What are the writers trying to convey with the whole blanks/Network angle?

Question

In The World's End, is the whole "blanks" and "The Network" angle a gibe by the writers at technology and the Internet and what it is doing to people? The Network states that it is responsible for all technological advances made in the last few decades.

Answer 1

To a degree, yes. The film is dealing with the nature of our addiction to the internet and our devices, but this is just part of a larger picture.

There are a number of references made to the 'homogenization' of England (read 'the world'), depicted by the identical pub interiors, the 'Starbucks' references and the the beehive mentality of the antagonists. This homogenization is aided and spread using the network and, in a sense, harkens back to the anti-communism films of the 50's such as Invasion of the Body Snatchers and Invaders from Mars. One of mankind's greatest fears is loss of identity, and this film deals with the consequences of making choices through free will.

As an aside, there is a great article here about the use of cars in the film - not just about Gary's stubborn reluctance to give up his old Ford Granada, but the fact that the town is populated with identical Vauxhall Amperas (Chevy Volts in the US) - further evidence of the insidiousness of homogenization.