These 20-somethings will take on Austin in the new series, out next month.
Courtesy of KVUE
KVUE — The trailer for Netflix’s Austin-based reality show Roaring Twenties is here.
The show features eight 20-somethings looking to find love and success in Austin.
Like MTV’s The Real World, the strangers become roommates and “learn to navigate the ‘new normal’ of America today.”
Filmed in the fall of 2021, Roaring Twenties premieres December 10 on Netflix.
Cast members include Houstonian Abbey, 25-year-old IT tech Raquel, insurance salesman Bruce, Miami native Natalie, model Kamari, residence coordinator Keano, fashion designer Isha, and aspiring comedian Michael.
These 20-somethings will step out of their comfort zones to find success in the modern pandemic landscape, according to the trailer.
Casting took place in the summer through Netflix’s new website, NetflixReality.com, which it’s calling the “largest reality casting call ever.” Through the website, people can apply for their favorite type of Netflix reality shows, from those featuring cooking to dating to social experiments.
Applicants must be at least 18 years old and residents of the U.S., Canada, the UK, or Ireland. To register, you can submit a one-minute audition video showing off your “real self.”
The Austin Business Journal reported Netflix leased about 20,000 square feet in East Austin and would be filming in the city, using its space at 2008 Alexander Ave. for production. But it isn’t clear whether Roaring Twenties is the show Netflix leased the property for.
Writer and director Paul Greengrass made his name with a cinéma vérité style of filmmaking that brought immediacy and depth to three Jason Bourne films, United 93, Captain Phillips, and more. In The Uprising, he uses those skills to tell the story of the so-called Peasants’ Revolt in 14th century England.
Greengrass wastes no time starting the main plot as Ploughman (Andrew Garfield) and his fellow villagers object to onerous taxes put on them by the country’s nobility, led by the young King Richard II (Woody Norman), to fund an ongoing war. Ploughman initiates a violent response over the tone-deaf — and unseemly — way the king’s guard go about their business, and the rebellion soon starts to spread across the countryside, with the citizens looking for a degree of autonomy.
The ever-expanding group makes their way toward London to try to make their case to the king himself. Meanwhile, the king’s top advisors, including Archbishop Sudbury (Stephen Dillane) and Treasurer Hales (Tom Hollander), try to usurp power from the inexperienced monarch even as the king’s mother (Katherine Waterston) tries to get him to be more assertive.
The history of the English monarchy is long and lurid, as Shakespeare detailed in multiple plays, including Richard II. Though the events in the film took place almost 650 years ago, it’s easy to see parallels between what the peasants were fighting for and modern-day politics. Greengrass’ storytelling intent is solid, and the righteous anger the citizens feel is initially relatable and palpable.
But the populism theme of the story soon gets bogged down in drudgery and minutiae that is difficult to understand, especially when the details are lost in the thick regional English accents. The leaders of the rebels — including John Ball (Jamie Bell), Wat Tyler (Cosmo Jarvis), and Alyce (Thomasin McKenzie) — are shown doing a lot of planning, but the strong feelings they have about their quest don’t come across well, leaving the audience as passive observers.
When there is action, Greengrass and his team employ a frenetic style that is not great for comprehension. While the gist of what is happening and what side is winning is legible, individual moments go by so quickly so as to be nearly meaningless. Save for Ploughman, any connection that has been made with various characters proves futile, as Greengrass doesn’t seem to have any time for emotion. Scenes that should feel thrilling or heartbreaking instead come off as empty.
Garfield is a two-time Oscar nominee who has done great work across multiple genres. He’s fine in this role, but whether it’s the story, the filmmaking, or something else, he’s not as captivating as usual. The same goes for other strong actors like Bell, McKenzie, Dillane, Hollander, and Waterston, who each seem to be giving their all to their performances but are somehow muted in the process.
Done right, The Uprising could have been a rip-roaring account of people standing up against their oppressors. What Greengrass has made, though, is a film that can’t translate its medieval story for a modern audience and concentrates too much on unexciting elements and too little on thrilling ones.
