Streaming Review – Black Mirror: Smithereens

This one’s a gut punch, man.  One of the least “techy” of the Black Mirror installments, Smithereens nonetheless has got tech on its mind, and not in a good way.  In it, a rideshare driver named Chris (Andrew Scott) picks up Jaden (Damson Idris), an employee for Smithereens, the world’s biggest Facebook-esque social media company, and promptly kidnaps him.  Chris’ goal, his one and only demand, is to speak to Billy Bauer, the reclusive creator of the omnipresent online giant.  Chris is clearly upset by something, and matters only get worse as his plan spirals wildly out of control.  Andrew Scott is fast becoming one of my favorite actors – the guy basically reinvented Moriarty on Sherlock – and his performance here is gut-wrenching.  Smithereens is a smart, tense piece of work that reminds us our new normal of social media activity is not so normal after all, and can, in truth, harm us in ways we least expect.