Fifteen Million Merits

Tender and acid, poignant and cruel, this elegant black comedy parable of art and commerce manages to say volumes about consumerism, the commodification of dissent and the emptiness of contemporary existence in one short hour. It doesn't just give us two people; it also skillful and economically sketches an entire society and a way of life around them.

My favorite of the series, its a wonderfully plausible grim future.

Not V subtle. Yet, slickly executed, well-acted piece of entertaino-agit-prop. Only has 1hr to explore concepts so has 2 play it broad & obvious. Yet, very neat skewering of endless rat-race, consumerist, meaningless treadmill (here; stationary bike) vapid society we've chosen, built &/or stumbled asleep into. As well as bread & circuses aspect- themes of constant surveillance, unavoidable advertising flood & (US, UK Esp) credit ratings -> (a la Chinese) social scores ??

The setting is so absurd and contrived that I never get invested into the story and characters like other, more relatable Black Mirror episodes.

Clearly one of the most visually interesting Black Mirror episodes, which results in some great non-verbal storytelling.

More visually engaging and showy with its production values than 'The National Anthem', 'Fifteen Million Merits' is utterly haunting in every single facet; the warm chemistry between its two leads in the first act is depressingly contrasted with the overall hopeless, sterile, and foreboding atmosphere of this dystopian parable.

Creates an interesting and (sadly) believable dystopia in its short run time. I was a bit annoyed with the cartoony characters and all, but it's otherwise pretty much perfect. And, like the other great episodes in this series, has an amazing ending.

Probably the dumbest dystopia I've ever encountered. The economy of this world makes no sense, and everything is terribly boring.

Seen: 3.

I got bored 15 minutes in and unfortunately, this never got any better.