Landlines may be on the decline, but one iconic red telephone has become part of a social media phenomenon.
The A View from a Bridge project started last year, but it’s gained millions of views this week following two videos exploring toxic masculinity and the challenges facing British teens – two hot topics right now thanks to Netflix’s Adolescence.
Creator Joe Bloom set out with a simple idea: place an old-school phone on a bridge and invite strangers to share their views on the world.
It quickly snowballed into a sensational social experiment, with folks of all ages picking up the phone to bare their souls and reflect on life—whether it be Alistair professing his love for working as a litter picker or Yuna bravely revealing her encounters with transphobia.
Most recently, Adolescence star Ashley Walters took part, musing about toxic masculinity and the importance of nurturing young boys’ emotions.
His comments only amplified the Netflix drama’s sentiments, after more than 24million streamers tuned in for the four-parter in its first week. Its plot explores the fallout of 13-year-old Jamie’s arrest after he murders a female classmate, having been indoctrinated by insidious misogynistic ideologies online.
Speaking from a bridge in London, Ashley reminisces on his childhood, being encouraged never to cry or expose his vulnerabilities. But after becoming a father himself at 17, he was forced to grow up and confront the narrative that men ought to be ‘hard as nails’.
It’s an idea that’s subliminally explored throughout Adolescence, with each episode shot in one take. Jamie’s own rage and emotional avoidance towards women are clear, such as his psychologist and even his mother and sister. Meanwhile, his father (Stephen Graham) is ultimately left feeling like he failed his son in those formative years.
‘A lot of the problems that we’re facing (in society) is because young men are not willing to talk about how they feel because they feel it isn’t masculine,’ Ashley shares in his clip. ‘But a problem shared is a problem halved.
‘We can clearly see the suicide rate amongst young men is so high because we don’t speak enough, so we need to encourage young men especially to talk about how they feel.
‘The art of speaking, the art of touching and talking and being physical with each other is so important for the human race and the more we walk away from it, the less human we’re gonna be.’
As discourse around the key messages of Adolescence continues, one A View from a Bridge video that hit home came from three young boys: Owen, Harrison, and Roy.
Their video touches on some of the social challenges facing British teens today – such as a lack of safe, community spaces – and it’s helping audiences understand the backdrop to the Netflix drama.
After speaking from a canal bridge in Ilkester, the teens received thousands of comments praising their candidness while reflecting on the lack of safe spaces for youth today.
Owen also opens up about the death of his mum when he was a child, which led to him teaching himself how to be ‘mature in the way [he] thinks’.
On why friendship is vital in today’s climate, Owen adds: ‘If you don’t really have mates, you don’t have nothing to do. It’s not hard to be a loyal mate.
‘I’ve been kicked out of my house a couple of times. I’ve rang up my mates because no one’s with me; they come meet me, just chill out, clears your head, you go back in your home with a fresh mindset. It all feels all good to know you’ve got them there for you.’
Taking to the comments, one viewer, Neck Deep member Benis Barlow, dissected exactly why this video in particular resonated, describing the lads as the kind to easily fall victim to ‘the manosphere’.
‘They’ve had a tough life, no prospects, vilified by the system and their peers. Often being told they are the problem, without them having the social/emotional intelligence to understand why that is,’ writes Benis.
Citing the likes of Andrew Tate and Joe Rogan as dangerous influences, he adds that boys are more inclined to connect with them to seek validation.
To prevent this from becoming the norm, he says, boys need positive role models who can teach them to ‘process’ how they feel before they ‘end up down a dark path’.
Such raw and topical conversations are likely not something filmmaker Joe ever expected to come from his little side hustle.
The content creator and keen storyteller was initially inspired by the Humans of New York Facebook group and was keen to remove the ‘contrived’ and ‘rushed’ nature of interviews today to make something with substance.
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Joe records participants from 500metres away with his camera, zooming out gradually to reflect how the interviewees shift away from speaking about themselves to revealing their wider world views.
It’s a cinematic style that, ultimately, reflects how everyone is just ‘another cog in the system,’ he told The Guardian last year, but the director has had his own mind opened by what people are willing to divulge.
On why it’s been successful, he added that the telephone prop ‘creates an openness’ for the person receiving the call, as having a tangible device by their side and having to hold it to their ear establishes ‘calmness’.
‘I’ve learned that what people really want is to talk. This formula has allowed for some incredible revelations.’
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