For many years, Black Mirror has stunned viewers with its futuristic dystopian technologies that are often inspired by contemporary cultures, such as social media and simulated realities. Although the episodes are vastly different, they share one common thread: how technology has affected human behavior, and the manner in which technology will be treated in the future, as it is only becoming a more prominent tool in society today.
After three years since the last season of Black Mirror, the creative minds behind the anthology series have finally announced the release of its sixth season this year - although the release date might be closer to the end of 2023. In anticipation of the show’s upcoming season, many Black Mirror fans, or perhaps those who are late to the Black Mirror scene, can indulge in some of the show’s top Letterboxd-rated episodes.
10 “White Bear”
A woman (Lenora Crichlow) wakes up with no recollection of where she is or the events of the days prior and sees photos of herself, a man (Nick Ofield), and a small girl (Imani Jackson). As she leaves the house to seek help, she finds herself targeted with a shotgun and people recording her on their phones.
Later, she meets a group of people who tell her they need to destroy the “White Bear” transmitter that has effectively turned society into voyeurs who do nothing but watch and film. However, it quickly becomes apparent that the White Bear transmitter is not what it appears to be, and neither is Victoria.
9 “USS Callister”
In the “USS Callister” spaceship, Captain Robert Daly (Jesse Plemons) and his crew destroyed their arch-enemy Valdack’s (Billy Magnussen) spaceship. It turns out that the real-life version of Daly is a CTO (Chief Technology Officer) at Callister Inc., a gaming company he co-founded with the chief executive officer James Walton (Jimmi Simpson). Viewers quickly learn that USS Callister is a spaceship within the company’s multiplayer simulated reality game Infinity.
At work, Daly is badly treated by his employees. At home, he creates a development build on Infinity, where he takes his frustration out and treats his crewmates poorly. However, the game would soon have colossal consequences that would change Daly’s fate forever.
8 “Fifteen Million Merits”
In “Fifteen Million Merits”, individuals such as Bing Madsen (Daniel Kaluuya) live in a world where everyone rides a stationary bike to earn “merits” needed for their daily costs of living. Digital screens that regularly feature adverts but are mainly used for waking up and for video game/television entertainment, surround their rooms. After overhearing another "tenant", Abi Khan (Jessica Brown Findlay), singing in the toilet, Bing convinces her to enter a virtual talent show, Hot Shot, where contestants get a chance to win and live a luxurious life.
Letterboxd users left positive reviews for “Fifteen Million Merits”, calling it one of the more underrated episodes of Black Mirror, particularly praising Daniel Kaluuya’s performance.
7 “The Entire History of You”
In a world where members of society have a memory implant that allows them to record memories, Liam Foxwell (Toby Kebbell) is a man who excessively watches the “re-do” of his memories as he suspects that his wife, Ffion Foxwell (Jodie Whitaker), might be cheating on him.
“The Entire History of You” has been praised for its clever technological invention and how humans would treat it if it ever existed. And although the technology in it seems surreal and farfetched, the human condition grounds it in reality. “The Entire History of You” received mostly positive reviews, except for its entirely “unlikeable” characters - making it hard to root for any character in the episode.
6 “Nosedive”
“Nosedive” follows a young woman, Lacie Pound (Bryce Dallas Howard), who lives in a world where individuals use mobile devices to rate each other’s interactions. The interactions are rated on a scale of one to five stars, one being the lowest and five the highest, and the average rating of each individual amounts to their socioeconomic status within society. Throughout the episode, Lacie actively seeks to raise her rating from a 4.2 to a 4.5 for a discount on a new apartment. But despite her efforts, her rating stays the same.
While many Black Mirror episodes, such as "Nosedive" cover the wonders and dangers of technology, the episode gives a fresh take on the effects of technology and society’s undeniable obsession with social media. Although the overall episode generally received favorable reviews, the reception to the ending was mixed.
5 “Black Museum”
Nish (Letitia Wright) stops at an isolated gas station to charge her car. While waiting, she decides to visit the nearby Black Museum. There, she meets owner Rolo Haynes (Douglas Hodge), who gives her a tour of his “authentic criminological artifacts” and recounts the stories behind them. Most of the items in the museum are experimental technologies, for instance, the first item that resembles an electronic hairnet, is a device that allows a person to feel the physical sensations of others.
Many Letterboxd reviews are in favor of “Black Museum” because it serves as an ode to the show and references many of Black Mirror’s previous episodes, where similar stories or technologies mirror the ones shown in “Black Museum”. And, of course, the museum setting is fitting.
4 “Hang the DJ”
“Hang the DJ” is set in a world where individuals use “Coach”: a device that matches them with another individual for a fixed period. Frank (Joe Cole) and Amy (Georgina Campbell) are matched for 12 hours. Though initially nervous, they quickly develop a liking for each other, but unfortunately have to part ways when their time is up. Frank’s next match, Nicola (Gwyneth Keyworth), immediately shows her apparent dislike towards him, but they are paired for a year. Meanwhile, Amy is matched with Lenny (George Blagden), whom she finds attractive.
After many more matches, Frank and Amy matched again. This time, however, they agree not to check their expiry date and enjoy their time together. However, an incident that puts them at risk forces them to find a way to be each other's forever matches.
3 “Shut Up and Dance”
The third episode of the third series of Black Mirror, “Shut Up and Dance” tells the story of Kenny (Alex Lawther), a teenage boy, who after downloading an anti-malware trojan on his computer, learns that an anonymous hacker(s) has recorded a video of him masturbating through his webcam. Following this, the hacker(s) instructs Kenny to comply with whatever they tell him to do and that his video will get leaked should he not comply. Together with another victim, Hector (Jerome Flynn), they must do whatever it takes to keep their secrets from being exposed to the world.
“Shut Up and Dance” received favorable reviews on Letterboxd and many other rating platforms due to its tragic twist at the end, which left many viewers excited throughout the episode.
2 “White Christmas”
Joe Potter (Rafe Spall) and Matt Trent (Jon Hamm) have lived together in an isolated cabin for nearly five years but barely know each other. On Christmas day, they finally share stories of their previous jobs and the events that led up to their time in the cabin. Matt recounts his job as a “cookies” trainer, where digital clones of people are stored in an egg-like container as personal assistants, and where a few seconds in the real world could feel like six months in the container. On the other hand, Joe ran an online group where men would watch and listen to each other seduce women through their “Z-Eyes” implants, but operations stopped when one of the men’s encounters with a woman went wrong.
Joe opens up a little more about his family and how he was “blocked” by his fiancée Beth (Janet Montgomery) after their conflicted decisions about abortion. But as each minute passes, the more the story reveals the dark truths of why the men ended up in the cabin.
1 “San Junipero”
Set in the 1980s, humans can time travel and upload the consciousness of the dead into virtual reality. Yorkie (Mackenzie Davis) goes to San Junipero (a party town) for the first time and meets Kelly (Gugu Mbatha-Raw). As the two start flirting with each other, Yorkie gets embarrassed and runs away. They meet a couple more times in the following weeks, but as they get closer, Yorkie senses that Kelly is hiding something from her.
What sets “San Junipero” apart from other Black Mirror episodes is its romantic storyline between two women. And in typical Black Mirror fashion, presents you with a twist that perhaps you didn’t expect.