{"id":179,"date":"2025-05-03T03:07:25","date_gmt":"2025-05-03T03:07:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rgsinpop.2025.cmoore.sites.carleton.edu\/?p=179"},"modified":"2025-05-03T05:38:15","modified_gmt":"2025-05-03T05:38:15","slug":"she-was-never-like-that-with-ralphy-gestures-in-black-mirrors-hotel-reverie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rgsinpop.2025.cmoore.sites.carleton.edu\/?p=179","title":{"rendered":"“She wasn’t like this with Ralphy”: Gestures in Black Mirror’s “Hotel Reverie”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Main Plot<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

In this episode of Black Mirror we follow the actor Brandy Friday (Issa Rae) as she\u2019s looking for her next big role, not one where she\u2019s playing the sidekick or love interest, but the main lead. She finally finds the opportunity in the role of Dr. Alex Palmer from the in universe 1940\u2019s classic \u201cHotel Reverie\u201d by Keyworth Studios. Utilizing \u201cRedream\u201d technology, Brandy Friday is transported into the movie. \u201cRedream\u201d uses technology to build an entire simulated universe based on the final copy of the movie. Then actor(s) are able to upload their likeness(es) and consciousness(es) into the simulated movie universe as already present in-movie characters and play the role. Everyone in the movie only understands themselves as really being the characters they portray and everything they do and experience feels real and authentic to them. To remaster this classic film, Friday\u2019s full likeness and consciousness is put into a simulated movie universe, and even though the original Dr. Alex Palmer was played by a white man\u2014Ralph Redwell\u2014while Brandy Friday is a black woman, everyone in the simulated movie knows her as Dr. Palmer. That is to say the simulated characters do not discriminate against her based on her race or gender, they treat her like Dr. Alex Palmer, but one simulated character does take notice of this difference in gender especially. Clara Ryce-Lechere\u2014in universe played by Dorthy Chambers (Emma Corrin)\u2014is the unhappily wedded heiress to the Ryce-Lechere fortune, target of her husband\u2019s multiple murder plots (to inherit her fortune), and the love interest of Dr. Alex Palmer. Dr. Palmer is meant to fall in love with Clara and save her, but the boundaries between Brandy Friday – Dr. Palmer and Clara Ryce-Lechere – Dorthy Chambers begin to blur, complicating their relationship and possibly raising ethical questions about the use of \u201cRedream\u201d technology within the film industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Seduction Scene”<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSeduction Scene – Hotel Reverie.\u201d Black Mirror<\/em>, created by Charlie Brooker, season 7, episode 3, Brooke & Bones, 10 Apr. 2025. Netflix<\/em>, https:\/\/www.netflix.com\/watch\/81716299?trackId=14170286<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The scene starts at about 34 minutes into the episode. After Clara sprains her ankle on the stairs outside of the hotel, Dr. Palmer brings her up to her room. Clara sits in a chair and takes her heels off while Dr. Palmer kneels and asks to check her swollen ankle. Clara raises her foot to Dr. Palmer’s chest as she holds her foot in one hand. Soft and gentle orchestral music begins to play in the background. As Clara goes to pull down her stocking, she looks up to see Dr. Palmer looking down with an empty stare. As Dr. Palmer looks up at her with glittering eyes Clara stops for a moment. She looks off to the side with a contemplative look on her face before blinking herself back into reality. Once her stocking is completely off of her leg, Dr. Palmer begins to conduct the examination. Clara says that Dr. Palmer’s touch \u201cdoesn\u2019t hurt at all\u201d.  At her ankle they joke about her being able to join the Bolshoi (a prestigious ballet academy in Moscow Russia). Still she asks Dr. Palmer to \u201ctry a little bit higher\u201d to \u201cmake certain\u201d of the diagnosis.  Friday moves further up. Now at her calf, Friday asks if she\u2019s in the correct spot. With a small gasp Clara tells Friday, \u201cthat\u2019s good\u201d. Friday moves further up and asks again. Finally at her knee, Clara gasps again, repositioning herself in her chair. Friday asks \u201cIs that tender?\u201d Clara quickly responds, almost sighing \u201cEver so tender.\u201d In the real world the license holder\/script supervisor, Judith Keyworth (Harriet Walter) comments. . .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

\u201c. . .a bit fruiter than the original.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

There is a knock on the door. The tune changes to something more sinister and suspenseful. It\u2019s the ice that Dr. Palmer requested for the swelling, but it came with champagne that wasn\u2019t ordered. While the second murder plot is set into motion\u2014a scorpion is released from underneath the bedskirt\u2014Clara invites Dr.Palmer to stay for a drink. Friday knows of the scorpion and saves Clara by trapping it beneath a coup glass. Clara shoots up from her chair, placing her hand on Dr. Palmer\u2019s chest and thanks her for saving her life. Once the danger is thwarted their eyes lock and they passionately kiss, pulling each other closer, as romantic music swells in the background. Keyworth comments again. . .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

\u201cShe wasn\u2019t like this with Ralphy.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Analysis <\/h5>\n\n\n\n
\"Dr.
Dr. Alex Palmer\/Brandy Friday (Issa Rae) on the left, Clara Ryce-Lechere\/Dorothy Chambers (Emma Corrin) on the right. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I think it\u2019s in this scene that Clara\u2019s character moves from object to subject, especially as she begins to embody more of Dorthy Chambers\u2019 characteristics. She gains a greater sense of agency in her gestures that express a desire for more contact with Brandy Friday\u2019s Palmer. Brandy has already entered this role with agency and self-consciousness that surpass Clara\u2019s digitally generated consciousness, i.e. Brandy knows she\u2019s in a movie and Clara doesn\u2019t. Yet Brandy is still in love with both the real life Dorthy Chambers and<\/em> the character of Clara who embodies her. 
Gesture is used throughout the scene to indicate an attraction between Clara\/Dorthy and Brandy\/Dr. Palmer that goes beyond the characters that they are playing. In this scene Brandy\u2019s eyes are glittering as she looks at Clara with a mesmerized look on her face. Throughout the entire episode Brandy\u2019s eyes linger on Clara even past the moments where the original movie scene would\u2019ve ended. When Clara takes a little bit longer\u2014looking off to the side, thinking about whether or not to pull her stocking further down for Brandy to check for swelling before eventually doing so; every one of Clara\u2019s gasps and <\/em> Brandy moved her hand further up Clara\u2019s leg are evidence of their mutual understanding and attraction between them. These gestures allow them to speak in this language of potentialities, \u201cout of sound\u2019s reach\u201d (Rodriguez, Queer Futures).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Brandy
Brandy and Clara looking out of her hotel door. Occurs shortly after the scene I talk about, “Seduction Scene”.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

There is so much more that I could talk about when it comes to “Hotel Reverie”, but I’ll stick with gestures because I’d be writing too much and it’s my birthday. Here’s the link to the rest of the episode on Netflix, so you can watch it for yourself<\/a>. <3<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Main Plot In this episode of Black Mirror we follow the actor Brandy Friday (Issa Rae) as she\u2019s looking for her next big role, not one where she\u2019s playing the sidekick or love interest, but the main lead. She finally finds the opportunity in the role of Dr. Alex Palmer from the in universe 1940\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":180,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[16,19,20,21,17],"class_list":["post-179","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-black-mirror","tag-lesbians-yearning","tag-scifi","tag-she-was-not-like-this-with-ralphy","tag-wuhluhwuh"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rgsinpop.2025.cmoore.sites.carleton.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rgsinpop.2025.cmoore.sites.carleton.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rgsinpop.2025.cmoore.sites.carleton.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rgsinpop.2025.cmoore.sites.carleton.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/19"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rgsinpop.2025.cmoore.sites.carleton.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=179"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/rgsinpop.2025.cmoore.sites.carleton.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":188,"href":"https:\/\/rgsinpop.2025.cmoore.sites.carleton.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179\/revisions\/188"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rgsinpop.2025.cmoore.sites.carleton.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/180"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rgsinpop.2025.cmoore.sites.carleton.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=179"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rgsinpop.2025.cmoore.sites.carleton.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=179"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rgsinpop.2025.cmoore.sites.carleton.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=179"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}