Some TV shows have been on for so long that they end up predicting the future. As with the cases of The Simpsons and Family Guy, these predictions not only take years to be proven correct, but their satirical nature often makes them a fun bit of trivia. But what happens when a show’s predictions are also condemnations of society, and their accuracy isn’t fun, but rather depressing?
What happens is that you get Years and Years from HBO, which promised an intensely dystopian reality if we keep making the same political and cultural choices we are now. Each day, these warnings feel more pertinent, with great performances by the cast and a clever focus on one family, whose situation makes Years and Years feel deeply relatable.
What Is HBO’s Dystopian Sci-Fi ‘Years and Years’ About?
Many dystopian shows, like Black Mirror, drop the viewer into a dystopian reality with little context, only showing the outcome. However, Years and Years, which has an 89% on Rotten Tomatoes, takes a more in-depth approach as it follows the Lyons family over the course of 15 years as the world slowly descends into authoritarianism and far-right, anti-immigrant sentiment. By showing the process that delivers a society terrified of each other, with Emma Thompson‘s Vivienne Rook being the populist politician who stokes fear and hatred among ordinary people, Years and Years reveals how an ordinary family could be easily torn apart.
Through Muriel (Anne Reid), the family’s matriarch, the Lyons family is brought together under one roof, sparking conflict over their disagreements. The Diplomat‘s Rory Kinnear plays perhaps the clearest example of this, Stephen, as he turns from a kind man into a believer of Rook’s anti-immigration policy due to the opportunity to further his own career. Clashing with him is his principled wife, Celeste (T’Nia Miller) and his sister and political extremist, Edith (Jessica Hynes).
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Years and Years finds a way to ground these high-stakes issues. Daniel (Russell Tovey), Stephen’s brother, falls in love with Viktor (Maxim Baldry), a Ukrainian refugee amidst a growing climate of Rook’s anti-immigrant policy, as well as Rosie Lyons (Ruth Madeley), the youngest of the siblings. Her arc deals mostly with her financial vulnerability, reflecting the everyday person whose struggles can get ignored in a polarized world. As Years and Years‘ story progresses through time, and Rook becomes more powerful, introducing migrant detention centers, these divisions in the Lyons family challenge them to break or better their relationships and themselves, in a way that many families will feel a similar challenge in today’s political climate.
Emma Thompson Is the Highlight of HBO’s ‘Years and Years’
As the aforementioned populist who becomes Prime Minister, Vivienne Rook, Emma Thompson certainly gets to showcase her skills, stealing the show in several scenes. When she debates other politicians, she emanates charisma, which overcomes her clear lack of evidence, focusing on “protecting children” by introducing a device that switches off all electronics. Behind closed doors with Stephen, her façade drops, revealing the human behind the manipulation as she worries about what will become of her, knowing she will be hated if she succeeds, and in danger if she doesn’t. What changes most in Thompson is her swagger. In front of cameras in the aforementioned scenes, her eyes are bright, and her shoulders sway with a rhythm that projects confidence. However, when she speaks with Stephen in private, she simply walks like anyone else and talks in a low tone, eyelids slumped.
It truly feels like we are seeing the true Vivienne Rook. She doesn’t become completely stoic or depressed, but is far closer to just an average person dealing with the strains of their job, with her previous high energy creating the sharp contrast that hammers the point home that we should question how much of a populist’s ranting is mere bravado.
Years and Years will give you plenty to think about. Whether it’s how compassion for the vulnerable by politicians is often just lip service, how populism can easily take over, or even just appreciating dynamic performances from the likes of Thompson and Kinnear, Years and Years uses every tool at its disposal to craft a fascinating and complex narrative.
