Adolescence: Trailer, certificate and where to watch
Stephen Graham stars in the one-take crime drama that won big ratings and eight Emmy awards
Year: 2025
Certificate: 15
Shows and movies filmed as one single continuous take (or cunningly cut to appear that way) are a huge challenge, but they're one that filmmakers and viewers seem keen to take up. It was certainly a challenge that paid off for the makers of British drama Adolescence, which scored huge ratings for Netflix and took home eight Emmy awards on top of that.
Actor Stephen Graham and director Philip Barantini had previously made the engrossing single-take kitchen drama movie Boiling Point together, and reunited for this hard-hitting four-episode crime series, with each instalment filmed in a single take.
When 13-year-old Jamie Miller (Owen Cooper, who became the youngest-ever male Emmy winner for his performance) is arrested for the murder of a teenage girl who goes to his school, his world, and those of his family, his friends and the detectives investigating the case, are turned upside down. Graham stars as his dad Eddie alongside Ashley Walters as the detective inspector handling the case and The Crown's Erin Doherty (also as an Emmy winner, here) the psychologist assessing Jamie.
Watching it is one thing, but actually thinking about the mechanics of how it was made - how did they make sure each set-up was that far from the previous one, how many times did they have to restart when someone bumped into a table, etc - is another level of interest on top here. But by the end, you'll also be left with a powerful message about the importance of what passes between fathers and sons. (Four episodes)
