The peasants are revolting!
The first reviews for The Uprising starring Andrew Garfield have landed, and so far, critics seem to be mixed on the Paul Greengrass-directed historical(?) epic.
Late last month, Focus Features announced that the film was now titled The Uprising: The Rise of Robin Hood, with Garfield's "Ploughman" to be unveiled as the legendary British outlaw at some point in the movie.
The Uprising was initially marketed as a retelling of the true events surrounding the 1381 English Peasants’ Revolt against King Richard II, which sprang from the oppressive taxes and feudal restrictions enforced during his reign.
The updated synopsis reads: “Set against the true events of the Uprising that helped inspire the legend of Robin Hood. [Garfield’s character] forms an army of the people to face the King’s might in a fight for justice.”
We assume the Robin Hood reveal was originally going to be saved as a surprise, and Focus Features figured giving the twist away might get more butts in seats. Whatever the case may have been, the gamble didn't pay off, and the studio quickly deleted all social media posts mentioning Hood after a significant amount of backlash.
So, is The Amazing Spider-Man star playing Robin Hood? Based on the reviews we've read... maybe?
Unless it's a late-act spoiler that the studio is still attempting to keep under wraps, Garfield's character is never named, leaving audiences to draw their own parallels between the actions of the Ploughman and the legends surrounding the Sherwood Forrest archer and his "Merry Men."
Either way, the movie's merging of fact and fiction did not prove overly effective for most critics. Based on 29 reviews, The Uprising currently sits at 55% on Rotten Tomatoes.
The supporting cast features Jamie Bell (Billy Elliot; Snowpiercer), Stephen Dillane (Game of Thrones; The Hour), Tom Hollander (Pirates of the Caribbean; The White Lotus), Thomasin McKenzie (Jojo Rabbit; Last Night in Soho), Jonny Lee Miller (Trainspotting; Elementary), Woody Norman (C'mon C'mon; The Last Voyage of the Demeter), Katherine Waterston (Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them; Inherent Vice), Sky Yang (Rebel Moon; Halo), and Cosmo Jarvis (Shōgun; Lady Macbeth) as real-life rebel leader Wat Tyler.