Dissonance Theory 

Dolores joins William and Logan on a bounty hunt; The Man in Black makes a significant discovery; Ford and Theresa discuss the park's future.

Director:

Vincenzo Natali

Writers:

Jonathan Nolan (created for television by), Lisa Joy (created for television by)

Stars:

Evan Rachel Wood, Thandie Newton, Jeffrey Wright

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Evan Rachel Wood	...	Dolores Abernathy
Thandie Newton	...	Maeve Millay
Jeffrey Wright	...	Bernard Lowe
James Marsden	...	Teddy Flood
Ben Barnes	...	Logan
Ingrid Bolsø Berdal	...	Armistice
Clifton Collins Jr.	...	Lawrence
Luke Hemsworth	...	Ashley Stubbs
Sidse Babett Knudsen	...	Theresa Cullen
Rodrigo Santoro	...	Hector Escaton
Angela Sarafyan	...	Clementine Pennyfeather
Jimmi Simpson	...	William
Shannon Woodward	...	Elsie Hughes
Ed Harris	...	Man in Black
Anthony Hopkins	...	Dr. Robert Ford

Storyline

Theresa tells to Bernard that she is stressed since the board will arrive to visit the park. She has also a discussion about Arnold and is threatened by Dr. Ford in the park's restaurant. Dolores joins William and Logan to hunt Slim and his men with a sheriff and she has a daydream. When they find Slim, he asks to be taken to Pariah to meet his friend El Lazo and they would receive more than the amount of the bounty. Meanwhile The Man in Black goes after Wyatt with Lawrence and they stumble upon Teddy, who is tied to a tree wounded and dying. The Man in Black releases Teddy and brings him with them. Maeve has recollections from her past lives and she draws a Westworld employee wearing mask and protective clothing and she finds many copies of the same sketch hidden in an opening on the floor.

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Plot Keywords:

cigar smoking | self mutilation | stabbed in the stomach | shot in the forehead | safe | 

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Western

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 October 2016 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Moab, Utah, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kilter Films, Bad Robot, Warner Bros. Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

58 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Dolby Atmos (Blu-ray release)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Episode title refers to psychologist Leon Festinger's theory of cognitive dissonance, in which a person experiences mental tension as a result of having conflicting attitudes and actions, leading to a change in attitude.

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Goofs

During the raid on the town, Hector is using an 1873 Winchester rifle, which is a lever action. When he fires the second shot into the deputy on the ground, a close up shows a cartridge case being ejected from the rifle. This is not possible, as the case isn't ejected until the lever is manually operated, which can be seen in the next shot of Hector.

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Quotes

Hector Escaton: You sound like a man who's grown tired of wearing his guts on the inside.

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Connections

Referenced in City Slickers in Westworld (2017)

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Soundtracks

Partita No. 3 In A Minor
(Uncredited)
Written by Johann Sebastian Bach (as J.S. Bach)
Opening Theme Song

User Reviews

Hopkins and Harris Give Hollywood a Poke in the Eye..

The other reviewers have done an excellent job deconstructing this episode. So I will simply repeat what I said in my review of the opener, that THIS is indeed TV 3.0, almost a technological leap into a new era of TV where every single one of the secondary arcs is so good you could almost build an entire series on each.

Never saw that before, but it exceeded my already high expectations.

But the point of this review is to draw attention to the way an already-superb episode leaps into hyperspace every time Hopkins or Harris comes into frame.

Make no mistake -- these are not ordinary actors. These are Hollywood A-listers who were making hit films back when most of the audience for this series were still learning their ABCs and listening to Kermit sing.

The key is to remember that Hollywood remains one of the vainest "theme parks" on the planet; and in that theme park, just like in Westworld, the "hosts" (actors) are discarded after a certain age.

That is why the producers were able to snag these two for a TV series. And that is a reminder to Hollywood that age is not always the determinant of an actor's ability to work his craft.