Metalhead

Don't listen to the complainers here - this episode is worth watching. Like USS Callister it does feel different to most Black Mirror episodes, but that shouldn't be seen as a bad thing. The black and white cinematography is well suited to this episode which has a feeling reminiscent of The Road - both post-apocalyptic with no mention of what the 'apocalypse' was, both tightly focused on one or two characters. The episode isn't a neat package but again, this is Black Mirror we're talking about - expecting a clear lesson or meaning out of it is to misunderstand the point of the show. We don't know the details of what led to this apparently post-apocalyptic world, but that doesn't matter. That isn't the focus of the episode. Maxine Peake's almost solo performance as Bella is excellent, and what she was looking for or why is never really relevant. What is relevant is her fear and determination. We know nothing about her, but we feel the tension and desperation. While some episodes of Black Mirror feel like I only observe the characters, with Metalhead I was there with Bella in the desolate unknown countryside, invested in her plight.

I don't really understand the poor reviews about this Black Mirror episode.

I see that for many this is not the most elaborated, with a complex production, a lot of effects or stuff like that and in my opinion this is exactly the point.

This is something made with little money and lots of imagination and talent, and this is exactly where the beauty of this little film stays.

You haver a few characters going to do something which looks not too difficult, which is to go to a warehouse which looks not very well watched or protected from thieves and, well, these guys look like they are going to enter the premises and take something with them with a van which looks like someone left there.

I'm not going to spoil anything or say anything to compromise it.

I say that this is the start and it looks like something very straightforward and simple, right?

Well, not so fast, you keep watching and something which looks quick, easy and simple turns into something completely different, and then is when the story starts to be fantastic, and you put yourself in the characters' shoes and, wow, just wow. Don't mind people giving poor rates to this film.

This is what a good film should be, something which keeps you grabbing your armchair on the verge of screaming and all made with a very limited budget but with a lot of imagination.

Watch this. You are not to be dissapointed, but your fingernails will if you are prone to bite them.

FANTASTIC.

Among the best so far for my taste, even in black and white. It could be some kind of a PREDATOR scheme where a group of people are tracked down by an Alien machine. The link with the new technology is different from the other episodes, which remained in a more domestic matter. Here, it is more science fiction, and action oriented, with a lone survivor fighting against the "robot" who killed all his - or her mates. It is short, compared to the other episodes, but tense, gripping and very well directed by David Blade, who gave us HARD CANDY and 30 DAYS OF NIGHT before being totally dedicated to TV industry.

How on earth is this rated so low?! It's one of my favorite episodes of action television ever. The antagonist is beautifully animated and believably unstoppable. And the black and white gives it a lovely gritty texture. Anyone who has watched a Boston dynamics video will be terrified.

Not really sure what to make of the negative reviews of this episode. For me this was the first episode of season 4 that got my attention, it was different for sure but definitely in the right way. I appreciate any film/episode that prompts me to think about what is happening and why, rather than spoon feed me every detail of the plot and over explaining the technology presented.

This episode was gritty, gripping, and well paced. It gave just enough pieces of the story to get me thinking about how things came to be and where things had evolved to. I like this type of storytelling, where just enough of it takes place in your head.

Very different than other episodes, and I for one appreciated the presentation of the genre in a completely different and terrifying way.