February can be a miserable month in my native Britain. One day it is flooded with rain and the next day it is freezing cold. And although the days here are gradually getting longer, there never seems to be enough sunlight to chase away the winter blues. So it was a good time for me to stay in and get acquainted with a streaming service. Even if you live in warmer climates, there are still days when getting outside seems like a chore, and the only thing on your agenda is relaxing with a good series.
May I recommend Apple TV Plus’ Silo. This sci-fi show flew way under my radar, and I think it will probably be the same for others, with glossier shows like Ted Lasso, The Morning Show, Disconnection, And For all humanity stealing the attention of potential binge watchers.
But over time, Apple TV has become the understated home to great sci-fi series, with Silo being one of the best.
We go all the way down
Based on a trilogy of books of the same name written by Hugh Howey, Silo was adapted for TV by Graham Yost and centers on a society living in a vast underground silo in a dystopian future where an apocalyptic disaster or war has made life outside seemingly impossible.
This premise alone makes Silo a great TV to watch while indoors on a dark and wet evening, with the claustrophobic nature of the show’s setting almost mirroring your own – I live in a small flat in London so I can empathize with a lack of living space.
The rules that govern the 10,000-strong society are equally claustrophobic, with knowledge of the world before and historical events removed from the almost literal pages of history. What could make for an annoyingly vague setting instead creates a foundation on which deft world-building can be layered. This happens almost literally, with the upper levels of the silo hosting dignitaries, security, and the silo’s governors, while the middle and lower levels contain workers.
It may seem like a warped analogy to class division, but this actually paves the way for nuance, where physical upward mobility allows people to move beyond their roles, positions and perceived class. And here Juliette Nichols, played by Rebecca Ferguson, steps into the spotlight.
Dig deep
Initially, Nichols is an engineer who is interviewed by the sheriff of the silo about the death of her friend, but she is soon elevated to sheriff herself. And it’s through her eyes that we see the nuance of society in the silo, while also being fed all kinds of mysteries; from who has the real power inside the silo, to what happened before and what’s really happening outside.
SiloThe premise of the game may seem somewhat familiar to anyone who has played a game in the Fallout series, but where it stands out for me is in the details. While Netflix’s Snowpiercer creates different societies in a sloppy and overly obvious way, based on positions on a constantly moving train crossing a frozen planet, the world of Silo is subtle.
The people in positions of power are not decadent individuals, but people who have the weight of the world pressing down on them, while people at the mid-level fill equally interesting roles, albeit with less authoritarian influence. Sure, the tech engineers are tough and tattooed and lean on post-apocalyptic stereotypes, but in the context of maintaining a massive generator needed to keep the silo alive, their brutality makes sense.
It’s the details in this context that kept my eyes glued Silo; the wide walkway leading to the imposing doors of the Judiciary (a group of law enforcement officers), the retro-futuristic design of the IT department, the sheriff’s office that looks like it was taken from a small midwestern town and underground has stopped. There is a richness to it Silo‘s sets and setting, despite the limitations of being in what is essentially a concrete bunker. It reminds me of Fargowhere the camera doesn’t mind lingering on shots just a little longer than usual, allowing you to soak up the detail and tone of a scene.
The color scheme also skilfully contributes to the atmosphere and detail of the silo. Usually muted to reflect life underground without sunlight, there are occasional bursts of color in people’s homes or in the shop lights of busy market areas. All of this highlights the world-building in which Silo is steeped, making it difficult to look away, even though there’s a lack of real threats like the overarching threat of The Last of Us’ infecting to ramp up the tension at all times.
The cast is also strong, with Fergerson playing a tough engineer and an equally tough sheriff, but one with heart, a curious nature and dogged determination. It could have been easy for Nichols to just be a tough character with a softer side deep inside, but instead Ferguson brings a lot of modulation to the character. She can go from cool detective to warm partner, from estranged daughter to ruthless force, all of which gives the feeling that Nichols isn’t as predictable as you might first think, while still being someone we can relate to. we can empathize.
David Oyelowo, who plays Sheriff Holston, also steals a few scenes. While Tim Robbins’ Bernard Holland deftly conveys an understated sense of menace beneath the veneer of a seemingly anal and sidelined head of the IT department. Even Common, who plays the downright menacing head of judicial security Robert Sims, has more subtlety than just a big man in a leather jacket of “I’m the bad guy.”
Silo could have gone the soapy silliness route Snowpiercer (again the TV show, not the excellent movie) or delved into the eternal grimness of The route. Instead, it shows thousands of people scraping by in a devastated world, with the trials and tribulations that befall them almost paralleling our own; we have our conspiracy theories and so do the siloians
By not descending into chaos or encampment, Silo presents a thought-provoking post-apocalypse society that wraps a murder mystery with a heavy dose of conspiracy. And I think it’s a perfect binge watch for moments when it feels like you’re in your own personal silo.