The Uprising (15)

Paul Greengrass brings his trademark intensity to this gripping historical drama, with Andrew Garfield delivering a ferocious performance at the heart of England’s Peasants’ Revolt.

In 1381, crushing taxes and royal tyranny push England’s poor towards rebellion. When an unnamed farmer known as The Ploughman (Garfield) defies a brutal royal guard, his actions inspire thousands to march on London. As rebel leaders and preachers rally the masses, The Ploughman must confront the growing divide between fighting for justice and giving in to revenge.

Greengrass’s restless, handheld camerawork brings an immediacy to medieval England, giving the chaos that boots-on-the-ground, guerrilla journalistic feel. The huge battle scenes are gripping, but the film is equally compelling when the fighting gives way to tense negotiations and moral dilemmas. Garfield’s anger is matched by an increasingly difficult sense of responsibility. Elsewhere Woody Norman impresses as the young King Richard II, a vulnerable ruler caught between his own fears and the scheming advisers around him.

It’s well-trodden cinematic territory, but The Uprising does a solid job of exposing how easily the pursuit of justice can spiral into vengeance.