Don't listen to the negative reviews

Best movie of this year hands down!

Blistering performances.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

1- This episode was mainly about "danger of having a super protective mother", not the danger of a parental control device. 2- Why would anyone have the need for inventing such a device? Children have to FACE the life's beauty and ugliness, ups and downs, cleanliness and dirtiness by THEMSELVES, everybody that is a parent should know it already that restricting a child from facing life's hardship is equal to delaying the child's maturity which makes them vulnerable to life's dangers, it's not a rocket science. 3- The device was actually useful and it helped the mother know her daughter was doing drugs and sex. 4- If it's so well-known that underage children like 12 year old elementary school children are watching porn (alone or together) as if it's a normal behavior, it should be a warning sign to society and people must know that Internet porn is very easily accessible by their children and as a probable outcome they'll do what the 15 year old girl/boy did in the movie. I kinda felt bad for today's society and its permissive attitude towards its ugly normals.

The second episode in the fourth run of Black Mirror was already known to me on the strength of Jodie Foster directing it; quite something for a British guy I knew from his scathing takedowns of Big Brother episodes in The Guardian all those years ago. Putting the gender milestone (first episode directed by a woman) to one side, Arkangel is surprisingly run-of-the-mill, even though it has a lot of potential. The concept is easily within reach in many ways, and as a parent my first feeling is to protect my child from anything that might upset them, and to want to know where they are at all times. At the same time though, I see that stopping them being exposed to anything in the real world will probably do more harm than good in most situations.As a result, most of us should be easily hooked into the dilemma posed by this technology and the extended version we see here. The episode though, doesn't really make the viewer feel that conflict; it is very clear wat is felt and it plays out in a way that is far too on the nose for the most part, and doesn't really cause conflict, or the shivers - in fact it does just what you know it will. This in itself is a weakness since, we know overprotection will go bad, but yet I didn't connect to that challenge from it - it let me off the hook with the way it is straightforward in its narrative. The production standards, ideas, cast, etc are all of high quality, but in the end it is too simplistic in what it does and the message it is delivering.A surprisingly disappointing episode considering the potential in the material, and the talent behind it.

Perhaps the reason this episode of 'Black Mirror' fails for a lot of viewers is because it's possibly the one that comes closest to examining a technology that could actually exist today. Let's face it, the ubiquitous cell phone with it's ability to take pictures and record what's happening in real time has changed the lives of everyone using it, some for better and some for worse. In the case of 'Arkangel', an implant of some sort provides a masking ability as well, so that unpleasant or troubling images can be blurred to the recipient of the implant. It wasn't really made clear in the story why the Arkangel project was banned, but one suspects it would be for it's invasive impact on the subjects being supervised. A very creepy affair when a someone can dial into a sexual encounter or view illegal drug use about to occur. And as always, unintended consequences can often intrude to derail one's life without any apparent warning. For once, this is a Black Mirror episode that could actually take place.

This was utterly dreadful. A good idea, but no real development. If this was the first episode of season 1, this show would be dead.