Nosedive Reaction Post

Photo Credit: Black Mirror Still, Netflix 2016
Lacie holding on to her phone for inevitable rating.

Nosedive is an episode of Black Mirror that follows the life of main character Lacie, played by Bryce Dallas Howard. The setting portrays itself as a utopian world filled with pastel colors and residents always on their toes. Lacie walks us through her morning to work and we immediately see how high strung and nerve wracking things seem to truly be underneath all of the perfection.

Photo Credit: Black Mirror Still, Netflix 2016
Lacie's coworker Chester offering free smoothies to mend relationships with coworkers.

Viewers are immediately introduced to the individual rating systems and right off the bat we are plunged into a social media nightmare. Many people who have already succumbed to the pressures of social media may feel this way already, but in Nosedive, every aspect of your life is dictated by your score. The photo above shows Lacie's coworker who is desperately dipping in ranks and trying to pass out free smoothies to remedy his relationships with his coworkers. Many people don't want to give him the chance to even try because they don't want to interact with such a low score. This could be comparable to people today who truly dictate their lives and actions according to numbers of social media profiles. There are people who are so shallow and have numbers organize their friendships.

Photo Credit: Black Mirror Still, Netflix 2016
Lacie's brother Ryan ridiculing the community she's trying to move into.

However, with every socially charged citizen comes a few freethinkers and in Nosedive, this is Lacie's own brother, Ryan - shown above. Ryan doesn't care about the rating system and challenges it everyday. While he does have good intentions, Lacie continues to remind him that these numbers aren't just numbers. They dictate their lives and because of his low numbers, he isn't able to interact with certain people, get certain jobs, or live on his own. These are rude awakenings for Ryan. Many free thinkers today try to go against the status quo but how far are you willing to go before becoming completely outcasted?

The episode continues on Lacie starts making one mistake after another. She realizes how fragile her score and her emotional strength is. She eventually finds herself locked up due to her low ratings. The ending of this episode is extremely confusing but it can be interpreted in many ways.

Although Lacie is physically locked up, she no longer feels the mental barriers of the society that she had once been apart of.

The final scene in Nosedive.