Black Mirror: Eulogy, Champagne And The Importance Of Lining Your Stomach
Not being funny but a plate of carbs might have saved Phillip's entire life
What to watch tonight: Black Mirror series 7, episode 5 – Eulogy (Netflix)
Almost 15 years (yikes) into the dystopian world that is the Black Mirror anthology series, and co-creators Charlie Brooker and Annabel Jones can never really escape the spectre of this tweet:
Series seven, which streams from today, is once again a bit of a mixed bag which won’t do much to dispel comments like the above, but that’s not to say it’s not enjoyable to watch.
Common People will raise a bit of a grim chuckle of recognition – a character is offered a free, life-saving medical procedure from a medical-tech disruptor company; only to find herself spouting adverts for coffee and viagra when her and her husband can’t afford the price-gouging increase of the system keeping her alive.
Plaything – with Peter Capaldi, and the return of Will Poulter as Colin Ritman – is an equally silly premise, but amusing; and about a Minion-like computer game called Thronglets who become sentient and want to take over humanity. Stay tuned for the end credits of this one, there’s a QR code that allows you to download and play Thronglets on your phone, which my 8-year-old is currently obsessed with (despite not being allowed to watch the actual episode — it’s not exactly kid-friendly like Kevin, Stuart and Bob).
USS Callister: Into Infinity is fine, if you like that kind of campy sci-fi pastiche type thing (I don’t, but appreciated the nod to Real Housewives of Atlanta in it), but the real standout for this series, and the one episode that you have to watch is episode five, called Eulogy. Like San Junipero or Be Right Back before it, Eulogy pulls on the emotional heartstrings with a story about grief and loss, as an embittered man, Phillip (an absolutely incredible performance from Paul Giamatti) is forced to reexamine the great love in his life – and what went wrong.
As I wrote about today and in more depth for BBC Culture, Black Mirror is at its best when the technology is one part of the story, not the point of the story. So while the small, round ‘Eulogy’ digital chip that’s placed on his head allowing him to literally jump inside old photos is pretty spectacular – mainly real life actors stood still like statues apparently, plus a little CGI here and there – it’s Phillip’s realisation that maybe his ex-girlfriend, Carol, wasn’t the villain in his story that’s most powerful here. Maybe the story he’d angrily been telling himself for 30 years was…wrong? Exploring the idea of memory, regret and shame, Eulogy is quietly devastating, and a 45-minute gem like this proves why we shouldn’t give up on Black Mirror just yet.
What do they eat and drink in Black Mirror: Eulogy?
Honestly, not a lot, it’s all about the booze, and mainly the beer Phillip’s clutching in most of the photos, which Carol disapproved of. There’s one of those drunken hotdog characters that he’s hanging off a beach in Cape Cod — though no evidence he ever ate any of them — and then a Halloween party where everyone’s on either beer, shots, or bongs. Londoners – this scene was actually filmed in the Shacklewell Arms, (they are even screening the episode on Saturday night there too, btw).
When Phillip heads over to London to pop the question, he takes inspiration from an in-flight magazine (nice to know people still read them! I hear Wizz Air has a pretty good writer covering the island of Ischia in this month’s issue) and chooses to do it in a featured fancy restaurant. With the technology, we jump into the feature in the restaurant with him, but Phillip doesn’t remember any food around him, only the bottle of Champagne that he necks out of nerves: and that’s where it all starts to go wrong. Can’t say it enough: don’t drink on an empty stomach! Although, to be fair to him, who really knows or applies that in their 20s?
What should I eat or drink while watching Black Mirror: Eulogy?
On that note, let’s whip up something to line Yung Phillip’s stomach that he should have eaten before that fateful night. A plate of carbs could have literally changed the course of his entire life!
Still, as he’s learned, hindsight’s a wonderful thing. Inspired by this recipe here, let’s dig in:
Crispy tray-baked gnocchi and roast vegetables
Serves 2
Ingredients:
1 x 500g bag of fresh gnocchi (something like this one from Sainos is good)
2 tablespoons of olive oil mixed in with a tablespoon of softened butter, plus extra olive oil for drizzling
1 red onion, cut into eight pieces
1 courgette, cut into large chunks
1 red pepper, cut into rough chunks
A handful of cherry tomatoes
Several whole garlic cloves, to taste
Fresh rosemary and thyme
Salt and pepper
Method:
Put the oven on to 200 degrees, then take out two lined baking trays.
On one, put all the gnocchi on, and mix the oil and butter mix well all over them, add salt and pepper and put in the oven.
On the second tray, put all the veg and herbs and drizzle with olive oil. Also add salt and pepper to taste.
Cook both for around 30 minutes, or until the gnocchi are nice and brown and crispy, and the vegetables are well roasted.
Mix all together and serve – either on a bed of rocket, and maybe grate a little parmesan on top too.
To drink, let’s match Phillip – though not at the same speed – with some Champagne. Last weekend’s sun had me down the local supermarket where this Etienne Dumont Brut Champagne was absolutely passable for £19.50, biscuity and light and not love-life ending at all the next day!
Cheers!