Adolescencia

What an amazing performance from a newcomer. Single, continuous shots, and he hold his own for 50+ minutes an episode. Owen Cooper is a prodigy.

Owen Cooper is the breakout star of Netflix's "Adolescence," a gripping drama featuring Stephen Graham. This 15-year-old from Manchester makes his on-screen debut as Jamie Miller, a young boy accused of a shocking crime. His performance is drawing considerable attention, with many predicting a bright future for the young actor. The series delves into the intense turmoil faced by Jamie and his family, and Cooper's portrayal captures the complexities of a teenager caught in a harrowing situation. He has gone from a normal school boy, to the lead in a high profile netflix drama.

As a parent, I found it to be an eye-opening watch-scary, puzzling, and deeply psychological. It felt genuine and painfully realistic as the motive behind the crime slowly revealed itself. The pacing of the scenes and the camera work were exceptionally well done. The dialogue was well-written, with just enough silent moments to encourage introspection and allow us to reflect on the issues raised in our own lives and experiences.

Not to mention the incredible acting-the performances were outstanding. I even went back and rewatched some parts after realizing that the young actor had never performed on screen before. What a talent-natural, captivating, and truly remarkable. An amazing start to what will hopefully be a long and successful career on screen.

Thank you!

Everyone is praising the acting, cinematography, and the astonishing technical achievement of filming an entire episode in a single continuous shot. And rightfully so. But in the end, what moved me the most in this real-time drama was something far more intimate-the heartbreaking realization of a father who comes to understand that he doesn't truly know his own son.

What can we really do as parents? How much control do we have over the people our children become? Are we responsible for both their virtues and their failings? These are the profound and unsettling questions at the heart of this masterfully crafted slow-burn drama. Every element-its pacing, its visual language, its raw performances-works in perfect harmony to confront us with this timeless, universal dilemma.

Adolescence is one of the most talked about limited series of the year and it came out of nowhere. It wasn't heavily promoted or have any A-list actors yet it was so good that word of mouth made this one of the most watched limited series for Netflix. The acting, writing and directing was would made this show so good. Stephen Graham is one of the more underrated actors there is right now, he's great in just about every thing he does. He got rewarded for his work here too by winning an Emmy for best actor in a limited series. That wasn't all the awards this show won though. 15-year old Owen Cooper won best supporting actor for a limited series, Erin Doherty won best supporting actress for a limited series and the show itself won for best limited series. It also won for best writing and directing too. It just cleaned up all the awards.

Wanted to watch the show because I heard a 16 year old won an Emmy, but oh God was I not prepared for how this show shatters every being of you.

I can't say anything that hasn't been said already, then again I don't want to hype it up too much. It's a very simple show, simple premise executed phenomenally with great acting and the insane logistics of a one-take for each episode. Whether or not a one-shot was the best decision for each episode deserves a conversation, there were times where I think an episode could have packed more punch if it had been cut more. Then again we can't hear sound without the silence that contrasts it.

This is such a thought provoking piece of media, about the effect of media. Internet Access, Mental Health, Parenting, are all topics I'm left questioning myself with. I'm left wondering If I dodged a bullet, not having grown up with social media or the internet. I'm also rethinking my parents, the mistakes they made but also where they found success.

I don't think I'm ever watching this again, but I'll probably replay it in my Head enough times to make up for it.