The National Anthem

The National Anthem is a disturbing and thought-provoking exploration of modern society's relationship with media, power, and morality. It forces viewers to confront uncomfortable questions about the limits of human decency in the face of public spectacle and political crisis.

At its core, the episode examines how social pressure and media influence can shape public perception and dictate the actions of individuals, even in matters of extreme ethical consequence. It highlights the role of technology in amplifying collective hysteria and how quickly morality can become secondary to entertainment and voyeurism.

Beyond the political crisis at the heart of the episode, The National Anthem raises deeper concerns about the dehumanization caused by mass media. It suggests that in an age of instant information and viral trends, people can become more focused on the spectacle itself rather than the human cost behind it. The episode critiques the erosion of privacy and dignity in the digital era, making it unsettlingly relevant to contemporary society.

Ultimately, The National Anthem serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of mass manipulation and the fine line between reality and entertainment. It leaves viewers questioning their own role as passive consumers of media and whether society has become too desensitized to real human suffering. The episode challenges us to reflect on our values and the price of our collective curiosity in the digital age.

I know the reviews for this one are generally hugely positive, but I find the first episode a bit of a stumbling block, When you think of subsequent episodes this one just lacks the true cutting edge. Sure it's a disturbing watch, and the performances are superb, fair play to Rory Kinnear, he is superb here, such an amiable actor, it adds to the repulsion and sorrow you feel for the character. The problem I have with this one, is the only picture I have in my mind is David Cameron holding that piglet, distressing all round. It's slick in delivery, it's definitely sick, just a story I'm not particularly struck on, a good watch though.

Sadly is one of the very few great episodes in these series. But don't get worked up cause what you get in this episode will get only 2-3 times in the next 18 episodes as of 2018. Moral questions, today's sad world, plot twist, social and news media critic, this episode got everything and delivers it with great cinematography, acting, photography, script and much more

I can see why people are so pissed of with this episode? I get it. But giving 1 and 2 star to this episode is far from acceptable. There is a detestation club running on for this episode, sorely for the purpose of diminishing its rating.

While the core idea might seem implausible, its presented in such a neat way that it starts to look feasible. The narrative is very good, and most of the performances are also decent. The screenplay is clever and satirises sharply on obsession of technology and its ill effects.

With such type of preposterous idea the episode could have easily turned into an awful course, but deft direction makes sure that it's on point and stays witty and perspicacious. Yeah, the climax was a bit disappointing as the motive is not much very much compelling, but from the narrative and thematic point of view, it makes sense. The whole idea is to test whether a population would like to watch such an indecent act or not. And surprisingly, they do. That's what the whole point of the artist to show our obsession with technology and public figures. It also explores the fragility of society's mindset under such huge threats.

So, overall a very unique idea explored in an incandescent manner. A nice watch...

BC UK, quite clearly you're not one for viewing between the lines. The point of this film is not it's plot but it's implications for just how plausible this event is, and just how little privacy or control of information we have these days. It's an 'open your eyes' kind of film.

Superb acting, writing and camera-work. The choice of people to show as 'joe average's were well thought out and don't seem clichéd. Also the setup is genius in it's simplicity. Genuinely thought provoking TV.

My only criticism is of the ending which I think should have ended with the 'twist' regarding the kidnap, with the reaction from the PM's wife put beforehand. Then again I don't know how that could make chronological sense.