Oh, how Netflix has been crying out for a series like Adolescence. Over the past few years, the company that kicked off last decade’s great “streaming revolution” has entered a qualitative nosedive. The content has kept coming, thick, fast and predictable; despite huge budgets and a ream of big-name stars, however, critical successes have been few and far between. The very word “Netflix” has become, for many, an unfortunate prefix for the word “slop”. Which makes a series like Adolescence all the more impressive.
Created by Jack Thorne (This is England ’86, ’88 and ’90) and Stephen Graham, who also stars, the four-part drama focuses on Jamie (Owen Cooper), a 13-year-old boy accused of fatally stabbing a female classmate. It’s an intelligent, stylistically adroit and timely piece of work, tugging at important issues surrounding teenage masculinity, online radicalisation and incel culture. Each episode is shot in a single take – a feat of invention and endurance for both the crew and the actors involved. Responses have been candent, from both critics and viewers: Adolescence is a triumph. But while its success represents a rare win for Netflix, British broadcasters – particularly the BBC – might well be ruing it.
