Blair Loveday
Going into Uproar I had high expectations.
A NZ comedy drama with Julian Dennison and Rhys Darby set me with certain expectations. Mostly I expected to be laughing out loud, a lot. Uproar did not meet these expectations, but it surprised me in ways I didn’t expect.
Uproar is set in a time many Kiwis will recognise.
1981 was a year where there was a heap of apartheid in South Africa, and the Springboks traveled to NZ for a tour. Many Kiwis weren’t happy with this and heroically protested. Many other Kiwis just wanted to watch rugby and opposed the protests.
This is where Josh comes in.
A young half Maori and half NZ-European who’s Maori father has died leaving his British mother to try and raise her Maori sons in New Zealand while working enough to ensure they are housed. Josh is then raised in a more ‘European’ culture while dealing with bullying due to his race and being overweight. The protests inspire his best friend to act, and so he has to deal with his desire to fight the status quo, and wanting to succeed in the predominantly ‘European’ culture he is in.
All of this is complicated by the school he is in.
His school is very rugby heavy. As such they have a stance of not speaking out with the protesters. Josh’s older brother is well loved at the school because of his rugby skills which further complicates the situation.
He then has to decide if he will play rugby or get into acting, which thanks to his teacher Madigan has become a new passion.
What we wind up with is a really well told coming of age story, which has slices of social justice, Maori trying to belong in a European society, two ethnicities trying to live together and NZ history to boot. I was expecting a comedy, but I was presented with a great drama. Don’t get me wrong, there is comedy peppered in, but it is far from the central point. Loaded with fantastic performances, and presentation that really gives a strong 80’s New Zealand feel, it’s pretty insane how much this one hit me in the feels.
Uproar isn’t your next great Kiwi comedy, but it is a shockingly good drama. Some great acting makes this one so much better than expected, but the great kiwi humor comes through as needed to lighten the tenseness of the subject matter.
This is a movie I will be revisiting over the years.
