For years, people have criticized protagonists in movies for their decisions. When watching a movie, many may find themselves saying, “Why would they do that?” However, Netflix is now pioneering interactive movies on its platform, giving the audience a chance to decide what the main character does next. Their first introduction to the concept is through the new movie “Black Mirror: Bandersnatch.” 

“It breaks the fourth wall. The main character starts becoming aware that someone, the watcher, is controlling his every move,” Lily Wardrip, junior, said. 

The plot follows main character, Stefan Butler, played by Fionn Whitehead, a video game programmer in 1984 whose game turned into his reality. The game he is developing, “Bandersnatch,” gives gamers options to choose from throughout the game while the character in the game follows the command. Butler’s game is the first of its kind, much like the idea of interactive movies now. Stefan soon finds that he is unable to control himself and realizes some strange outside force is controlling his actions for him; it is actually the audience watching the show from home. 

“Being that it was my first interactive movie, I wasn’t sure what to expect. The organization was confusing at times, but overall, it was pretty well-produced and was very smooth to watch, showing good attention to detail and interesting acting,” Liam Aenlle, junior, said. 

   Interactive content is a media that allows its audience to choose a path to go down during the production. This factor is commonly seen in video games where players face choices throughout the game that will impact the ending depending on which option is chosen. Netflix’s “Bandersnatch” has similar mechanics where viewers have multiple choices to influence the main character’s actions. 

“I think that interactive movies are a great way to change the movie industry. It’s something that can be successful and definitely something worth checking out,” Pedro Rios, senior, said. 

Stefan is faced with multiple dilemmas within the movie. No more frustrated sighs or hatred to the main character because now it is up to them to figure out how the story plays out. For a truly interactive movie experience, view “Black Mirror: Bandersnatch” on Netflix.