Black Mirror (Season 6)

Creator: Charlie Brooker
Starring: Annie Murphy, Salma Hayek, Michael Cera, Myha’la Herrold, Samuel Blenkin, Daniel Portman, Monica Dolan, John Hannah, Aaron Paul, Josh Hartnett, Kate Mara, Auden Thornton, Rory Culkin, Zazie Beetz, Clara Rugaard, Danny Ramirez, Anjana Vasan, Paapa Essiedu
Original Airdate: 2023

★★★ ½ (out of ★★★★)

Once counted among Netflix's earliest successes, Charlie Brooker's technology themed British anthology series Black Mirror hasn't aired since 2019's underwhelming 3-episode fifth season. And that's assuming you'd consider such a small amount of content a season at all. This followed 2018's interactive, "choose your own adventure" feature Bandersnatch, which garnered a mixed response, leaving viewers wondering if the series could recapture its former glory, which peaked with the third season's Emmy-winning "San Junipero."

While that episode (and to a lesser extent, season four's "USS Callister") has justifiably been cited as a series high, let's not kid ourselves into thinking consistency has been its key strength, with length and pacing issues leading to some real stinkers along the way. But now after a production rights battle had even its creator expressing uncertainty about further seasons and what incarnation those could take, it's finally back.

The good news is that this sixth season sees the series retaining much of what originally worked, while still managing to go in wildly clever new directions. Even if five episodes still doesn't feel like enough, there is a cohesiveness to the storytelling that's been lacking for a long time. Discussions and arguments will undoubtedly break out over the subjective rankings of these episodes, but at least that debate has rarely felt this purposeful. 

Less acceptable is the complaint this "isn't Black Mirror" because it supposedly skews too far from its original intentions. In actuality, this change is a relief, as the show often tripped up by shoehorning outrageous plots into its tech-themed premise rather than organically incorporating them. This new batch is given a little more room the breathe, leaning into the sci-fi, horror and dystopian elements that first invoked all those Rod Serling comparisons. And you wonder whether we'd even be hearing those criticisms if word hadn't leaked that Brooker was planning a "Red Mirror" horror anthology that was intended to showcase the season's final entry. 

These five episodes could be viewed as two halves, with a meditative psychological drama sandwiched in the middle. The season starts in slightly familiar territory before moving to darker places that deviate unexpectedly from the show's tangentially shared universe. One of the installments feels like a miscalculation, a couple linger in the mind longer than others, but it all still fits together really well, offering up a little something for everyone.

In the opener, "Joan is Awful," Annie Murphy gives a tour de force comedic turn as tech CEO Joan, who  discovers the very recent events of her life are unfolding on screen for the world to see in a new "Streamberry" series starring Salma Hayek (played by Salma Hayek). This is easily the lightest, most playful episode of the bunch, not to mention the funniest. And nearly all of it can be attributed to Murphy's wacky turn as Joan, a woman overwhelmed by awkwardly firing employees at the board's will before coming home to safe, but boring boyfriend Krish (Avi Nash). 

Between Joan's trips to her therapist and a temptation to cheat with returning ex Mac (Rob Delaney), the revelation that all of this has been adapted into a series causes humiliating embarrassment on a grand scale. Luckily, she has a plan to get the show cancelled that may or may not involve Hayek and a really disgusting public act. What works best is how the story peels back a few more layers than you'd think, capped it all off with a fun final twist that plants it firmly alongside other similarly themed Black Mirror episodes covering technology's trappings. 

Netflix also really skewers itself here, showing a surprising amount of self-awareness, with Brooker's script humorously taking aim at their "terms and conditions" and greedy business model. In tackling the issue of AI and CGI replacing actors and writers, it's one of the timelier episodes, capped off by a memorably uproarious Michael Cera cameo.   

The second episode, "Loch Henry," finds film student couple Davis (Samuel Blenkin) and Pia (Myha’la Herrold) traveling to his quaint Scottish hometown to visit his widowed mother Janet (Monica Dolan) and shoot footage for their documentary on a local conservationist. But during a stop at the bar owned by Davis's childhood friend, Stuart (Daniel Portman), a far more sordid subject piques Pia's interest

Daniel tells Pia the story of local murderer Iain Adair, who was responsible for the torture and deaths of numerous tourists in the '90's, resulting in the shooting of Davis's late policeman father Kenneth (Gregor Firth) and the town's decades-long decline. Despite Davis's obvious discomfort, Pia convinces him to focus their film on this, doing the research and even visiting the scene for additional footage. But since crime documentaries are a dime a dozen, they'll need a hook for it to stand out from the pack, And boy do they ever get one. 

When this starts you're unsure what the goal is, at least until Pia convinces Davis to shift course and an incredible musical montage featuring Melanie's "People in the Front Row" signifies they're off to the races. Blenkin and Herrold build on their natural chemistry, while a subtle Dolan convinces as a mother willingly participating to keep her husband's memory alive. 

Of all the episodes, this contains the biggest twist. And for every viewer saying they saw it coming will be others totally taken aback. What really matters is whether it lands, as this unquestionably does, with Brooker turning his retro VHS camcorder on Netflix's taste for true crime exploitation and the viewers' willingness to join in for entertainment's sake. 

"Beyond The Sea," takes place in an alternate 1969, with astronauts Cliff (Aaron Paul) and David (Josh Hartnett) aboard a ship on a six-year space mission. In between medical physicals and repairs, their consciousnesses are transferred to artificial replicas of themselves on Earth, enabling both to spend time with their respective families.. 

While the emotionally distant Cliff lives quietly off the grid in an idyllic rural farm house with wife Lana (Kate Mara) and their son, David settles in California, making him a more recognizable celebrity. But when tragedy strikes and replicant David and his family are targeted by a violent, Manson-like hippie cult, Lana suggests Cliff lend distraught, depressed David his replica so he can unwind back at their home. As David's trips become more frequent, he becomes unhealthily attached to a life that isn't his. 

Going on cast and premise alone, this seemed a likely frontrunner for the season's best going in. And even while that designation is arguable, few could claim it disappoints. Running a robust 80 minutes, it's the longest episode, but a meditative slow burn that perfectly suits the material's melancholic tone. There's a mesmerizing, contemplative quality to how it all unfolds, thanks largely to John Crowley's steady direction and the impressive production design that goes into creating both the shuttle and Earth-bound 60's settings. It's 2001: A Space Odyssey meets Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, as its story wrestles with some heady sci-fi themes that are only bolstered by three terrific central performances.

Paul and Hartnett are devastating in their roles, with the former pulling off the tricky job of playing both Cliff and David, going home first as Cliff before sporadically returning as David occupying Cliff's body. It's sort of a Face/Off-like scenario with Paul never leaving doubt as to which character he's inhabiting, completely adjusting his mannerisms, speech and physicality to match each. And Mara doesn't have it easy either, having to react differently to both while struggling with Lana's guilt in finding David more attentive and engaged than her actual husband. 

After seemingly years away, Hartnett returns in a major role and is also apparently now five times the actor he was, capturing the loneliness, anger and jealousy of a man who's lost everything. Believing Cliff doesn't appreciate what he has, David walks up to the edge of madness before crossing that line into the unthinkable, perhaps damning both of them to share in their own separate hell together. You may generally know where Brooker's headed from the start, but this Twilight Zone-inspired morality play will benefit from repeated viewings, satisfying the most cynical series purists with its brutal ending.

In "Mazey Day," increasingly disillusioned celebrity photographer Bo (Zazie Beetz) gets a tip that missing actress Mazey Day (Clara Rugaard) may be hiding out nearby following a hit-and-run overseas. Despite recently quitting the paparazzi game, she knows photos of the starlet could command a lot of cash. Looking to dig herself out of a financial hole, she follows some leads to locate Mazey, with disastrous consequences. 

The season's shortest episode is also its most underwhelming by a large margin, testing the theory that less is necessarily more with Black Mirror. From a technical standpoint, it's fine, but despite the next entry demonstrating how the show can successfully dip into unchartered territory, there just isn't a lot of purpose behind this, regardless of genre.   

Brooker setting the action in 2006 is smart since the very idea of a celebrity "disappearing" in the current age of social media is close to impossible, especially following a vehicular assault. The paparazzi was also at their most venomous during this era so that helps in setting the stage for what could have been a promising look at media obsession. Unfortunately, this takes a lesser route that isn't poorly executed, but just very run-of-the-mill. 

After making that hard narrative pivot, the intrigue comes to a sudden halt, leaving us with an entertaining diversion in search of something larger to say. Beetz makes an effective lead but can't overcome the deflation of that sudden detour, which leaves a potentially better story on the table in favor of shocks and gore.

A beautifully bleak opening set to Art Garfunkel's "Bright Eyes," begins the final episode, "Demon 79," which takes place in a small English town of Tipley, circa 1979. It follows meek, mild mannered department store associate Nida (Anjana Vasan) into work where she puts up with a prejudiced co-worker (Katherine Rose Morley) and boss (Nick Holder). Despite fleeting daydreams of enacting violent revenge, she remains composed and polite, quietly suffering as further anti-immigrant rhetoric is spewed outside the door by campaigning conservative politician Michael Smart (David Shields). 

When Nida takes home a mysterious wooden talisman from the store's basement, she inadvertently  unleashes an aspiring demon named Gaap (Paapa Essiedu), who appears in the human form of Boney M. band member Bobby Farrell. Told she has to make three human sacrifices before May Day or the world will end, she's suddenly faced with some monumental choices as the clock winds down. While definitely not a murderer, the skeptical Nida will need Gaap's help to learn quickly, assuming the fate of the world does really lay in her hands.

This joins "Beyond The Sea" as the best directed episodes of the season, as Vasan's heartbreaking turn proves to be the real draw here, with the actress nothing short of extraordinary in depicting the emotional stages this shy woman goes through, even before this supernatural entity appears. While its premise draws heavy parallels to the recent Knock at the Cabin, a better thematic comparison might be the classic Twilight Zone episode, "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street," at least in terms of its examination of "otherness" and xenophobia. 

Gaap believes Nida's been chosen because she's a good person, but also an easily corruptible one. And you see that aspect peeking through every corner of Vasan's performance, which has her character torn between doing what's dutifully expected and finally taking a stand. The comedic banter between Vasan and Essiedu keeps everything rolling, but her fear and anger is palpable when it starts seeping through to the surface.

It's one thing to talk about preemptively doing the world a favor by killing someone like Hitler, but not as easy to actually go through with when you're the person swinging that hammer. While the possibility of Nida being mentally ill hangs over this story like a specter, Brooker and co-writer Bisha K. Ali realize what such a decision would mean, ultimately staying true to their original conceit without undermining it. Divisive as this episode is, it's ironic that an homage to 70's British horror devoid of modern technology further illuminates how challenging perceptions has always been the series' biggest strength.   

The Martian

Director: Ridley Scott
Starring: Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig, Jeff Daniels, Michael Peña, Kate Mara, Sean Bean, Sebastian Stan, Aksel Hennie, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Donald Glover, Benedict Wong, Mackenzie Davis
Running Time: 141 min.
Rating: PG-13

★★★ (out of ★★★★) 

When The Martian hunkers down and seriously focuses in on the nuts and bolts of its story, it's great, gripping entertainment that's almost worth every bit of praise thrown its way. When it doesn't and gets sidetracked with silly jokes and comedy, the filmmakers strive for less than what they should, perhaps out of concern audiences will be turned off by a heavy dose of science and space physics. This is one of those films where a hearty recommendation will seem like a pan because of the talented involved and expectations going in. But make no mistake about the fact that this is a strong film, and for director Ridley Scott, easily his best in years. While its problems may prevent me from fully joining in with those hailing it a "return to form," at least most of the framework is present for it to deserve that designation. There's something besides an astronaut that gets lost along the way, preventing this from ascending to the heights it should with this strong a set-up and central performance powering it.

Based on Andy Weir's 2011 novel, the film centers around astronaut and botanist Mark Watney (Matt Damon), who's part of the Ares III manned mission to Mars, led by commander Melissa Lewis (Jessica Chastain), and including pilot Rick Martinez (Michael Peña), systems operator Beth Johanssen (Kate Mara),  flight surgeon Dr. Chris Beck (Sebastian Stan) and navigator and chemist Dr. Alex Vogel (Aksel Hennie). It's on Sol 18 of their 31 Sol expedition when a dust storm hits, forcing them to evacuate and leaving a believed to be dead Watney on Mars.

Rationing what food he has and taking up shelter in the crew's surface base, Watney uses his botanical knowledge to grow potatoes and hopefully survive until the Ares IV crew arrives in four years. But back on Earth, satellite planner Mindy Park (Mackenzie Davis) discovers photos revealing Watney has survived and it's up to Mars mission director Vincent Kapoor (Chiwetel Ejiofor) to establish contact and formulate a rescue plan with the help of JPL director and engineer Bruce Ng (Benedict Wong). This is all in the face of potential PR nightmare for NASA director Teddy Sanders (Jeff Daniels), who not only has to inform the public of this situation, but the Aries III crew on their way home. What develops is a tight race against time with Watney's life on line, as well as whomever is assigned the dangerous task of retrieving him.

The Martian's opening hour is its strongest because it might be the only point where we legitimately have no idea what could happen, as the audience is left observing Watney in this perilous predicament as he comes up with solutions to extend his survival. He keeps a video log, which is also an ingenious idea because it gives us kind of a running commentary on the action and adds a lot some humor in a stretch of story when its most needed, both for the protagonist and viewers. Later on the comedy becomes a problem but here it isn't because Damon is a complete natural at sliding it in and finding just the right tone to play this guy, who we hardly know anything about because we don't need to. His performance takes care of everything, including frequent hard science-filled soliloquies to the video camera, which never failed to completely hold my attention.

The surface of the planet and cinematography also look great, likely in part because they were filmed in Jordan rather than a Hollywood sound stage. The space scenes have a similarly realistic feel and it's a relief that we do notice the toll all of this takes on Watney, both through Damon's weight loss and the fact that he suffers what seems like appropriate injuries from the physical ordeal he's put through. Ridley Scott definitely did his homework. And what might be the most impressive aspect of Drew Goddard's script is how little we know about Watney the person, forsaking the type of heart-tugging backstory that undermined Gravity's efforts. They just let Damon do his job, and does he ever, letting us know everything necessary about him through his carefully thought out actions to insure survival.     

It's when the action shifts to NASA that issues start to arise and what started as an intriguing character study shifts into something less captivating, with an outcome that isn't even the slightest bit in doubt. Not just the "what" but exactly the "how" is telegraphed pretty early, leaving the remainder of its two-and-a-half hour run time to be filled with bureaucratic arguing and comedy. A number of rescue scenarios are brought up only to be shot down until another one is explored, before again being shot down. It's almost as if Goddard's screenplay over-explains and justifies every little decision just to cover itself. They talk about how this will work because of that or that will work because of this, only to have Jeff Daniels' NASA director say it just can't be done because of x, y or z. For a far more rewarding Daniels performance this year in a faintly similar role, watch his award-worthy turn in Steve Jobs, delivering material that deftly avoids the cliches he's forced to trudge through here as a disapproving boss rejecting everything simply because the script requires it.

And at the risk of exaggerating, it felt as if there were about fifty scenes exactly like that aforementioned one, broken up only by jokes, clever one-liners or, at worst, moments of broad comedy that seem to have come from another film entirely. Take, for instance, Donald Glover's astrodynamicist who takes a pratfall on the floor in the middle of a dramatic scene for no good reason at all. It takes us right out of the story, creating an unnecessary headwind that prevents anyone from fully investing in what's supposed to be this life or death situation. Some levity is fine, and in the case of some of Damon's scenes even welcome, but I'm not sure how many times I need to be reminded either through dialogue or the soundtrack that Jessica Chastain's character listens to bad 70's music. Ironically enough, among NASA's stuffed suits and lab coats, Kristen Wiig gives the most serious performance in small role as their media relations director.  

The ending, as inevitable as it may be, is handled well, largely because when the script is focused on the retrieval of this character and the moral questions facing the crew that left him, it's firing on all cylinders. If anything, more time should have been spent on the latter, but the scenes we do get of it are no-nonsense and contemplative, held together by Chastain, who couldn't make a mockery of this material even if she tried. There's a point when the Ares III team have to make an important (if predictable) decision and weigh the pros and cons in a scene that contains the thoughtfulness and drama I wish were invested in some of the more jokey NASA scenes on Earth.

It's preferable to focus on the many things this does well since that's easier to explain, but there's still that nagging feeling. You know the one. It's when either the filmmakers or studio just can't seem to get out of the movie's way and trust what they have. Had they done that, this really would deserve to be mentioned in the conversations it currently is. Still, it's an enjoyable survival in space adventure that's more deserving of comparisons to Gravity than Interstellar. But while the latter earned its exorbitant running length with the sheer scope of its story and ambitions, The Martian isn't interested in those bigger questions that would put it in its company. That this got the full endorsement of NASA is interesting on a number of levels, not the least of which involves the fictionalized depiction of their employees. It works, just on a level that's more entertaining than suspenseful or thought provoking.  

It's not a backhanded a compliment to label the The Martian as enjoyable mainstream entertainment Scott pastes together with impressive technical prowess, meticulous attention to scientific detail, and most of all, Damon's committed performance. But to uncover what's holding it back, you needn't look further than its bewildering Golden Globe nomination for Best Musical/Comedy. While that controversial categorization is clearly a stretch, there are far too many instances when you're wondering whether its inclusion is really as big a leap as it seems.            

House of Cards (Season One)

Creator: Beau Willimon
Starring: Kevin Spacey, Robin Wright, Kate Mara, Corey Stoll, Michael Kelly, Sakina Jaffrey, Kristen Connolly, Constance Zimmer, Sebastian Arcelus, Sandrine Holt, Michael Gill, Dan Ziskie, Ben Daniels
Original Airdate: 2013

★★★ ½ (out of ★★★★)

There's a scene that comes late into the inaugural season of Netflix's House of Cards where House Majority Whip and South Carolina congressman Francis "Frank" Underwood (Kevin Spacey) convinces the buffoonish Vice President Matthews (Dan Ziskie) to do something that can best be described as completely insane. It's hard to even believe we're listening to it, much less that the sitting V.P. of the United States would actually consider it as a serious option. But we do believe it. Frank's so persuasive it almost makes perfect sense, becoming clear that every manipulative move he's made from the very beginning has been building to it. Based on the acclaimed BBC miniseries and produced by The Ides of March screenwriter Beau Willimon and executive produced by David Fincher, House of Cards can't be accused of not living up to its title. One move leads to another and then to another until it's infected every facet of government and reaches the highest level possible, causing the house of cards to come toppling down. It's about control and manipulation, anticipating actions and reactions while adjusting accordingly. It's one man's plan to rise to the top of the food chain and take control from the inside-out, even if that means running over everyone in his path.

House of Cards Opening Title Card

You'd have to go all the way back to Kevin Spacey's Oscar winning turn as Lester Burnham in American Beauty to find a role he's been able to tear into like this. And he just chews into it like a juicy steak, reminding everyone just how gifted an actor he is when handed exceptional material. And the supporting players are just as impressive, with many underappreciated actors and actresses being afforded a golden opportunity and taking full advantage. The show isn't exactly perfect, but comes pretty close. There's nothing new or groundbreaking about its story of Washington corruption and calling it The West Wing on steroids wouldn't be completely off base. Where it exceeds expectations is in delivery and execution. The direction, cinematography, performances, production design and even the soundtrack are first class, making for intelligent, gripping entertainment that could compete with anything today on basic cable. No one can claim Netflix didn't go all out here, recruiting top talent in front and behind the camera for their first major foray into scripted original programming. And it really shows.

The series starts slowly, with the first two episodes directed rather cinematically by Fincher. What's most intriguing is how those episodes look and feel exactly like you'd imagine a TV series directed by David Fincher would look and feel like with seemingly no obvious compromises made for the medium. At times it almost feels as if you were watching Zodiac or The Social Network on the small screen, but set in the capital. Fincher's chilly visual style permeates through the rest of the season, even as other talented directors like James Foley, Joel Schumacher and Allen Coulter take over the reigns for the remaining episodes with no drop in quality whatsoever. If anything, their episodes are probably stronger since so much set-up and establishing has to be done early that the show gets off to a methodical start that's sure to play even better when you revisit it. It's a slow burn that doesn't grab hold immediately or necessarily cause you to plow through the season at furious, breakneck pace. It plants seeds for what's to come, even if at first glance it appears that the characters could turn out to be unlikable cliches. That fear is squashed  after only a couple of episodes as the Shakespearean drama starts to unfold and the writing and performances lift the characters beyond that.

Reporter Zoe Barnes (Kate Mara) breaks a story

After being passed over by the President Walker (Michael Gill) for Secretary of State, the charismatically scheming Frank Underwood sets in motion a complicated, but brilliant plan for revenge with his ambitious, ice queen wife Claire (Robin Wright) and loyal chief of staff Doug Stamper (Michael Kelly) by his side. There are two major pawns in his game. One is a young Washington Herald reporter Zoe Barnes (Kate Mara) who's more than willing to cut a deal with Frank as an inside source to make a name for herself, and Pennsylvania congressman Pete Russo (Corey Stoll), who's tapped by Frank for Governor despite his battles with drugs and alcohol and the fact he's carrying on a secret relationship with his secretary Christina Gallagher (Kristen Connolly). Russo becomes Frank's pet project and the scenes involving him trying to clean this troubled candidate up for a run at office count among the season's strongest.

Equally compelling and driving the narrative is Frank's relationship with Claire, which more closely resembles a business venture than a loving marriage. Yet in some ways it's both as they conspire together to further each others goals, which sometimes conflict when his Machiavellian scheming gets in the way of her trying to successfully run her non-profit organization. Taking cues from the original BBC version, Frank often breaks the fourth wall to turn to the camera and make the audience co-conspirators. Sometimes it's to let us in on his diabolical plans, but mostly it's to make hilariously sarcastic asides. This could have been very pretentious (and the first few episodes I had my worries) but they get funnier and more revealing as each show passes to the point that I eventually conceded the device works really well. Much of why hinges on Spacey's enthusiastic delivery, as he truly looks like he's having the time of his life drolly selling these lines.

Frank and Claire Underwood (Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright)

Spacey makes it almost impossible to dislike Frank by playing him so charmingly and charismatically that you fall into a similar trap the characters do. He doesn't so much manipulate people as trick those he needs into manipulating themselves. And many of them aren't stupid. Wright's Claire never feels like she's just along for the ride, often coming off as cold-blooded as he, if not worse, since emotions rarely pierce through her steely exterior (her reaction to a character's mid-season deathbed confession is particularly disturbing). Even when fighting over political leverage or extra-marital affairs the actors slyly make it feel as if they're still teammates disagreeing on the exact means they'll use to win. Both have skeletons in their closets and the writers are careful to reveal just enough, but not too much, such as when Frank returns to his alma mater where a new library is erected in his name. What results is the season's most revealing episode and Spacey's finest work, as Washington politics are temporarily put on the backburner to take a breather and explore the character of this man we've grown to simultaneously appreciate, respect and despise. Then it's back to business.

The series' take on the changing face of print media and journalism is timely if nothing else, resulting in some intentionally (and unintentionally) humorous scenes involving newspaper editors refusing to change with the tweeting times while stubbornly holding steadfast to "hard news." My biggest worry early on was the familiarity of Kate Mara's blogger Zoe, but she skillfully sidesteps a potential stereotype with a clever mixture of bratty entitlement and almost child-like innocence, playing her as professionally on point but personally inept. She'll do anything to advance her career and making a deal (the nature of which I won't spoil, but you can guess) with the devil himself, Frank Underwood, is quickest way to do it. With first Rooney and now Kate (who really displays quite a range here), Fincher can't complain he hasn't gotten his money's worth out of the Mara sisters.

Corey Stoll is doomed Pennsylvania congressman Pete Russo

The season's major sub-plot involving Pete Russo's run for governor is so compelling, and Corey Stoll's performance so revelatory, that it shows up nearly everything else in the series. Despite his weaknesses for drugs, alcohol and hookers, he's strangely the most moral character. We think we're in for another arrogant jerk, but Stoll (best known for playing Ernest Hemingway in Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris) digs surprisingly deep, revealing an essentially decent, honest guy who wants to do the right thing by his constituents and family but is being sabotaged at every corner, sometimes by himself, but mostly by others wanting to prop him up for their own advantage. Frank smells his vulnerability and is more than willing to exploit it in order to make him a political puppet.

In a series full of characters whose misfortunes are almost always well deserved, Stoll still succeeds in extracting a high level of sympathy for Russo in a performance that, assuming it qualifies, is more than worthy of a supporting Emmy nomination. A practically unrecognizable Kristen Connolly, who hardly left an impression on me starring in The Cabin The Woods last year, makes a far more memorable mark here as Russo's staffer and girlfriend Christina, whose loyalty and determination lift what could have a the most cliched of relationships into a genuine partnership we end up invested in. Her and Stoll work together so well it's hard imagining their characters even functioning without each another.

Anyone hoping for closure to the major story arc this season may as well go elsewhere, as a "to be continued..." title card may as well have flashed on the screen at the end of the finale. If there's any flaw in the season, it's that a major game-changing event occurs before we reach the end and after that some steam is lost heading toward the finish. Ironically, the very beginning and very end of the season just might be the weakest (if such a word could even be used) sections while everything in between is downright phenomenal.There's really two ways to approach writing a TV series. You can either go the self-contained route and tell a different story each season or you make the entire run of the series an ongoing saga. It's apparent Fincher's going The Breaking Bad route of telling one story stretched over time, which is becoming  an increasingly popular approach in this golden age of serialized dramas.

David Fincher directs Kevin Spacey and Kate Mara

While much fuss has been made about this being Netflix's first major foray into scripted original programming, their distribution model of unloading an entire season at once won't feel new to anyone who's been binging on their favorite shows, or maybe discovering new ones, for the past couple of years. If there's any adjusting to be done for the viewer, it's getting used to these episodes being labeled by chapter numbers rather than actual titles, which sometimes creates confusion when trying to reference a specific episode, but further recreates the feeling you're watching one long movie. This approach definitely feels more convenient than ever, but would mean nothing if the quality wasn't there. But it is. And for a change it's nice to see a show's success or failure judged on merit rather than ratings.   

127 Hours

Director: Danny Boyle
Starring: James Franco, Amber Tamblyn, Kate Mara, Clemence Poesy, Lizzy Caplan, Treat Williams, Kate Burton
Running Time: 94 min.
Rating: R

★★★ ½ (out of ★★★★)

There's a moment in 127 Hours when adventurer Aron Ralston tells himself to keep it together as he passes the 24-hour mark in an isolated canyon with his arm pinned under a boulder, and it revealingly might be the only piece of advice anyone needs to remember in a life or death situation like that. Through sheer will and determination he'll hang on for 5 days until doing the unthinkable to finally free himself. "Could I do it?" is the question most likely to be on everyone's mind when the credits roll and the most compelling aspect of the film is how it makes you look inside for the answer. In trying to solve the riddle of sustaining maximum interest in a single location survival story where we already know the ending, director Danny Boyle uses a whole bag of tricks to tell it, but what surprised me most was just how little that bothered me. It fits the story's tone well and when the sounds and images are this technically impressive and memorable (many unshakable long after the film's conclusion) he's entitled to a little showing off. But who most entitles him to it is James Franco, easily one of the most likable and talented actors working today, showing everyone what he's got by responding with the performance of his life.

Based on the Ralston's autobiography, Between a Rock and a Hard Place, the film depicts 27 year-old Aaron's (Franco) April 2003 hike in Utah's Blue Rock Canyon where after helping out lost hikers Megan (Amber Tamblin) and Kristi (Kate Mara), he falls through a crevice, a heavy boulder tumbling on top of him and trapping his arm. With little water and even less food he's forced to come up with ways to not only prolong his life, but keep his sanity as he starts to physically and mentally deteriorate. With a small camcorder among his few belongings, Aaron records his thoughts and feelings on the situation, which turns into a kind of a video will for his family. After exhausting all reasonable options to escape he's finally forced to use the cheap, dull knife he got as a present from mom in a way he couldn't have anticipated.

Academy Award winning director Danny Boyle pulls out all the stops using split screen, voice-overs, flashbacks, flash-forwards, dream sequences, montages and odd musical selections. The best thing about these hallucinatory sequences (aside from their obvious visual intensity) is their lack of context, with one so mysterious and mesmerizing it may have actually been better off without the full-on explanation it gets at the end. And without knowing you'd probably be able to guess this was made by the director of Slumdog Millionaire since the colorful, eye-popping prologue sequence, the score and the visual and storytelling style throughout are almost identical to that film. That's of little surprise when you consider Boyle's team of screenwriter Simon Beaufoy, cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle (who deserves to be nominated again here) and composer A.R. Rahman reunited for this. It's overly reductive to say he remakes that movie in a canyon considering the differing subject matter, but a direct comparison (which actually favors this film) is called for and anyone who sees it would agree. I do think this will play better for those who haven't seen Slumdog, or did, but haven't a clue that the same person made it. In Boyle's defense, when you have to tell a exciting 90 minute story of someone stuck under a boulder, you almost have to make some wild stylistic choices and few very filmmakers would have made them work as interestingly as he.

Since the book covered Ralston's entire life rather than only those 127 hours, that portion still had to somehow be conveyed on screen, even if I can't help but wonder what we would have gotten if his original wish to have this optioned as a docudrama came to pass, sparing us the bells and whistles Boyle provides. Would the story be more or less moving? Would it be any different from a National Geographic or Discovery Channel reenactment?  The only thing we know for sure either way is the pure power of Franco's performance, creating Aaron from the inside-out, his words and actions shedding light on how the character finally arrives at the mental place necessary to make the brave decision that saves him, as well as the series of mistakes that led him there. When Aaron says he feels as if that boulder was waiting for him his entire life we completely believe it and understand what he means because of Franco. Aaron starts the film as as a cocky, free-spirited adventurer and ends it as a different person entirely but Franco has no problems getting us to root for him right away (he's also very funny, especially in the video diary scenes). This movie is his show and aside from him, not many others get screen time, though it's worth noting that Tamblyn and Mara aren't easily forgotten after they've left. As for the infamous self amputation scene, it's definitely graphic but not gratuitous and feels more like an emotional release or the culmination of a journey than anything overtly gross or disgusting. Anyone who thinks they can't watch it (some audiences have reportedly passed out) can remind themselves Ralston brought himself to somehow DO IT without passing out, which kind of puts things in perspective.

It's tough bringing a true-life survival story like this to the screen but even tougher when it's ending is uplifting and inspiring and Boyle does lay it on pretty thick in the final minutes. Comparisons to the more tragic Into The Wild come to mind as the film races by, even if that really wasn't a survival story, but something more. And in a way this is more too as the careless protagonist also has to discover he really can't go at everything alone. My only minor quibble is that when so much is happening technically you runs the risk of remembering all the things the movie does before the story. A couple of years and a few more viewings should determine whether I'm wrong. 127 Hours is almost exactly as great as I expected it to be. No better, no worse. But the most impressive thing about it is how much is constantly going on in a story where you wouldn't expect anything can.