The Riot Club

Plot synopsis:
Alistair (Sam Claflin) and Miles (Max Irons), both with aristocratic connections, start their first year at Oxford University. Though they are very different — Miles is friendly and level-headed who does not care that his girlfriend Lauren (Holliday Grainger) comes from a lower background, whilst Alistair is an insecure, arrogant and cold-hearted snob with aspirations to follow his friend's uncle, Jeremy (Tom Hollander), a Conservative MP — the common ground is that they both become members of the Riot Club, a long established elite drinking club priding itself on hedonism and the belief that money can buy anything.
Alistair takes the club in more of a competitive fashion and ends up hating Miles. Having been barred from most establishments in Oxford, they have their annual dinner at the function room in a country pub, where their raucous behaviour annoys other patrons though they reimburse Chris, the landlord. After hiring a prostitute who refuses to perform group oral sex, Alistair takes Miles' phone and texts Lauren without Miles knowing, whom they proposition to Miles' disgust. Getting progressively more drunk and ingesting drugs, they start to wreck the room, and when Chris comes to confront them, Alistair punches him followed by the others who viciously attack him, sending him to hospital. Miles attempts to stop them, by calling for an ambulance.
The boys are all arrested but believing that the club is more important than the individual, they agree not to give statements and go on to suggest that Miles, as the newest club member, should take the blame for the attack on Chris. Alistair's skin is then found underneath Chris' fingernails, meaning they can arrest and charge him. Miles' now-ex girlfriend refuses to talk to him, and Miles is approached by the new president of the Riot Club (Guy Bellingfield) to re-join next year, but after nearly having to leave university because of this scandal, he decides to leave the club, a decision which the new president mocks.
Alistair is invited to a meeting with Jeremy, who asks for the Riot Club to be kept out of future court appearances, and assures Alistair that in spite of being kicked out of Oxford, the boy is still a Riot member. Though Alistair is at first aggressively dismissive of Jeremy's proposed assistance, Alistair is brought around when Jeremy offers the boy a position in his office and an assured future. The film concludes with Alistair leaving the meeting with Jeremy, a smug smile on his face as he walks down the street.

Tags: violence

Review:
The unofficial club, which still exists today, consists of a select group of male elites at Oxford University and is the inspiration behind the latest cinema release, "The Riot Club".The Riot Club begins with the group looking to recruit two new starters, as Alistair (Sam Claflin) and Miles (Max Irons) emerge as possible candidates.
While it comes as a slight disappointment that The Riot Club doesn't stray too far from its theatrical origins, it does seem to work in the film's favour, adding to the suspense before the highly dramatic climax.Wade unsubtly incorporates a number of themes in The Riot Club that are reflective of the society we live in, including the inherited privilege and power culture in the country.
There's also a lot of political satire, which comes as no surprise considering some of The Bullingdon Club's ex-members include the current British Prime Minister David Cameron, Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne and Mayor of London Boris Johnson.Overall, The Riot Club is an excellent play-adaptation that makes for a highly gripping film.
After an amusing introductory scene that informs you of the club's centuries old origin, the film turns to contemporary Oxford and presents us with the latest generation of students and Riot Club members.
It follows first-year students Miles Richards (Max Irons) and Alistair Ryle (Sam Claflin), both are of 'good stock' but the former is normal and down-to-earth and the latter is a malicious, fascistic sociopath.During the fresher's activities, Miles quickly befriends the middle- class Lauren (Holliday Grainger), a friendly girl from Northern England; the romantic pair have a sweet naturalism as they playfully talk about and erode their differing heritages.
The scowling, aloof Alistair however proves to be not much of a conversationalist.Both are soon inaugurated into the Riot Club, whose other members include Harry Villiers (Douglas Booth), the pretty boy who struck me as the de-facto leader of the club; Hugo Fraser-Tyrwhitt (Sam Reid), a closet homosexual with an attraction to Miles; Dimitri Mitropolous (Ben Schnetzer), a horribly rich Greek student, and James Leighton- Masters (Freddie Fox), the smug little squirt who's somehow the president of the club.
Some have said that it is littered with caricatures, however the film isn't about ordinary Oxford students or ordinary privilege, it is about an elite circle of extreme wealth and aristocracy.After Miles and Alistair make up the Riot Club's ten members, the group soon have their risibly pompous suits tailored and set off for a night's debauchery to The Old Bull, one of the few establishments they haven't been banned from.
By the time this happens, I thought I had the measure of the pretentious characters and the film's narrative and tone, however as the 'dinner' progresses, both the characters and the course of events become veritably loathsome.As most will know, The Riot Club is inspired by the Bullingdon Club, an Oxford University dining society infamous for its destructive hedonism that boasts alumni such as David Cameron, Boris Johnson and George Osborne.
The film's main target of attack isn't the purported anti-social behaviour of such people, the obnoxious decadence we witness is not endemic to the highly disagreeable 'Riot Club', what it attacks is rather the characters' raging, blue-blooded superiority complexes that causes it.
Some may disagree with its politics, they may consider it a gross exaggeration; it is indeed vehement in its depiction of class wars, however I think it is undeniably a very well executed piece of filmmaking.The film is adapted from the stage play Posh by Laura Wade, and the middle section of the narrative, which is one long scene, certainly feels like the work of a playwright.
Like Tracy Letts' Killer Joe (2011) and Bug (2006), it is another example of how punchy stage material often makes an excellent transfer to the cinema.Much like Letts' work, The Riot Club contains a maelstrom within a cramped four walls; the scene goes from embarrassing to plain excruciating as the decuplet, fuelled by alcohol, drugs and each other's presence, become increasingly hateful and immoral, the vile crescendo eventually reaching a climax that's genuinely shocking.
He is initially honoured to host the boys, the sight of him sycophantically at the beck and call of people half his age who look at him the way they would dog mess on their shoe is pathetic in the true meaning of the word.The worst offender is Alistair, Sam Claflin is excellent when delivering his well-written diatribes with drunken, acerbic hatred.
Claflin proves himself as an accomplished villain actor, he gives his character a sociopathic quality; when there aren't flashes of his vulgar jealousy, resentment and massive hubris, Alistair has an unnerving emotional vacuity.The Riot Club is not simply 107 minutes of pretty boys holding champagne flutes, it is a sharply made thriller that is perhaps politically divisive but rivetingly executed.84%www.hawkensian.com.
In The Riot Cub, however, we are presented with an odious bunch of toffs with few, if any, redeeming features.Alistair (Sam Claflin) and Miles (Max Irons), both aristocratic and with either latent or pronounced class prejudices, begin their first term at Oxford University.
If director Lone Scherfig (One Day, An Education) is aiming to show us how fortunate we are not to be part of that world, then surely there are subtler ways of doing so.The Riot Club isn't a bad film; it is just a largely unpleasant one.
I felt uncomfortable through most of it, particularly with the pseudo morality of Miles when he apparently tries to do the right thing and rise above it, though his peers do not hold back in reminding him he, too, is there by choice.The Riot Club is well performed by all, the attention to detail feels meticulous, from the perspective of one on the outside, and, yes, there is a part of me that enjoyed it.
It was a fascinating experience that repulsed me frequently and left me feeling rather dirty; a little like the evening I had rotten.com inflicted on me by a long-eschewed former colleague.I suspect The Riot Club will have a limited audience and most of those who venture out will find something within it to fascinate them.
I can't imagine many in my circle of friends wanting a repeat viewing or wishing for a life in the inner circle of society afterwards, though.Well constructed, fascinating and repulsive, The Riot Club is a classic example of a film that is good, despite the subject matter being thoroughly unpleasant.For more reviews from The Squiss, subscribe to my blog and like the Facebook page..
This film tells the story of two freshmen at Oxford University, who are invited to join the exclusive club called The Riot Club.I have to say this film surpasses every bit of my expectations.
It shocks me deeply, and provokes much thought about the discrepancy between the world of the young elites and the general public's perception of them.The story quickly builds towards trouble, and I already had a feeling that the dinner will end badly towards the middle of the film.
The Riot Club is a film that has a feeling of disappointment, not from me, but from itself, it feels like a movie that had more to give us and wanted to but can never quite get into the right gear with it's own inner mechanics, it's a film that comes across as unhappy with it's own final piece.The film has a lot of things going for it despite this, it has an INCREDIBLE cast of young men, the whole premise is pitched just right and when it needs to the tension is palpitatable, So why isn't it a better movie?
I think we need to take a second look at this to get to the bottom of it properly.The Riot Club begins as it means to go on, within the first 5 minuets we are shown hard drug use, strong sex scenes, violence and bad language, it never tries to hide or conceal what it is, but then I suppose this is where the problem starts because a movie like The Riot Club (much like A Clockwork Orange really), tries to live in two camps at once, those being the one of class commentary and the other of exploitation cinema.
When I sat down to watch The Riot Club I expected darkness and debauchery, and what I ended up getting was something mildly unsettling, sure there are flurries of vindictiveness in the film, but they are in the trailer.
I wanted to see a film that would justify the tenseness that I felt during some of the periods of the movie, but instead what I came out with was a feeling of confusion to what the hell happened to it all.The Riot Club works perfectly to a pint, and then during the third act totally loses its way and decides it's run out of time anyway, so brings everything to a screeching halt almost mid flow.
That is a crime I can't forgive, to deny me a justified ending to a film I was largely enjoying is wrong.I feel it goes without saying that film has a superior showing of young up and comers, but what I feel should be said is that aside from the main male dominated teens, there is a surprising mix of other actors and actresses too, this is always a welcomed surprise.At times The Riot Club is funny, at times it's uncomfortable but it never reaches the depths it desires or needed to for me.
The performances are solid, especially from the club's newest members (Sam Claflin and Max Irons), but two thirds of this film is spent focusing on their petty squabbles than relatable facets..
It really made me consider how we act in situations we have very little control over and how responsible should we feel in these kinds of situations.My only complaint about the movie would be the main character (Miles Richards) being a flawless Mary Sue - rich, handsome, witty, intelligent, kind and well meaning, as well as some of the other positive characters being presented as these morally superior beings.
The co-leads are Max Irons and Sam Claflin, who play Oxford freshmen who become the two newest club members.Irons is solid, but when your character's defining characteristic is spinelessness, it's hard to generate a lot of excitement.
REVIEW - THE RIOT CLUB I have watched many films in my life and many wash over me with no meaning except for a few like I Daniel Blake.This film is one of those very rare films that is truly disturbing.
Very gritty , very thought provoking watch this knowing that you will be shocked .A secret Oxford University club where if you have to ask to join you can't be a member who are all from affluent backgrounds and think they are better than anyone beneath their social standing.We see how the club begins from its origins to modern day with the group needing new recruits .
Because It was portraying a group of young, rich and stupid people who were behaving so arrogantly and most general (middle class) people who watch it would feel strongly disapproved and, as a consequence dislike this movie.
The movie really shows how rich kids and even elite adults can be out of touch with the world and think of themselves as superior than the rest, which I believe there are still many like that in the UK.
The thrill in what the riot club members do is exciting and really intrigues one into wanting to go to oxford.
This film is often difficult to sit through, so effective it is in showing us how badly sections of the British upper classes behave at University and beyond.It is based upon one or two similar clubs which exist in Britain today; and from which are eventually drawn some of the top people in the UK.The behavior of these boys is given free reign because of a sense of entitlement with no serious consequences.
While The Riot Club shows an exaggeration in its message, with its overly distinguished 'posh' accents, penguin suits and outrageous dialogue that may only happen in the cinema, it doesn't flinch in its uncomfortable portrayal of a divide between the elite and the rest.
The film centers on a group of 10 pompous, snobby school boys at Oxford, who are enlisted in 'The Riot Club', an exclusive clique that only accepts those with dignified family connections, education and wealth.
The acting is one of the highlights of the film, especially from Sam Claflin, who plays a newly initiated member of the club who shows no hesitance in voicing these perspectives and provoking his fellow 'chaps' to go to extremes to prove their status.
The film starts out flashing all over the place from character to character trying to introduce us to each one of the 10 members of the 'Riot Club'.
The writing is about as uncreative and unoriginal as you could possibly get and the acting is mediocre at best (although probably the best thing this has going for it).There's doesn't seem to be any point or message that Cherfig is trying to get across to the audience, which is fine if you make the film fun to watch.
The Riot Club is a very unusual movie that starts out in a way, but then it takes a total different one without you even imagining it.
A cast of up-and-coming British acting talent - Max Irons, Douglas Booth, Sam Clafin et al - do their best with the one-dimensional characters, as well as giving the impression one of the requirements for membership of the club is possession of fantastic cheek bones.
A cast of outstanding young British actors all acting superbly, together with several very fine, and already established character players, a 'name' director and a successful West End play so why isn't "The Riot Club" more engaging than it is?
"The Riot Club" is said to be very loosely based on the real life Bullingdon Club and is about a group of thoroughly unpleasant, extremely rich young men at Oxford, members of the club of the title, who have dedicated themselves to decadence and debauchery and really just being absolute shits.It's very well done though I'm not sure it tells us very much about the state of the nation that we didn't already know.
The Riot Club, although centring around a dark plot, is more of a voyeuristic film that laughs at British pomp (rather like an episode of Midsomer Murders) with the main idea being that rich people always seem to get their own way.
Although many may try and interpret this film as highlighting underlying political issues, such as the gap between rich and poor, in reality it's just a short, easy-going, two hours of watching students getting drunk and smashing up a room.
With a name like "the riot club" it excites me and look forward to these posh oxford university students going out in London and having a fun riot.
Anyway, the movie is about a club in Oxford University which is for the privileged students who act like spoilt idiots.
After bringing in 2 new students, the Riot Club decide to have a night out in a pub, which gets totally out of hand.
Personally, I think that she should have rewritten the ending because they really needed to shut that awful club down.Budget: N/A Worldwide Gross: $2millionI recommend this movie to people who are into their dramas about an exclusive club in Oxford University (Riot Club) who take there celebrations of initiating 2 new students, a bit too far.
The decline of the middle class and the over-power of the rentier class is the big issue of our time.This movie gets nowhere near it.We are given no idea why these people are so privileged, the characters are simply not dominant (especially the president), and overall it feels like an intra-class conflict - the little people hating on each other - with the bad little people in fancy dress.At the least it had to deliver grotesqueries, but not a bit.
Not a very good film, the "riot group" were a bunch of geeky guys with a bit of cash....They got drunk and smashed up a room....
Sure, Miles and Alistair have at least a little personality but as for the rest of their fellow Riot Club members?
Despite the pub landlord being a little grating at times, you do genuinely feel sorry for him and angry at the actions of the Riot Club.
So even though there are some writing faults with this film, it does actually leave you feeling kind of angry with the aristocracy (the Riot Club actually exists under a different name--google it!!)..
When he objects the Riot Club attempt to pay him off while at the same time berating him about the lowness of his and all working people's standing in their eyes.
And propagandist nonsense like "The Riot Club" just adds to the societal rot where people look upon their fellow citizens as "enemies" based on their coming from a certain background or holding the "wrong" political beliefs.Why four stars?
'The Riot Club' is a thrilling 2014 British drama film, revolving around a small group of born with a silver spoon in their mouths students of the University of Oxford.
Albeit the so-called Riot Club is in the center of the story, most of the screen time is dedicated to Sam Claflin (Alistair) and Max Irons (Miles).
It is much like "The Beach" where it makes you feel dirty for watching but still leaves you unsatisfied.I went to Oxford University and not everyone is posh as sin.
I recommend this film not only because it has a good story plot but because the members of the club are all hot and babes..
yet the Riot Club is supposed to only have 10 members at a time.