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| The 'crossing over' sequence in San Junipero is probably the most emotionally harrowing in the show, especially as the reality of Yorkie's existence is made apparent to the audience. We are forced to confront our own notion of reality and hyperreality. For Yorkie, San Junipero is clearly the most real and tangible aspect of her life! |
The notion of simulation is fundamental to understanding the narrative of San Junipero, and this is perhaps best evidenced through the dramatic and upsetting scene where Yorkie chooses to be euthanised. The MES of the button being fixed to her head constructs a futuristic mode of address, and suggests and remind the audience that we cannot simply enter a simulated state. Therefore, we remain confuses, anxious and even upset by this episode.
In this emotional montage, Yorkie is finally able to organise her own assisted death. Transported to the beach of San Junipero, itself a simulated version of reality, media language constructs a hyperreal representation of an actual location. The setting is completely deserted, which connotes a sense of peace and calm isolation. The colour is is washed out, which symbolically encodes a dreamy and ethereal conception of reality. The light is both intense yet soft, which connotes a sense of heaven and a religious epiphany. The footage is softly and purposefully blurred connoting the perfect and dreamlike quality of the scenario. The anchorage of the birds and the waves constructs a soothing, hyperreal representation. The close up of the sand on Yorkie’s toes constructs an intense sense of reality that further anchors the audience in to Yorkie’s experiences. However, this is a pure simulation, a world that doesn’t exist . Furthermore, the entire narrative is a fiction, and this scene clearly and carefully outlines the impact and dangers of hyperreality. This scene, like every other scene, is a complete construction.
This beautiful and poignant scene reminds the audience that nothing is real, and our lives have no meaning. The audience are therefore positioned in a confusing mode of address that ultimately makes them feel empty and power.