Netflix takes interactive storytelling to the next level with ‘Black Mirror: Bandersnatch’
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Charlie Brooker has used his Black Mirrorseries to address all sorts of flaws and intrigues about humanity in the technology age, but never so blatantly as in the latest instalment: Bandersnatch.
The interactive film offers viewers various instances of multiple choice, which can drastically change the outcome of the ending. It also changes the running time: some audience members may reach a conclusion in 40 minutes. For others, it could take two hours.
We decided to liveblog one writer’s experience of the episode (obvious spoilers ahead) as they decided the actions of lead character Stefan (Fionn Whitehead), who attempts to create a video game based on a fantasy novel written by an author who went mad as he was writing it.
“Bandersnatch”was referred to in an episode of Black Mirror season 3. In “Playtest”, starring Wyatt Russell, the front cover of Edge magazine indicates that there is a review of “Bandersnatch”inside. In the scene, Sonja uses the magazine to encourage Cooper to take a mysterious job with video game company SaitoGemu.
(Spoilers ahead)
The episode opens with Stefan at home with his father, a widow, offering him a choice of breakfast cereal (the first decision the user is faced with). From there, he travels to an interview with a games company so he can pitch his idea for a game adaptation of the multiple choice novel, "Bandersnatch", which was written by a man who descended into madness as he completed it.
At the office, he is introduced to Colin Ritman (Coulter), Stefan's hero, and a man with whom you can have either a lot or barely any interaction with, depending on the choices you make. Throughout the film there are loops that guide you back to the correct narrative if you stray too far, such as when Stefan is asked whether he wants to work in the office or at home, on his own. The home option is preferred as it leads to Stefan's own slow descent into madness as he becomes obsessed with completing "Bandersnatch".
As he works, he becomes more and more irritated by interruptions from his father, and trips to his therapist. You can learn during therapy (as we did in this version of the story) that his mother died in a train crash after Stefan caused her to miss an earlier train – an event that likely triggered his current mental health issues.
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It transpired that we managed to jump on one of the speedier narratives for the film, which comes to a rather gory conclusion when Stefan bludgeons his father to death, but manages to complete the game. "Bandersnatch" is released to rave reviews, as a current-day news report informs us that Stefan was later arrested and charged with his father's murder.
This writer was slightly sceptical at how Netflix is managing to get viewers to watch the episode countless times to see the various endings... meaning mega streams for them. At first the interactions are fun, but the constant interruptions to the story as you're asked to make yet another decision on Stefan's behalf can become quite wearisome, and if anything it pulls you out of the story rather than allowing you to become engrossed in it.
Netflix says of the new interactive film: “There are choices to be made, challenges to overcome, dangers to encounter and, as always in life (and Black Mirror), consequences to be had. Choosing wisely could lead to triumph while taking the wrong path could end in disaster – but who’s to say what’s ‘right’ and ‘wrong’, anyway? And fret not because once one experience comes to a close, you can – and should! – go back and make a new choice, alter the path of your story and maybe even change its outcome.”
The liveblog has now closed.
Netflix also confirmed that there are “five main endings with multiple variants of each”... although fans could uncover more depending on the choices they make, allowing for a little extra mystery.
Stefan is being introduced to Colin Ritman, a video games designer he idolises. Colin is played by the brilliant Will Coulter, who's doing a grand job as a slacker tech nerd with a roll-up perpetually dangling out of his mouth.
New choice! Stefan got offered a job at Tuckersoft. I made him refuse, even though he looked REALLY excited by the offer, because he seems like a loner and I'm not sure if he could handle the carnage that is an open-plan office. It seems to be paying off: Colin thinks it's a good idea. "A bit of madness is what you need," he says. Uh oh.
I'm not entirely convinced about the idea of an interactive film. With this, obviously it serves the plot because you follow Stefan as he works out a game where the entire premise is that it offers the user different options. Charlie Brooker has also delved into ideas around passive viewing, and interactive choices, in previous Black Mirror episodes – like the one where the public demands the prime minister performs obscenities with a pig to rescue a kidnapped princess. So by creating a fully interactive episode, you're forcing your viewer to fully engage with the film.
I was just offered the choice to talk about Stefan's mother. Obviously I'm quite interested to know what happens (she died when he was young). Turns out she had to catch a late train because five-year-old Stefan didn't want to go with her, and she boarded one that crashed.
His therapist just told him we have to learn to live with the consequences of our decisions. HOW META. Obviously the whole point of this exercise is that we get to go back and explore different alternatives based on varying choices we make.
Picking out some vinyl now based on Colin's recommendations. I went for Phaedra, an album by the German electronic music group Tangerine Dream. I'm segueing a lot here but it's interesting that you get to pick an album where there was absolutely no room for failure – if the band mucked up, anything they'd done previously was lost, and they weren't able to go back and change things because there were no pre-sets or memory banks at the time.
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