Quartile rating: 6.5/10 · 1 rating
Two first-year students at Oxford University join a secret society and learn that their reputations can be made or destroyed over the course of one evening.
The Riot Club benefits from a sharp stage-to-screen adaptation of Laura Wade's Posh, with a cast of rising British talent (Max Irons, Sam Claflin, Douglas Booth and others) delivering committed, often chilling performances that elevate the material. The plotting follows a fairly predictable arc of privilege escalating into violence, but the class critique has genuine bite. Cinematography is functional rather than inspired — mostly interior shooting that never fully escapes its theatrical origins. Novelty is moderate: the setting and subject (elite entitlement at Oxford) feel specific and pointed, though the broad strokes of 'rich boys behaving badly' aren't unfamiliar. The ending lands its moral punches but the resolution feels a touch rushed and on-the-nose.