The exploitation of the artistic process
The more I think about the new episode of Black Mirror, Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too, the more I like it. At first, I wasn’t a fan of it. I found the episode to be dull and sort of calm for Black Mirror’s typical standard, all part of me hoping to be shocked or alarmed by the show. The more I stop and think about it the more I come to my own conclusions about what it is truly about and thats what the best episodes of Black Mirror make you do, they make you just think about it.
Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too follows the story of Rachel (Angourie Rice) who is a huge fan of mega popstar Ashley O (Miley Cyrus). For Rachel’s birthday she gets an Ashley Too which is an AI robot that is supposed to have the personality of Ashley O. Rachel’s sister Jack (Madison Davenport) grows cautious of the effect that the AI doll is having on Rachel all while the real Ashley is having a breakdown as her life is becoming more and more controlled.
A huge part of this episode is a spoiler and I’ve been told not to say it. The episode has a large focus on people trying to manage an artist and what art they produce. It focuses a lot on those around Ashley who have a lot to gain from her popularity and stardom, which is something that Ashley O doesn’t seem to really want.
This episode of Black Mirror feels slightly different to the rest as it breaks away from the more normal life scenarios. The average person doesn’t know what it’s like to have that sort of stardom, they can only dream it. In this episode’s argument, you might not really want it. Black Mirror itself has become a huge phenomenon and a worldwide hit that millions of people watch. This season the show is going back to three episodes after two six-episode seasons. This episode almost feels like an explanation on that as the creator of the show has the ability to do what he wants with his show. Ashely O’s fear is that she doesn’t get to do what she wants with her artistic talent and how she works on her projects.
This idea that I’ve been brewing up in my head about this episode also feels relatable to Miley Cyrus herself. Miley Cyrus is at a point in her career now where she makes the music she wants to make. In her past, some of the music might not have been her choice but with her hit’s like Wrecking Ball she started to create her own music and sound. Miley’s history with her Hannah Montana image and her new image adds a greater depth to this really well-directed episode, which has some great cinematography. The episode really dives deep into that evolution and exploitation of artistic process and output and shows the fears and outcomes it can have on people’s lives.
All around the acting and directing of the episode is quite spot-on. Cyrus really puts her all into it and fits well into the episode, by that I mean I don’t go think about the fact she is Miley Cyrus but instead, I think more about her character. It’s a difficult thing for some people to pull off when they’ve already got a big public image. Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too is definitely an episode worth watching and is my personal second favourite episode of this season.