In case you’re wondering, Robin Hood is not in The Uprising. He’s not mentioned by name in Paul Greengrass’s muddy ‘n’ bloody retelling of the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381. And labelling it as an origin story for the mythical outlaw who robbed the rich to give to the poor is stretching a point. Even in the film’s final sequence, where one of the leaders of the rebellion has turned outlaw, there’s no sign of robbery or benevolence when he and his followers hold up some travellers.

Aside from that denouement, this is a straight-down-the-line re-creation of a major historical event, one that’s surprisingly been ignored by filmmakers. Set in an England where memories of the Black Death are all too vivid, the king (Richard II) is just 14 years old and rules through a council. Serfdom still exists and, for people living off the land, the Magna Carta of 1215 is meaningless. But extra taxation sets fire to the anger simmering beneath the surface, and rebellion explodes in a small, southern village, led by the softly spoken Ploughman (Andrew Garfield, soon to be seen in a more contemporary setting in Artificial).

He’s had enough of humiliation, inequality and slavery and joining forces with Wat Tyler (Warfare’s Cosmo Jarvis) and priest John Ball (Jamie Bell, All of Us Strangers) puts him and his followers at the forefront of a march to London and a meeting with the King (C’mon, C’mon’s Woody Norman) who, they believe, will be sympathetic to their cause.

Surprisingly, such a period of passion, conflict and near total revolution has never made it to the big screen before, especially when the contemporary parallels are crystal clear. We watch the King’s council deciding the poor will bear the burden of tax increases, a violent London mob believing Flemish immigrants are stealing their jobs, and there’s the uncomfortable feeling that, in some ways, little has changed in over 600 years.

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It’s tailor-made for Greengrass. Not only is it a subject that draws his sympathy, but it also gives him the opportunity to use his documentary filmmaking experience, as well as his success with true-life dramas such as The Lost Bus and Captain Phillips. Here, though, there’s a larger degree of dramatic license, especially in that final sequence, which feels like an afterthought. The Uprising doesn’t need it. Despite its many qualities, all the final sequence achieves is to overstretch the story.

The impressive crowd scenes and battles – and there are times when there’s literally one battle after another – are immersive and involving. Sometimes presented in the elegance of slow motion but, in the main, conducted with the vigour that goes with a hand-held camera, they make the audience feel like they’re right at the heart of the fight. Some of the brutality is left to the imagination, some of it isn’t, and one of the most memorable images comes from Treasurer Hales (Tom Hollander), perhaps the most manipulative of all the Council members, in the last seconds of his life as the axe is about to descend on his neck. The action sequences as a whole show off Greengrass’s documentary credentials and are where he’s most at home.

He’s also assembled a fine cast. Ploughman may be the main character, but he’s not one of the main leaders of the rebellion and, as played by Garfield, is torn between his support for the cause but and his horror at some of the tactics of Tyler and Ball. In a well-observed, low-key performance, he provides the perfect balance to Bell, who blazes with intensity as the firebrand priest. It’s rounded out by fine support from Jarvis, Thomasin McKenzie and, in the King’s camp, Katherine Waterston as the Duchess, who is constantly at the teenager’s side, but isn’t the ice queen she appears to be. History tells us that the outcome of the meeting between Richard II and his subjects did not end well.

The sad thing about The Uprising is that the film treads the same path, and would have been a genuinely epic experience without its bolted-on final scene.

★★★

In cinemas from October 9th / Andrew Garfield, Jamie Bell, Cosmo Jarvis, Thomasin McKenzie, Woody Norman, Tom Hollander, Stephen Dillane, Katherine Waterston / Dir: Paul Greengrass / Entertainment Film Distributors /15

About the Author

Freda Cooper

Editor

Freda is a Senior Writer at The People's Movies. A lifelong movie fan and a film critic for over ten years, Freda’s natural habitat is the darkened rooms frequented by fellow cineastes. She can also be found asking questions of some of the biggest names in the business – from Cate Blanchett to Daniel Craig or Mike Leigh to Pete Docter – or crafting reviews for a number of sites and publications, including The People’s Movies. And listeners to BBC Local Radio can catch her views on the latest releases. She always – and probably always will – cite The Third Man as her favourite film of all time. Her top ten? That’s a moveable feast …..

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