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Riot

1999 · 50 min

A sober, archival documentary that reconstructs a flashpoint of racial tension through testimony and period footage, asking for attentive viewing.

Directed by
John Akomfrah
Genres
Documentary
Starring
Paul Barber
Overview
John Akomfrah’s seminal Riot traces the riots in Liverpool during July 1981 in a climate of economic recession under Thatcher’s regime. Akomfrah captures this turning point in Britain’s struggle towards multicultural democracy through interviews revealing the ghettoisation and racial abuse in Toxteth that escalated with stop-and-search policing tactics following the “sus” laws.

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In the UKNo streaming, rental or purchase options known.
Directed by
John Akomfrah
Genres
Documentary
Starring
Paul Barber
In your watch list

How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
    Pacing
    measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
    Attention
    engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
    Themes
    • race
    • class
    • power
    • justice
    • rebellion
    Places
    • big city
    Era
    contemporary
    Audience
    adult
    Form
    • documentary
    • true story
    Content intensity
    • Gore none
    • Language mild
    • Violence mild
    • Sex none
    All scales, 0 to 10
    Scales, 0 to 10
    ScaleValue0 to 10
    Action2
    Horror1
    Humour1
    Realism10
    Romance0
    Tension5
    Darkness6
    Complexity6
    Emotional weight7

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    Where to watch in the UK

    No UK streaming, rental or purchase options are known.

    Streaming data from JustWatch.TMDB

    Details

    Genres
    documentary
    Directed by
    John Akomfrah
    Written by
    Edward George
    Starring
    Paul Barber
    Cinematography
    Dewald Aukema
    Runtime
    50 min
    Country
    United Kingdom
    Languages
    English

    TMDBIMDb