S04.E05: 405 Method Not Allowed

[mxc90]

Quote

First Aired: November 3, 2019

no xmas lolz for dom. darelliot gives a run-around. krista plays hookie. quiet pls, the show is on.

https://www.tvmaze.com/episodes/1742746/mr-robot-4x05-405-method-not-allowed

https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/mr-robot/episode-5-season-4/method-not-allowed/678250/

I think tvguide.com was hacked by the Dark Army and tvmaze didn't bother read/copied.

Translation

Quote

Dom has an unhappy Christmas. Darlene and Elliot provide useless information. Krista doesn't go to work.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8084166/?ref_=ttep_ep_cur

[mtlchick]

Elliot ran more in 10 minutes than he has through the entire series combined.   I was wiped out by the time it was over.

[Guest]

The entire episode was way too anxiety inducing. And also, preposterous. 

[mxc90]

So the description was true: Darlene and Elliot did provide useless information to us viewers tonight!

No Mr. Robot tonight.

Will Christmas day be dragged out for 2 or 3 episodes?

A lot of BS moments! When did the guard determine the area Darlene and Elliot was in not necessary to check? Elliot gets hit by a car, is on the ground for a bit, and those those two cops are nowhere in sight to nab him! How great is technology for Darlene to know the exact location to pick up Elliot?!!

Stop smoking Elliot! Next time you will be in better shape to run!

Elliot wanted to break Tom Cruise's record for running.

What's with the abrupt cuts to commercial?

Maguire has been released. Lets go Dom and get your family out of town!

Dark Army waiter must have hated serving Price.

Why did the Dark Army have Price waste $20? They could eliminate the use of the trombone player and have the check say go to the cleaners?

I wonder if Dom would approve of Darlene in that wig.

I'm sure Dom's mother didn't expect her to bake cookies. She could have brought the cookies in the original can.

Edited November 4, 2019 by mxc90

[Cardie]

In what is essentially a silent movie episode, at least as far as dialog, the name of the dry cleaner, Murnau, is that of a famous silent era director. Police don’t seem to have found Wellick’s body. Hmmmm...

[scrb]

Why would the DA bother having Dom go look for Eliot and Darlene?

The white van who was spying outside of Eliot's place was the one that went missing and got torched.  Duh, why does Dom have to investigate and hack a local PD for the taxidermist?  And she could have looked through the red light cameras in the PD office there.

Instead she lures the one cop to the break room and installs a dongle on her computer but there are other cops around?

That Virtual Realty seems like a lot more than a web realtor.  Eliot and Darlene knew there would be 3D printers in there?  And they knew all the passwords in the data center?

I don't use Signal but maybe it has location sharing, which seems strange since it's suppose to appeal to people who want ultra privacy.  I can see Eliot and Darlene sharing each other's location but in the F-Society days, if one of them got busted while the other one wasn't, the phone would give the other away, either to the cops or to the DA.

In any event, looks like they're going to have Dom round Eliot and Darlene up.  What happened to all the DA operatives who seem to be everywhere?  But I would guess this may be a way for Eliot and Darlene to flip Dom, join forces to take down WR and the DA.

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, scrb said:

does Dom have to investigate and hack a local PD for the taxidermist?

Because it’s an off-the-books operation.

[truthaboutluv]

It is a mark of a truly amazing show, particularly a brilliantly acted show, that I didn't even realize until the episode was over, that other than Darlene's one line at the start of the episode, when she found Elliot, that there was virtually no dialogue for the entire hour. And yet I was riveted and on the edge of my seat the entire time. Damn, that's amazing. 

[Anela]

Is the show sponsored by the company that makes those phones? They show them every episode. 

That run was exhausting. 

I hope that guy doesn't hurt Krista. 

[cdnalor]

I'm surprised those cops could keep up with Elliot considering all the equipment they lug around, not to mention the shoes they wear aren't made for sprinting.  Are the NYPD fitness standards that high?

When Elliot was leaning over the sink,. I half-expected him to lift his shirt and reveal Wellick's bullet wound.

Edited November 4, 2019 by cdnalor

[Cardie]

5 hours ago, truthaboutluv said:

It is a mark of a truly amazing show, particularly a brilliantly acted show, that I didn't even realize until the episode was over, that other than Darlene's one line at the start of the episode, when she found Elliot, that there was virtually no dialogue for the entire hour. And yet I was riveted and on the edge of my seat the entire time. Damn, that's amazing. 

I had seen interviews that said there would be an episode without dialogue but it took me about ten minutes to realize this was the one. There are two spoken lines, the second by Vila. They are—slightly paraphrasing—you don’t have to say a word/it’s time we talked. 

[Zoe]

17 hours ago, mxc90 said:

What's with the abrupt cuts to commercial?

Esmail doesn't shoot with commercial breaks in mind, so sometimes we end up with abrupt transitions.

[Ottis]

That was super boring. Watch people type code while a security guard makes his rounds, suspicious. Snore. 

Then watch Elliot run down stairs and out the front door. I’m not sure a hacker would be in that kind of shape. Or the cops, for that matter. Good thing only two cops bothered to chase him. 

Meanwhile, Darlene... goes out a different exit! Disguised... in a new jacket! And a bottle of water! She wants to save the world but doesn’t seem too concerned about using plastic bottles. Fortunately she has time to sit in her car right outside the crime scene. 

So that was a filler episode I guess. In the last season? Ugh. 

[shapeshifter]

This episode reminds me of the Breaking Bad episode, “Fly,” and it will probably always be just as polarizing with fans and viewers and reviewers. 

[xaxat]

I was curious as to how long Elliot and the police kept up that pace. My not so quick estimate is six miles.

Chelsea to Central Park. Back and forth in Central Park. Central Park West to Columbia University. Jump.

(Coincidentally, the New York City marathon was held on the day this episode aired.)

[qtpye]

2 hours ago, xaxat said:

I was curious as to how long Elliot and the police kept up that pace. My not so quick estimate is six miles.

Chelsea to Central Park. Back and forth in Central Park. Central Park West to Columbia University. Jump.

(Coincidentally, the New York City marathon was held on the day this episode aired.)

So a sedentary lifestyle combined with constant drug abuse and smoking does nothing to hinder your stamina? Not to mention a probably shitty diet.

It would be funny if we saw the marathon and Eliot just pulls ahead and wins. The main thing he has going for him is that he is a relatively young man in the prime of his life.

[Zoe]

It's possible that while the filming location for the building might not be the in-show location. A person on Reddit estimated it to be about 2 miles based on where the building might be, which is much more realistic.

[xaxat]

10 hours ago, Zoe said:

It's possible that while the filming location for the building might not be the in-show location. A person on Reddit estimated it to be about 2 miles based on where the building might be, which is much more realistic.

It's possible, but one thing that Esmail has done through the run of the series is use the skyline to establish a sense of location. The rides at Coney Island or One WTC towering in the background over the Tribeca home of Al Safe for example. 

In this case, when Elliott starts his run, the camera pulls back to show us Chelsea (W 27th St.) Lots of running, then we see 7th Ave. at Central Park South. Identifiable landmarks in the park with Billionaires' Row in the background. Darlene's phone shows Central Park West (although the bus scene wasn't filmed there). Finally, Elliott looks out over the low rise skyline of Harlem before he jumps from the upper level of Morningside Park. 

I stand by my estimate.

(And yes, I've had a lot of free time on my hands.)

[shapeshifter]

22 hours ago, xaxat said:

(Coincidentally, the New York City marathon was held on the day this episode aired.)

Cool! 😎

  

20 hours ago, qtpye said:

So a sedentary lifestyle combined with constant drug abuse and smoking does nothing to hinder your stamina? Not to mention a probably shitty diet.

It would be funny if we saw the marathon and Eliot just pulls ahead and wins. The main thing he has going for him is that he is a relatively young man in the prime of his life.

Heh. I have a daughter that age who shares a lot of Elliot's lifestyle and propensities who lives in Manhattan, and she could probably run if she had to since she walks miles every day rather than take the "train"/subway. Even though we see Elliot on the subway quite a bit, he also walks a lot, and another daughter (I've got one for nearly every situation) who runs marathons has found that walking a lot improves her time, because she's less likely to injure herself by overdoing it.  Speaking of which: I thought it looked like Rami was really injured,  but then he started running again. He really is an awesome, convincing actor.

When he jumped to escape, I thought maybe they were going to tie it into the earlier season bit about him falling/jumping/being pushed out of a window. Maybe Esmail decided to just let it be a little Easter egg since it's been years since those episodes aired.

 

1 hour ago, xaxat said:

It's possible, but one thing that Esmail has done through the run of the series is use the skyline to establish a sense of location. The rides at Coney Island or One WTC towering in the background over the Tribeca home of Al Safe for example. 

In this case, when Elliott starts his run, the camera pulls back to show us Chelsea (W 27th St.) Lots of running, then we see 7th Ave. at Central Park South. Identifiable landmarks in the park with Billionaires' Row in the background. Darlene's phone shows Central Park West (although the bus scene wasn't filmed there). Finally, Elliott looks out over the low rise skyline of Harlem before he jumps from the upper level of Morningside Park. 

I stand by my estimate....

1 hour ago, xaxat said:

(And yes, I've had a lot of free time on my hands.)

Heh, "so say we all" who post here.

[qtpye]

17 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

Cool! 😎

  

Heh. I have a daughter that age who shares a lot of Elliot's lifestyle and propensities who lives in Manhattan, and she could probably run if she had to since she walks miles every day rather than take the "train"/subway. Even though we see Elliot on the subway quite a bit, he also walks a lot, and another daughter (I've got one for nearly every situation) who runs marathons has found that walking a lot improves her time, because she's less likely to injure herself by overdoing it.  Speaking of which: I thought it looked like Rami was really injured,  but then he started running again. He really is an awesome, convincing actor.

When he jumped to escape, I thought maybe they were going to tie it into the earlier season bit about him falling/jumping/being pushed out of a window. Maybe Esmail decided to just let it be a little Easter egg since it's been years since those episodes aired.

 

Heh, "so say we all" who post here.

That is true, I did not think about that. When I was younger I lived in the big city for a while and relied on public transportation. That type of walking around getting from place to place really does help keep you in decent shape. It is one of the reason that Europeans are supposedly much skinnier than Americans, though many of them consume some rich diets.

[Anela]

Growing up in England, I walked all the time, and took the bus and trains. I only walk a lot when I'm annoyed now, and need to walk it off. I've had some health problems, but I should get back to it, just because. 

[scrb]

Walking isn't the same as running, sprinting at times, for miles and miles.

Your hearts and lungs really have to be trained for that kind of sustained exertion.

[tennisgurl]

Run Elliot Run!

I got to give the actors a lot of credit, they really kept me engaged throughout with almost no dialogue. It was almost a silent movie, with only minor lines and sound effects. It was almost all music and action and acting through gestures and expressions and such. I also liked the Die Hard shout outs, starting with Ode to Joy, Elliot having to keep moving on Christmas, and the security guys watching it.

Holy crap, Elliot and those two cops can really run! Is one of Elliot's other personalities a cross country star?

[shapeshifter]

9 hours ago, scrb said:

Walking isn't the same as running, sprinting at times, for miles and miles.

Your hearts and lungs really have to be trained for that kind of sustained exertion.

True. However, I did once have to literally run for my life when I was about 20 (is Elliot supposed to be around 30?) and I thought the look of terror on Elliot’s face conveyed a similar adrenaline rush. Plus, when he was finally able to stop running, again Rami Malek’s acting conveyed Elliot was in a state of exhaustion and oxygen deprivation. 

[lostmydamnmind]

I'm 😂 at the analysis of a show that has hinted at time travel and other preposterous theories, that we are discussing the preposterousness of Elliott being able to run so far/so fast. I also had the thought that NFW could someone like him run like that, but I'm willing to suspend disbelief for the story.

And the thing about Darlene being able to walk right out of the lobby - the security guard she walked past when she left was the other guy, not the one who examined her photo earlier, so while it was another moment that was probably less than believable, it's maybe possible?

Also, I loved it all so much I didn't realize it was dialogue free until almost 45 minutes in.

[possibilities]

This show is sort of a superhero show, in that the team is constantly pulling off unlikely feats. I'm okay with it. I don't think much of what we've seen is realistic. It's an adventure-thriller.

Also, I knew a multiple who would switch personalities when she got tired, so she could go without sleep for unreal amounts of time. It's not sustainable longterm, but as an emergency adaptation, people can do all kinds of things IRL, and ESPECIALLY as TV characters or movie stars.

We've seen lots of middle aged action heroes dangle from airplanes and leap across gigantic gaps and otherwise defeat normal reality, so I'm willing to enjoy seeing Elliot and a couple of middle aged cops go on a chase. It's more unrealistic that no one shot him, if you ask me. Even if the Dark Army wanted him alive, ALL the NYPD officers are probably not in Whiterose's pocket, some cop would have used a gun somewhere along the route.

I think we all get hung up on different things when it comes to suspension of disbelief, but I can't think of any TV drama that didn't give us unrealistic nonsense on a regular basis.

[shapeshifter]

8 hours ago, lostmydamnmind said:

I didn't realize it was dialogue free until almost 45 minutes in.

I didn't notice until it was pointed out here. 

[DoctorAtomic]

I think the show has bought in to its own bullshit. That was gimmicky at best. I live alone and talk to myself like constantly. I can sort of buy that Elliot doesn't talk much because he's turned into a sullen bitch, but Darlene always struck me as way way talky and I found it ooc that she's would be silent for so long. Nor would a security guard on xmas all by himself not be chatty with her.

[truthaboutluv]

15 minutes ago, DoctorAtomic said:

I can sort of buy that Elliot doesn't talk much because he's turned into a sullen bitch

Turned into? When was Elliot ever not like this? This is the person who told someone to please stop touching him when the AllSafe co-worker hugged him in Season 1. 

17 minutes ago, DoctorAtomic said:

but Darlene always struck me as way way talky and I found it ooc that she's would be silent for so long.

Well I would think when one is trying to pull off a crazy hacking heist would be a good time to put that silence to work. It seemed clear that Darlene and Elliot were trying to get in and get out with as little attention as possible. Why would she hang around and have a long chat with the security guy, no matter how normally talkative she is?

[DoctorAtomic]

On 11/3/2019 at 9:31 PM, mxc90 said:

How great is technology for Darlene to know the exact location to pick up Elliot?!!

To be fair, we have that now irl. Darlene was on what looked like a regular state route too, so it's not like the phone triangulated him in the middle of a field in the forest or something. I got some *back back* roads where I live, and google maps covers them just fine. And they made a point of showing her syncing up the phone last episode, so the show is playing fair on that for me.

I feel bad for the actor, but everything with Dom just brings the show to a screeching halt. Her, I can buy not talking much. I do hope there's some climax to her plot because she's just plodding through the show.

[DoctorAtomic]

13 minutes ago, truthaboutluv said:

Why would she hang around and have a long chat with the security guy, no matter how normally talkative she is?

I didn't say 'hang around', but it strains credulity that the guy wouldn't ask her name to look her up or she wouldn't say, 'my card isn't reading' and just swipe it 50 times while it buzzed while she stood mute. Or, 'here's my id.'

As a security guard, I'd be more suspicious if the person whose card failed the reader is just standing there not talking. And give me a break, she left her phone and he whistles at her? Doesn't just say 'hey, your phone'.

I don't even care that they magically knew the place would have a 3d printer. That actually didn't bother me.

TPTBs already said it in the media beforehand, as it's been posted here. It was a gimmick. Yes, it's a heist and being silent is a good framing device to a point, but to have it the entire episode was just silly. In the server room, I can totally see that they wouldn't talk. And I like when tv shows push the boundaries of the medium. You can't force the technique on the plot though.

Edited November 10, 2019 by DoctorAtomic

[DoctorAtomic]

Why didn't the cops just shoot at Elliot?

[shapeshifter]

14 minutes ago, DoctorAtomic said:

Why didn't the cops just shoot at Elliot?

He was unarmed and non-threatening 

[truthaboutluv]

45 minutes ago, DoctorAtomic said:

I didn't say 'hang around', but it strains credulity that the guy wouldn't ask her name to look her up or she wouldn't say, 'my card isn't reading' and just swipe it 50 times while it buzzed while she stood mute. Or, 'here's my id.'

YMMV but I feel like it was inferred that this conversation actually happened. I don't think we were supposed to assume conversation didn't happen at that moment.

Instead, they used a directorial/framing device where we were supposed to feel like we were seeing the sequence from Elliot's perspective who was outside watching and waiting for Darlene's signal.

So YMMV, I don't think we were supposed to think the show was suggesting that the security guard and Darlene communicated only through gestures. Of course they exchanged words. It was just shot in the silent movie format where we the audience didn't hear it.

Edited November 10, 2019 by truthaboutluv

[DoctorAtomic]

I guess the show takes place in a universe where police never overused force on someone bolting out of an office building that just suffered a major hack.

I was being kind of tongue in cheek because of course the main character of the show is going to get away. I didn't want him to get caught either, but a 50 hour chase through the city was a little much. Likely because they didn't have enough justification to keep silent for the entire show.

Edited November 10, 2019 by DoctorAtomic

[DoctorAtomic]

3 minutes ago, truthaboutluv said:

Of course they exchanged words. It was just shot in the silent movie format where we the audience didn't hear it.

I just finished watching so it's fresh on my mind. I could sort of buy that, but 1 - she kept hitting the card and the buzzer thing was constantly going off, so having the guard say absolutely nothing seemed odd. I'll even push that aside for sake of giving the show a little slack and take it with a little grain that we're watching from Elliot's pov.

But 2 - if they did talk, having him whistle at her for the phone at the end of scene is patently absurd. At that point you're making them stay silent for the sake of wanting to film it with no dialogue. I don't think the premise is ruined if he says, "Miss Haze, your phone." The whole silence of that scene just took me completely out of the show.

To be fair *after* that point, when the hack started for real, I totally can buy them going silent. And even with the chase, there's no reason for Elliot to talk either.

I guess the overall point is that if I'm 'aware' of them ALL being silent rather than the silence being an organic part of the show, then I don't think they did their job as well as they could have. It was actually a cool idea. I think they pushed it past where they could have left it and still accomplished what they wanted to.

[possibilities]

It built tension. It built the atmosphere of "this is not normal". Also, maybe I've seen too many silent movies from the silent movie era, but I think it's a frame that can enhance people paying attention, and not multi-tasking while they watch.

[Cardie]

1 hour ago, possibilities said:

It built tension. It built the atmosphere of "this is not normal". Also, maybe I've seen too many silent movies from the silent movie era, but I think it's a frame that can enhance people paying attention, and not multi-tasking while they watch.

Yes, I tend to look at my iPad and follow the dialogue during action scenes but had to close it when I realized it was the silent episode. 

[benteen]

Sorry, Mr. Robot...you are not Buffy.  The silent episode worked for that show.  On Mr. Robot, it's just plain boring.

Seriously, that might have been the most boring and pointless episode to date.  There was no reason for it.  The silent treatment killed the tension and just made this episode disposable.  Elliot's running at the end was exciting but that was about it.

This is why Esmail needed 13 episodes...so he could do a filler episode and then this silent nonsense?  Between last week's filler episode (the bad version of The Sopranos The Pine Barrens) and this silent gimmick, it's just more self-indulgent horse**** from Esmail.

Edited November 11, 2019 by benteen

[Tachi Rocinante]

Random thoughts:

The multiple camera pullbacks of Eliot running in the distance were needlessly pretentious.

Darlene grabbing the sweat jacket and water bottle, and then pretending to come out of the gym/studio next door was the most plausible thing in this episode.

[TVbitch]

It reminded me of Phillip's run at the end of The Americans ...which was way more riveting. 

They took it too far when the guy ran over him and said nothing when he got of his car. 

Also, when Darlene picked up Elliot as the van was burning, I was like, really? You are not going to look for or even call out to Tyrell. He only walked off a few moments ago. Lends itself to the "Tyrell is an alter" theory but I posted last episode why that is impossible, and I will be really disappointed if that is true. 

[AudienceofOne]

On 11/15/2019 at 5:33 AM, Tachi Rocinante said:

Darlene grabbing the sweat jacket and water bottle, and then pretending to come out of the gym/studio next door was the most plausible thing in this episode.

That was the LEAST plausible. If there was a gym that any rando could walk in and out of in the lobby then why didn't they use that to get in the building? They literally had a business in the building with reduced security access but it only suddenly popped up when they needed it.

I didn't even notice this episode had no dialogue, it was that well done. It was only when I came on here to make a comment and saw the other comments that I realised. Having said that, while I love a heist episode and thought the sound and direction was completely top notch, I don't think it added to anything, story wise. Unlike last week's this did feel like plot filler. And those religious allusions I said weren't too heavy-handed last week? Yeah, these ones didn't work for me. I found the bus scene with him pushing baby Jesus out of the way a bit much.

Although the final line being, "It's time we talk" was great.

[DoctorAtomic]

There was too much for me that they were trying to fit into the episode around being silent than writing the episode and the silence coming organically from that. Like, when Eliot got hit by the car, the driver didn't say, 'let me help you; are you all right?' The actual heist being silent made sense.

To the point though - TPTB is worried so much about being silent for the sake of being silent, you lose the larger context like having the gym be the clearly easier access point for entry than having Darlene hammering on the scanner with the card.