Blueprints: "Black Mirror: U.S.S. Callister"

Jorge continues to look into the Emmy nominees before the show on September 17th.

WARNING! Spoilers below for the Black Mirror episode "U.S.S. Callister"!

Black Mirror has to operate as an individual, stand-alone story in every episode. As an anthology series, there’s no cast of characters to follow through long arcs, no stories to pick up from, no built-in mythology or tone. In a way, this is incredibly freeing, as they can experiment as much as possible since he only thing that ties the episodes together is a theme. But being basically TV movies (which is what they submit themselves as with the Emmys), they also have to to the groundwork for the audience every time.

And it’s not simple groundwork. Black Mirror revolves around the dangers, consequences, benefits and untapped potential of technology. Elaborate worlds, complex gadgets, and characters living in somewhat alternate universes are built into its fabric. It’s always part of the journey to discover what terrifying side of our screen devices they’ll explore...

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Review: "Game Night"

by Chris Feil

An enjoyable, modest studio comedy is a rare breed these days, each entry trying to out-stunt or out-horrify the other for shock laughs. Some miss the mark entirely. Enter Game Night, a formulaic comedy unconcerned with one-upmanship, and quite enjoyable all the same.

Rachel McAdams and Jason Bateman star as Annie and Max, a couple struggling to conceive. They're united by their competitive streaks which get full reign over their weekly get-togethers with friends. When the usual gathering gets overtaken by Max’s more successful and handsome older brother Brooks (played by Kyle Chandler), a harmless mystery role playing game is overtaken by an actual violent kidnapping. The group must save Brooks from his kidnappers, and maybe nurse Max’s bruised jealousy in the process...

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Review: "Other People"

By Chris Feil

You may think you have seen films like this year's Sundance competitor Other People, what with its dark humor and disease-based family melodrama (and maybe more than a few coming from Sundance itself). Jesse Plemons stars as David, a struggling comedy writer returning home from New York to care for his mother Joanne (Molly Shannon, at her most natural) as she fights a losing battle against nerve cancer. David's relationship with his family is stunted by lingering tensions from his coming out, especially with his father (Bradley Whitford).

The parent-child dynamics and cancer plotline are certainly some of the more familiar aspects of the film, but underneath is a more unique study on on suburban stifling of queerness.

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