Summary
- Black Mirror Season 7 explores fame, technology, and identity through the use of AI in a high-tech film remake.
- Brandy and Dorothy's on-screen romance turns real, leading to a tragic end with a thrilling twist.
- The episode "Hotel Reverie" blends sci-fi, drama, and romance, challenging viewers on the blurred lines of reality.
The seventh season of Black Mirror is once again effectively showing the perils of technology, but sometimes it also showcases how it could be used to evoke a certain kind of emotion. There's a huge difference between the second and third episode, and the emotions it evokes shift drastically. Moreover, it also takes viewers back to the golden era of Hollywood, where stories felt more personal.
In an era where technology blurs the lines between reality and performance, Brandy Friday—Hollywood’s golden girl—finds herself at the center of a cinematic experiment gone haywire. What begins as just another prestige role in a high-budget, high-tech remake of a forgotten vintage British film quickly transforms into something far stranger.
In this episode of Black Mirror, titled Hotel Reverie, the story moves between the past and present to explore fame, technology, and identity. The original Hotel Reverie was a black-and-white hit starring two big names of the era. Now, the studio behind it, Keyworth Studios, is struggling. Judith Keyworth (Harriet Walter) worries about funding, but Kimmy (Awkwafina) introduces her to ReDream—a software that can cast any actor, living or dead. In the present, rising star Brandy (Issa Rae) accepts a lead role in the remake. She travels to England, only to find herself inside the original film, meeting Clara (Emma Corrin) through the software. What begins as a dream job quickly turns eerie. Hotel Reverie blends sci-fi and drama with a haunting twist.
Black Mirror: Bandersnatch & Why Netflix’s Interactive Titles Didn't Last
The rise and fall of titles like Bandersnatch and why audiences never fully embraced the format. Why did Netflix's interactive films and shows fail?
What Happens in Black Mirror Season 7 Episode 3 "Hotel Reverie"?
The entire idea is pretty simple: through ReDream, Brandy enters the vintage film set and plays the lead role of Dr. Alex Palmer in the official remake of the aforementioned movie. Through computers and AI-driven technology, the film is being shot with the same narrative. In the beginning, everything was working smoothly, and the narrative was being followed wholeheartedly. Brandy, being a fan of the original movie, is stoked to be a part of this film, and meeting Dorothy Chambers, who plays the role of Clara in the movie, was a dream come true for her. But things start going haywire when one of the scenes is not filmed the way it was supposed to be, and Brandy calls Dorothy by her real name. From that point, Brandy realized that she needed to follow the storyline, and Kimmy, Judith believed that things were changing a bit because the original storyline didn't feature Alex's character calling Dorothy by her real name.
The filming continues as Brandy and Dorothy film their scenes. However, in the real world, one disastrous event changes everything. Coffee is accidentally poured on the machine that was driving the entire filming, and Kimmy loses connection with Brandy. As soon as they lose connection, everything freezes on the film set, and the only people who can talk and move are Brandy and Dorothy. Both of them were freaked out after seeing what was happening. Dorothy was feeling weird when Brandy kept on taking Kimmy's name and asking who Kimmy was. Eventually, Brandy tells her that this is a movie set, and the people here are not real, even Clara is not real. She also told her that her real name was Dorothy Chambers and that she was an actress in the black-and-white era. Although Dorothy refuses to believe what Brandy was saying, she realizes that something was weird when she couldn't remember anything about her past or even her family.
How does Black Mirror Season 7 Episode 3 "Hotel Reverie" End?
After that moment, they stopped talking to each other. However, Dorothy took the chance of getting out of that place and asked Brandy not to follow her. She took a chance to know the reality and found a way to enter a door that led to an area filled with darkness. As soon as she does that, Kimmy's team gets a notification about someone breaching the fringe, but they are not able to do anything about it. Dorothy enters the area and starts experiencing flashbacks. Those flashback sequences make Dorothy realize who she was, and she learned she was an actress. Apart from that, it was revealed that she might have had feelings for a woman who was working on the original "Hotel Reverie" film. After learning more about herself, she goes back to the film set and talks to Brandy.
While Kimmy, Judith, and the team try to get the software back, Dorothy and Brandy start talking to each other and spending time with each other. Minutes turn into hours, and hours turn into days, but Kimmy and the team were not able to solve the problem. During that time, Brandy and Dorothy form a romantic relationship and fall in love with each other. Almost a week later, Kimmy and her team are able to get the connection, and she is able to talk to Brandy. In a few minutes, they started shooting again, and for that to happen, everything had to be reset, and Dorothy would not remember anything that happened in the recent past. They shot their sequences, but Brandy was not feeling good because she really fell in love with Dorothy, and was planning to stay with her.
In the final moments of the episode, Dorothy and Brandy shoot the final sequence. However, things don't work out as per the original script. So, they change the script and instead of chasing the villain, Otto, Alex goes to the police station, and tells the senior official about the murder that will take place in a few moments. Moreover, she would diagnose his allergy, which would help him recognize Alex on the crime scene. Kimmy and Judith believe that this might work and tell Brandy about the change in the script. In the final scene, Otto is planning to kill Clara by loosening the rails of the terrace, and once she leans on it, Clara will fall to her death. However, after visiting the police station, Brandy comes onto the roof and tries to save Clara. When Brandy was overpowered by Otto, Clara shot Otto from behind, killing him right then and there. Brandy tried to take the blame for this event, but Clara took the blame on her and shot the police official too, prompting other police officers to shoot her. She dies in Brandy's arms and finally reaches the real world when she says the final dialogue, "I'll be yours, forevermore."
The movie comes out and becomes a giant streaming hit. The episode ends with Kimmy helping Brandy get in touch with Dorothy with the help of ReDream.
Season 7 of Black Mirror is streaming exclusively on Netflix.
- Release Date
- December 4, 2011
- Network
- Channel 4, Netflix
- Showrunner
- Charlie Brooker
- Directors
- Owen Harris, Toby Haynes, James Hawes, David Slade, Carl Tibbetts, Ally Pankiw, Bryn Higgins, Dan Trachtenberg, Euros Lyn, Jodie Foster, Joe Wright, John Hillcoat, Sam Miller, Tim Van Patten, Uta Briesewitz, Colm McCarthy, Jakob Verbruggen, James Watkins, John Crowley, Otto Bathurst, Anne Sewitsky, Brian Welsh
- Writers
- Jesse Armstrong
Cast
-
Cristin MiliotiNanette Cole -
Jimmi SimpsonWalton
