Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Derren Brown: Sacrifice’ On Netflix: Could You Be Manipulated Into Taking a Bullet For a Stranger?

Derren Brown: Sacrifice is the third special from the unconventional English illusionist to hit Netflix. Premiering today, Brown attempts to create a scenario in which an ordinary person takes a bullet for a stranger. Can the famed mentalist manipulate someone into making the ultimate sacrifice? 

DERREN BROWN: SACRIFICE: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

The Gist: You know you’re in for something truly bizarre when the special you’re about to watch begins with the following message: “The subject of this experiment was given a full independent psychological evaluation before and after filming.” If you’ve watched Brown’s other Netflix specials — The Push, a special about how an ordinary person can be manipulated into committing murder, and Miracle — this warning seems par for the course.

Brown is well-versed in buzzy, controversial acts of psychology and social science. In Sacrifice, the illusionist not only attempts to use a bevy of covert psychological techniques to alter his subject’s self-expressed prejudice towards illegal immigrants, he tries to manipulate him into taking a bullet for a complete stranger. The subject of Brown’s scheme, Phil, is led to believe that he’s participating in a documentary in which Brown installs a microchip into the back of his neck, one that will supposedly provide a surge of adrenaline and dopamine when Phil hears a specific jingle. Brown hopes that Phil will begin to associate the jingle or “trigger sound” with a motivational feeling that’ll make him act decisively.

“In order for him to take a bullet, I need the app trigger sound to instantly generate an active and fearless state in Phil,” Brown says.

Our Take: Derren Brown: Sacrifice is an unsettling psychological experiment you’ll either love or hate. Taste is always in the eye of the beholder, and Derren Brown truly encapsulates that aphorism. The illusionist has assured the press that his special is genuine, but how exactly can you trust someone so skilled in the art of manipulation? Even if I were to accept everything I was seeing at face value, so much of Derren Brown’s machinations are rooted in exclusion and flaunting a superior intelligence. Some say it’s fascinating, others may think it’s cruel.

Perhaps I’m too inherently skeptical? Maybe that whole “manipulating people into fake murder” bit left a bad taste in my mouth? Who knows! I personally found Sacrifice to be more cringe-inducing than uplifting, but an argument can be made for both extremes.

Memorable Quote: Seconds after the dramatic conclusion, Brown walks up to a sobbing Phil and reveals why he spent an insane amount of time, money, and energy trying to manipulate him into taking a bullet for a stranger.

“This whole thing was about who we are and what we are capable of when we rid ourselves of those stories.”

Cool. Got it.

Our Call: Skip it. I understand the appeal, but I have no desire to watch someone use their superior intellect to endlessly manipulate a less savvy individual. Derren Brown really wants you to know he’s the smartest guy in the room. And he is. Congrats! Sacrifice is more concerned about vanity than it is with innovation. The idea that people can be manipulated isn’t revelatory and neither is Derren Brown’s latest Netflix special.

Stream Derren Brown: Sacrifice on Netflix