Mr. Robot's latest episode captured the swirling chaos of 2017 in just 45 minute

[yallerdawg]

It’s one of the best TV episodes of the year.

Source: Vox, by Todd VanDerWerff

If you’ve watched Mr. Robot on any occasion, hearing that the show filmed an episode that appears to be one long take will either instantly irritate you or instantly delight you. Sure, it’s the kind of showoff-y thing this always-showy series would pull out of its bag of tricks as a desperate attempt to pump juice into its storyline. But you can also be reasonably assured of Mr. Robot’s ability to pull it off with a level of technical precision few other TV shows can match. Hence — irritate or delight.

My experience was quite different when I first watched the episode weeks ago, in the buildup to season three’s premiere: I didn’t realize it was filmed to seem like one long take at all. I was so pulled in by the episode’s story and central dilemma that I simply didn’t notice there were no obvious edits. Those who watched the episode on TV — where USA broadcast it without commercials — likely clued in right away. But I remained blissfully unaware until I started talking about it with a friend who’d also seen the screeners.

*****

It’s a dizzying, surreal sequence, but it’s one that captures the feeling of living in 2017 better than almost any shot I’ve seen in film or television. Here’s Angela, a small part of a much bigger machine, but also somebody who just might have the key that will bring down a corrupt world order (and/or install an even more corrupt one). The chaos is being held at bay, but only somewhat.

*****

And yet isn’t that true of all of us? We look at our computer screens, typing away missives we hope will convince somebody, anybody. We might join protests, skeptical that anyone will listen. We worry, all along, that we are being buffeted about by forces beyond our control, because we are. The world is wheels within wheels within wheels, but so are we. Everything is under control, and nothing makes sense.

Read it all at: https://www.vox.com/culture/2017/11/12/16634564/mr-robot-episode-5-recap-runtime-error-long-take

[kimbutgar]

1. American horror story this season has also been interesting in regards to the 2016 election

[yallerdawg]

2. Oh, yes.

I particularly liked the idea of 'awakened feminine rage.'

Very, very timely and right on the button!