The Uprising (2026) Review: Greengrass Takes On The Peasants' Revolt

This The Uprising review starts with a simple point: Paul Greengrass has made a rebellion film that feels urgent rather than dusty. Set in the aftermath of the plague, it follows commoners who refuse to be crushed any longer. It is an action drama with real muscle and a clear sense of anger.

The Uprising Review: The Story So Far (No Spoilers)

The Uprising plot begins in a England battered by war and plague. Nobles and clergy squeeze the poor for every coin, while a young King Richard II is governed by men more interested in their own wealth than his people. Tax collectors turn up at farms and leave families with too little to eat.

Andrew Garfield plays a farmer known only as Ploughman, who snaps and defies the authority pressing on him. He quickly learns he is not alone. Rebels from Essex are soon joined by others from Kent, and what begins as a single act of defiance grows into a movement.

Greengrass also wrote the script, and his setup is lean. We get the injustice, the spark and the swelling crowd without a long preamble. The film runs 128 minutes and rarely feels padded in its opening stretch.

What Works in The Uprising

Greengrass is a natural fit for this material. His career has been built on putting the audience in the middle of chaotic, crowded events, and a mass of angry peasants suits that approach. The crowd scenes carry a sense of danger and momentum.

• Urgency: The story moves with purpose and keeps the stakes personal.

• Political edge: The anger over taxes and inequality feels timeless without being preachy.

• Scale: The sight of commoners uniting gives the film a real sense of collective power.

The film is also a fine entry in the history and drama tradition, mixing period detail with a modern, restless pulse. If you like your period pieces gritty rather than polished, this will land well. The end credits song, "Our Land", fits the film's themes of belonging and defiance.

The Uprising Cast and Performances

The Uprising cast is strong across the board. Andrew Garfield gives Ploughman a tired, burning conviction, and he sells the moment an ordinary man decides he can no longer stay quiet. He keeps the character grounded instead of turning him into a legend.

Jamie Bell plays John Ball, and Cosmo Jarvis is Wat Tyler. Both bring weight to the rebel leadership, and their scenes give the film a sense of competing voices within the movement. Woody Norman plays the young King Richard II with a believable mix of vulnerability and royal stiffness.

On the other side of the divide, Stephen Dillane appears as Archbishop Sudbury and Tom Hollander as Treasurer Hales. They embody the comfortable authority the rebels oppose, and Hollander in particular is good at making bureaucratic greed feel menacing.

Where The Uprising Stumbles

Not every viewer will find the film fully satisfying. With so many historical figures in play, some characters feel more like symbols than people. A few of the supporting rebels and nobles get little room to breathe.

The film's focus on a nameless Ploughman is an interesting choice, but it can keep him at a slight distance. We feel his anger more than we learn who he is. Some audience reviews have also been more lukewarm, finding the storytelling uneven when it moves between its many players.

At 128 minutes, viewers who prefer a tighter historical sketch may feel the pacing sag in places. It is a minor complaint, but it keeps the film from being a standout of its type.

Is The Uprising Worth Watching?

Yes, The Uprising is worth watching if you want a muscular, politically charged historical drama. It is not flawless, but it is driven by a committed lead performance and a director who knows how to stage collective action.

The film's themes land because they are simple: people pushed too far will push back. That clarity gives it power, even when the character work could go deeper. Audience scores have been warm, and it is easy to see why.

If you want more in the same vein, browse our War movie reviews or Drama movie reviews. For another recent period-adjacent story about a stubborn leader, see our De Gaulle: Résistance review. The Uprising release date is 10 September 2026, and it carries an R rating for its violence.

Who Will Enjoy The Uprising

• Fans of Paul Greengrass's immersive, hand-on-the-shoulder style of filmmaking.

• Viewers who like medieval history told with grit and political bite.

• Anyone drawn to Andrew Garfield's work or ensemble casts full of strong British character actors.