'I woke up in this house and I don't even know if its my house. I don't even know who I am!'
Most people who have watched this Black Mirror have called it the most disturbing one yet. Yes, I can see where they are coming from as it has some good scare moments and some bits designed to be disturbing, and these scenes do that very well, but I don't agree with them at all. Before you start passing judgement, let me explain.
'White Bear' is the second Black Mirror of 2013 and takes a very different approach to its predecessor 'Be Right Back'. Where that looked at what we can do, and most likely will do, with a slight change in technology 'White Bear' looks more at what people do on a regular basis.
The story is based around Victoria Skillane (played by Lenora Crichlow) who wakes up in her house with no memories of how she got there or what has happened. When leaving the house she discovers the everyone else is obsessed with recording things on their phones. After being chased for a short while by a masked man with a shotgun, she runs into Jem (played by Tuppence Middleton) and Damien (Ian Bonar). Things take a turn for the worse and they end up running for their lives before being captured. It is once they are caught that things start becoming disturbing. They are taken to a secluded place in the woods which has been changed to torture and kill people.
I have seen so many films with things much worse than this (The Loved Ones for example, which I intend to review despite the fact I saw it so long ago) and that is why this scene doesn't disturb me. I found 'The History of You' (Black mirror 1.3) to be much worse, as that doesn't look at us as people, but what we could become. Physical torture and even rape in films is no longer disturbing, instead it is when a director decided to show us what the human mind is like and just how far it, and we, will go for small personal reasons or even just happiness and love. This film shows us a glimpse of that, with the obsession of recording everything and how we no longer help but record to show off to everyone.
About 2/3rd's of the way through there is a sudden and unexpected twist, but I feel the story line is really let down by this part and the rest of the film. It is something new and interesting but it distracts and causes too much juxtapositioning within the film as a whole and ruins the mood.
The acting is often very good, but it takes around 30-40 minutes for Victoria to stop babbling like a baby and actually do something useful/helpful. By this point it is too late and her character is too boring and bland for her to change that. The best character/actress is defiantly Jem, as Tuppence pulls of the character really well and her acting is superb. I am expecting to see a lot more of her in the future.
Overall this film has it's strong and weak points. The last 3rd is definitely weaker than that start, but that is due to the sudden change of everything. The acting is often very high, and the main problem with Victoria isn't Crichlow but the way the character was written. This episode feels very mixed with both good and bad points conflicting, but it is still pulled off well after all is said and done. Not the weakest film out of all 6, but not in the top three.
So although I didn't find this episode disturbing, more entertaining, there are definitely point where people will disagree with me. Whether this is disturbing or not then is a more personal choice than a simple yes or no.
For my review of Black Mirror 2.1 (Be right Back) please click here
Rating; 6.9/10
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