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Sean Morris

Staff Writer

The Prime Minister of England wakes up and his government has received a video from an untraceable YouTube account. National sweetheart Princess Suzanne has been kidnapped and will be killed unless one single ransom demand is made: the Prime Minister must have sex with a pig live on national television.

From the first 5 minutes or so of the very first episode of Black Mirror, you already know there’s nothing else like it on television. I had to watch it in several viewings, and my mind was literally blown as I went through all the possibilities and oddness such a scenario could bring between each viewing.

What’s ultimately fascinating about this shows is that it not only shows the darker side of not only humanity but technology as well. In each episode they introduce an entirely new scenario, none of them are connected but they all give a world in which has been described not as where technology has leaped, but just nudged a little and it’s terrifying.

It has several interesting concepts, one notable one being a world where humans can record and playback their memories (the episode has even caught the eye of famous actor Robert Downey Jr, who wants to turn it into a feature length film), a women with no recollection of who she is being hunted down while onlookers record with little remorse, a cartoon bear becoming a political candidate and so much more.

The show delves into aspects that we can see in world and even local events, like in an interview with the shows creator (which you can read more of HERE) in which the episode in which people filmed at the women’s terrible ordeal was influenced by how we see terrible or gruesome events being shot, like all the people that took pictures of Gaddafi’s dead body. Like I mentioned the ideas and thoughts presented to these worlds (as each of them are different) are not that far from where we as a society are today, as much as we might hate to admit it. But that’s what’s so fascinating about the series in addition to the interesting concepts it gives a ‘mirror’ or at the risk of sounding cliche; a ‘black mirror’ that reflects the darker side in us- both personally and as a society.

The first two seasons are currently on Netflix with a Christmas special appearing on Direct Tv, which stars Jon Hamm who is infamous for his leading role on “Mad Men”.

Recommended if you like:

• Doctor Who: Imaginative science and storytelling.

• American Horror story: Anathegolocial series with an exploration into the darker side of humanity.

Sean Morris

Staff Writer

For the better part of the 21st century, the fantasy genre has been ruled by Tolkien’s works. Visionary director Peter Jackson has created the infamous and highly popular film adaptations. Now that Jackson has maxed the extent of the studio’s rights to JRR Tolkien’s work (for now, at least) this might be last of Middle Earth, at least for a while. So how did it do? lets take a ‘journey’ below.

First off the visuals, as always, were astonishing. From the fire-breathing of Smaug the Terrible, to the individualized armor worn by dwarves, elves, orcs and others,and the incredible battle sequences, the movie  was eye candy at its finest. The acting was well done, with strong performances being brought in from Martin Freeman, Ian Mckellen, Richard Armitage, Aiden Turner, Evangeline Lilly, Benedict Cumberbatch, Lee Pace, Christopher Lee, Cate Blanchett, Luke Evans, Ryan Gage and many more in this ensemble cast.

I also wanted to give a little applause for their inclusion of so many characters and, if mostly trying, giving them time on screen and even a few badass moments here and there. Particularly memorable is, while mostly through stunt doubles, is having 92- year old actor Christopher Lee in an action sequence fighting off evil spirits.

My main critique looks at the plot and thepacing. For a majority of the first hour or so, the characters are looking for an object that, while seemingly very important, does not get mentioned again throughout the film. Also, it was a little hard to tell who exactly were the titular ‘Five Armies” as I believe one of them was just a separate division of a larger one. They re-used the infamous eagles plot device (the giant eagles that seem to get anyone out of a mess) which made the ending a little cheaper. While I don’t know what exactly happened in the book, I felt some of the death scenes became overkill after a while.   In the new Hobbit movies they had introduced several new characters that we never learned of their final fates, which seemed odd considering how invested we were with some of their storylines. They also missed an opportunity that since they had mentioned Bilbo growing a tree to remind him of his journey they should have had a scene with him planting it, or since they had a flash-forward showing the three fully grown.

However, I think one of their biggest mistakes was showing when Saruman the white was going after the weak spirit of Sauron, who we know he serves in the LOTR trilogy, they should have had a mid credits, or final scene where Saurman met with Sauron’s spirit and I’ dunno drank coffee with him or something that signified he was turning dark and thus hinted to the other trilogy.

Overall, I was still entertained and found it a mostly fitting farewell to Middle Earth, that I hope we can still see more off on the big screen. I wouldn’t recommend it though to someone who isn’t familiar with the previous movies or even books, but anyone who is a fan can find a lot to enjoy.