This month Verve’s star reviewer Lucy Kennedy reflects on the latest instalment of Black Mirror.
Black Mirror, Season Seven
Netflix – Age rating 16+
Charlie Brooker’s twisted, shocking anthology series Black Mirror has returned for its seventh season, brimming with episodes that underscore the capitalistic, inequitable, and Kafkaesque aspects of modern life – reflecting and exacerbating our societal fears. The show’s characteristic sci-fi aspects remain strong with the continuing story of USS Callister whose first instalment earned four Primetime Emmy Awards. This season has been hailed as a Black Mirror classic, featuring some incredibly strong episodes. These are my standouts.
‘Common People’ focuses on the exorbitant prices of tricky subscription tiers, and how corporations aim to maximise profit at the expense of the individual. ‘Bête Noir’ is also very aligned with the messaging and themes of previous Black Mirror seasons, but with an absurdist and abstract twist. Have you ever felt as though everyone around you remembers life differently to you? Maria, an experimental chef working with a difficult new colleague, has. The episode forces the viewer to contemplate their own perceptions of reality.
‘Plaything’ – a sequel to the Black Mirror choose-your-adventure 2018 film Bandersnatch – is a gripping story that outlines descent into obsession with a disturbing ending that stayed with me long after the credits rolled. It calls into question
the boundaries between the online sphere and physical reality, as well as blurring the line between artificial and real consciousnesses. Where is this line? Can we always tell? It draws into sharp focus how algorithms created by humans can be endowed with human characteristics, including greed.
Each episode is a skilful short film focused on contemporary societal issues, highlighting the negative possibilities of the widespread nature of technology and posing the viewer a difficult question: What if it’s harnessed for the worse?
Instagram: @lucykennedyreviews
