sleepless on July 28, 2016, 08:46:29 AM
Quote from: wilder on July 27, 2016, 06:21:07 PM
Black Mirror returns on October 21st

FUCK YES! :)

Episode titles, cast, and directors:

More (http://io9.gizmodo.com/black-mirror-season-3-will-premiere-sooner-than-wed-tho-1784411507)
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on October 07, 2016, 10:39:59 AM
OMG

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-vAp9n8rQc
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Sleepless on October 08, 2016, 05:33:37 PM
The webcam hijacking one looks like to be hugely disturbing. It's not even "imminent future," it's now.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Drenk on October 09, 2016, 01:02:25 PM
I often don't like Black Mirror. There is something that I find terribly self righteous in it, and they almost never go beyond the concept (which means for me that it feels too scholar and happy with the idea, ideas that are often very good, they are strong concepts...). I liked two episodes and, watching the trailer for Season 3, I have goosebumps. So I'll watch.

The one I'm the more curious about is "Nosedive"; Instagram & Co create a weird filter (pun intended when I realized there was a pun), I have a friend who feels physically bad, even though she looks good, because she watches an insane amount of insanely pretty women taking pictures of a fake life...Something that, at different levels, happens for everybody, I guess...
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on October 21, 2016, 09:49:02 PM
"Nosedive"

Man, I'm not sure I can watch more than one of these per day. It's too real. "Nosedive" has a completely conventional (even predictable) trajectory, but it's done with such full commitment that you find yourself swimming in the details. This could have been cut down to 40 minutes or so, but you would lose so much of that.

The wedding speech was jaw-droppingly great. It passes so many tests for me. (1) I had no idea what was going to come out of her mouth next. (2) It wasn't the "wake up sheeple!" speech one might have expected. (3) She didn't turn the audience around.

Some things were a little on-the-nose, and I can see a lot of people reacting like "I get it already," but for me all of that was washed away by the amazing final 15 minutes. It really starts when the sound of downvoting slips into the score around 48:30.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on October 23, 2016, 01:21:07 AM
"Playtest"

Well this one is certainly polarizing. What did everyone think? I'll say this; when I rewatch it, I'm starting at least 20 minutes in. Not enamored with this dude's personality. (SPOILERS) However, I loved the three endings. Black Mirror is arguably at its best when it's trolling you the hardest. The brutality and brevity of the ultimate ending was just perfect.

Throughout the second part of the episode I was wondering why they didn't call him out on his espionage, since she caught him red-handed with his phone on (it felt strange that it wasn't acknowledged), and he was caught on camera as well. But then, of course, we find out why. The plot hole becomes a feature, not a bug.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: modage on October 23, 2016, 05:20:46 PM
I loved Nosedive and couldn't believe Joe Wright directed it. Bryce Dallas Howard is amazing and it's actually making me mad how she was misused in Jurassic World now that I see her awesome potential in this (and Pete's D!)

Playtest I was more mixed on, his personality would've been obnoxious if I didn't already know and like Wyatt Russell from Everybody Wants Some!! The horror game seemed less about universal "the-way-we-live-now" tech in the way that Nosedive is, so I had a little bit of a harder time with it. And agree it kinda took such a while to get started I was wondering what the payoff of all that was. The super-dark ending was nice but I kinda saw the fake-out coming.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on October 25, 2016, 12:42:14 AM
"Shut Up And Dance"

A worthy successor to "White Bear," I think. Forces you to grapple with cruel and unusual punishment in a similar way. The giveaway here is the troll face; we're supposed to be more or less fully empathetic. (And I was.) I love the procedural detail from beginning to end — there's not a wasted minute. Also has just the right amount of humor to cut through the darkness. "Exit Music" was perfectly used. This is my favorite so far.


"San Junipero"

I'm torn on this one. The concept is great, but the performances and writing were off in some weird combination. Maybe it's just me. I did love how things were slowly revealed. The garishness/obviousness of the nostalgia was a nice bit of cynical meta commentary, which the episode needed. I'd be interested in an alternate interpretation where this is actually deeply bleak. There are layers. (The euthanasia fluid being delivered was real creepy, right?)
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on October 25, 2016, 11:14:58 PM
"Men Against Fire"

Disappointingly predictable and on-the-nose. There is no reason we need the amount of explanation that is in this episode; could be the first time I've genuinely felt Black Mirror doesn't trust its viewers. Not quite a stinker, though. The concept is good, the central performance shines through, and there are enough haunting images.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on October 27, 2016, 12:11:16 AM
"Hated In The Nation"

This was basically a very good X-Files episode, so I'm not sure why I didn't love it. Perhaps it didn't quite scratch the Black Mirror itch. Most BM episodes, even if they're predictable, have some kind of reality-warping element. Even "Men Against Fire" had that. This didn't. It was also a bit cold and impersonal, somehow failing over the course of 90 minutes to create one especially compelling character. "Shut Up And Dance" seemed to do that effortlessly multiple times, even amidst all its chaos. So, I dunno, maybe I was in the mood for something different.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: polkablues on December 01, 2016, 11:16:21 PM
Quote from: Jeremy Blackman on October 27, 2016, 12:11:16 AM
"Hated In The Nation"

This was basically a very good X-Files episode, so I'm not sure why I didn't love it. Perhaps it didn't quite scratch the Black Mirror itch. Most BM episodes, even if they're predictable, have some kind of reality-warping element. Even "Men Against Fire" had that. This didn't. It was also a bit cold and impersonal, somehow failing over the course of 90 minutes to create one especially compelling character. "Shut Up And Dance" seemed to do that effortlessly multiple times, even amidst all its chaos. So, I dunno, maybe I was in the mood for something different.

I had the complete opposite reaction to this episode. I finished watching it convinced it was one of the best episodes of television I've ever seen, and I was utterly compelled by both Kelly MacDonald and Faye Marsay's characters. I'll agree that it didn't really feel like A Black Mirror Episode necessarily, but the core concept was so good and the execution so perfect that I didn't care.

Faye Marsay is turning into one of my favorite actors. She has such an intensity to her, and you always have a sense of the inner world happening inside her character at every moment. She reminds me of Jennifer Jason Leigh in a lot of ways.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on December 29, 2017, 01:34:48 AM
The new season is out today (Friday)...
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: wilberfan on December 29, 2017, 12:06:44 PM
Quote from: Jeremy Blackman on December 29, 2017, 01:34:48 AM
The new season is out today (Friday)...

Noticed that.  Reminds me that I found the first two seasons really compelling.  Season three had more misses than hits for me, if I recall.  Read somewhere that this new season is spotty?

[edit] Well, none of the six episodes from this season impressed me.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on January 01, 2018, 01:46:48 AM
I've watched the first 4 so far...

SPOILERS

"USS Callister" was a delight. Incisive social commentary. They should have dialed up the disturbing factor a bit, but I can't complain. Jesse Plemons delivered.

"Arkangel" was a swing and a miss. I really liked the first 20 minutes or so, but then it became super conventional. Could see the end coming from a mile away. Several miles.

I know a lot of people dislike "Crocodile," but it completely worked for me. And it wasn't just punishing for the sake of it; there's some interesting character stuff going on.

"Hang the DJ" is undoubtedly Black Mirror's best love story (that chemistry though) and I think one of its best episodes. The ending was magnificent.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on January 02, 2018, 01:40:38 AM
Faves:

1. Hang the DJ
2. USS Callister
3. Black Museum
4. Crocodile
5. Metalhead
6. Arkangel (the only stinker, really)


SPOILERS

"Metalhead" was decent. This is actually the type of sci-fi story I've been asking for. Robot apocalypse is a very realistic possibility, so I appreciated how realistically it was rendered here. Those "dogs" basically already exist, you guys.

Wasn't sure what to think of "Black Museum" until the end. But I think it really came together. The souvenir of endless suffering is one of the most genius things Black Mirror has come up with.

I didn't even notice this until I saw it pointed out, but all 6 episodes have female leads.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on March 13, 2018, 06:17:24 PM
CC: The Future Is Now (http://xixax.com/index.php?topic=12502.0)


A startup is pitching a mind-uploading service that is "100 percent fatal"

Nectome will preserve your brain, but you have to be euthanized first.


https://www.technologyreview.com/s/610456/a-startup-is-pitching-a-mind-uploading-service-that-is-100-percent-fatal/

The startup accelerator Y Combinator is known for supporting audacious companies in its popular three-month boot camp.

There's never been anything quite like Nectome, though.

Next week, at YC's "demo days," Nectome's cofounder, Robert McIntyre, is going to describe his technology for exquisitely preserving brains in microscopic detail using a high-tech embalming process. Then the MIT graduate will make his business pitch. As it says on his website: "What if we told you we could back up your mind?"

So yeah. Nectome is a preserve-your-brain-and-upload-it company. Its chemical solution can keep a body intact for hundreds of years, maybe thousands, as a statue of frozen glass. The idea is that someday in the future scientists will scan your bricked brain and turn it into a computer simulation. That way, someone a lot like you, though not exactly you, will smell the flowers again in a data server somewhere.

This story has a grisly twist, though. For Nectome's procedure to work, it's essential that the brain be fresh. The company says its plan is to connect people with terminal illnesses to a heart-lung machine in order to pump its mix of scientific embalming chemicals into the big carotid arteries in their necks while they are still alive (though under general anesthesia).

The company has consulted with lawyers familiar with California's two-year-old End of Life Option Act, which permits doctor-assisted suicide for terminal patients, and believes its service will be legal. The product is "100 percent fatal," says McIntyre. "That is why we are uniquely situated among the Y Combinator companies."

Brain uploading will be familiar to readers of Ray Kurzweil's books or other futurist literature. You may already be convinced that immortality as a computer program is definitely going to be a thing. Or you may think transhumanism, the umbrella term for such ideas, is just high-tech religion preying on people's fear of death.

Either way, you should pay attention to Nectome. The company has won a large federal grant and is collaborating with Edward Boyden, a top neuroscientist at MIT, and its technique just claimed an $80,000 science prize for preserving a pig's brain so well that every synapse inside it could be seen with an electron microscope.

McIntyre, a computer scientist, and his cofounder Michael McCanna have been following the tech entrepreneur's handbook with ghoulish alacrity. "The user experience will be identical to physician-assisted suicide," he says. "Product-market fit is people believing that it works."

Nectome's storage service is not yet for sale and may not be for several years. Also still lacking is evidence that memories can be found in dead tissue. But the company has found a way to test the market. Following the example of electric-vehicle maker Tesla, it is sizing up demand by inviting prospective customers to join a waiting list for a deposit of $10,000, fully refundable if you change your mind.

So far, 25 people have done so. One of them is Sam Altman, a 32-year-old investor who is one of the creators of the Y Combinator program. Altman tells MIT Technology Review he's pretty sure minds will be digitized in his lifetime. "I assume my brain will be uploaded to the cloud," he says.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Jeremy Blackman on December 30, 2018, 12:47:26 AM
Anyone else watch Bandersnatch? It's fun! I managed to get nearly all the endings. It's pretty intuitive how Netflix allows you to go back.

This was certainly one of the most meta things I've ever seen. And that was enjoyable. I think Black Mirror has more impact when you're a captive audience, though, with no control over whatever frightening developments are coming next.
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: ©brad on December 31, 2018, 11:38:17 AM
I thought it was fun too! I can't say I fully understood everything (I was really stoned), but I look forward to revisiting it and playing with different paths/endings. Booker is proving himself to be a really great and perhaps underrated storyteller. The structural gymnastics that went into writing this is impressive, never mind the tech behind it.



Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Robyn on January 07, 2019, 04:02:04 PM
Bandersnatch SPOILERS:
The most difficult choice to me was taking the tab of acid or not. I knew it wasn't a good idea, but the dude was so convincing. Then he asked me to jump and I thought "well, that make a lot of sense in this context.", so I did. It mostly made me realize how bad I am at making decisions. Anyway, I got a 5 star rating in the end, so I won, right?
Title: Re: Charlie Brooker's "Black Mirror"
Post by: Robyn on January 08, 2019, 10:46:47 AM
I had only watched the first season before, and just finished the second one. So far this has one episode a season (The Entire History of You, Be Right Back) that is absolutely fantastic while the rest is pretty mediocre imo.