Stephen Graham & Adolescence on Netflix Is A Masterpiece

Episode guide

About this episode

Episode 23 takes a different turn from the usual business conversation as Chris and Helen Butler talk about the Netflix series Adolescence and why it made such a strong impression on both of them. They came to it from slightly different angles, with Helen gripped by the story and its wider social questions, while Chris quickly became fascinated by how the production had been planned, performed and filmed.

For Chris, the filmmaking is a reminder that a great piece of film is never the work of one person. He breaks down the elements that stood out to him, including the continuous-shot approach, camera hand-offs, movement through locations, the transition onto a drone, sound, staging, natural light and the discipline required from the cast and crew. His wider point is that acting, cinematography, lighting, sound, script, wardrobe and location all have to support the same emotional experience.

Both Chris and Helen are particularly struck by Stephen Graham's performance and the way the series builds emotion across the four episodes. Chris describes being drawn into the father's experience so deeply that the final bedroom scene caught him completely off guard. Helen, usually the more emotional viewer, says she was so absorbed that she spent much of the series simply watching rather than reacting in the way she normally would.

The conversation then moves beyond filmmaking into the issues raised by the story. Chris and Helen talk about teenage boys, bullying, social media, online slang, incel culture, sexual content online and how quickly parents can fall behind the language and pressures young people are dealing with. The series prompted them to speak with their own son about asking for help, walking away from situations and understanding how one action can affect families, friends, schools and entire communities.

They also question how parents, schools and the wider education system can respond more effectively. Chris argues that adults cannot research a trend they do not know exists, while Helen reflects on the value of keeping conversations open even when the subject is uncomfortable. Both say they would support the series, or content like it, being used with older secondary-school pupils to create more relevant discussion around relationships, online behaviour and consequences.

For anyone interested in storytelling, film or content production, this episode is also a passionate breakdown of why technical excellence only matters when it serves the story. Chris keeps returning to the same idea: the camera work is impressive because it never pulls attention away from the emotion. The result, in their view, is a piece of work that is technically ambitious, emotionally powerful and capable of starting conversations well beyond the screen.