PRIMA FACIE Reviews- Page 2

[lapinitsa]

Posted: 4/23/23 at 11:14pm

How surprised is everyone by the lack of a critic's pick? I certainly was.

[ardiem]

Posted: 4/23/23 at 11:34pm

Yeah - whatever flaws there are with the source material, Jodie Comer elevates it in a way (and easily overcomes the ham-fisted attempts to "augment" her with the music and stage effects) that I found to be a must-see.

[Dylan Smith4]

Posted: 4/23/23 at 11:39pm

lapinitsa said: "How surprised is everyone by the lack of a critic's pick? I certainly was."

I was too! Jesse Green (as mentioned before) is biased with his reviews. In my opinion, he lacks taste in theatre. That’s all I’ll say about him at the moment. What I give to have Ben Brantley back! This was by far the best piece of theatre I’ve seen in my life! People need to see this before it’s gone. I hope NT Live will either do more encore screenings of this show after it’s done on Broadway so that more people who could not make it to Broadway or get a ticket will have the chance to see this play! 

Updated On: 4/23/23 at 11:39 PM

[TaffyDavenport]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 12:21am

Just because it's the best piece of theatre you've ever seen, doesn't mean that Jesse Green has no taste. You simply had different experiences with the show. He separated Jodie Comer's performance, which he clearly loved, from the play itself, which he had issues with. He's a professional critic, so that's kind of his job when giving critical analysis. He'd probably agree that Jodie Comer is a must-see, and he could have given the Critic's Pick based on her alone, but he didn't, and that's okay. The play will rake in the dough for the next 8 weeks, and she'll win the Tony, with or without his official stamp of approval. As it is, they still have plenty of possible pull quotes to use from his review.

Updated On: 4/24/23 at 12:21 AM

[FLarnhill]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 2:59am

I've already seen this in theaters so I don't have much interest to travel to NY to see this but I'm not surprised at the reviews. Future MCU Invisible Woman doesn't necessarily give the best performance I've ever seen on Broadway but it's definitely on the top 10 I've seen of the past decade. Her performance here kinda reminds me of pre-Jack-Sparrow Johnny Depp. Playing an exaggerated character, yes, but infusing her with so much emotion and with just enough verisimilitude for you to believe it. A Variety review mentioned her acting being tiresome and it's hard for me to disagree with that. It's not particularly a subtle performance but again, Johnny Depp wasn't exactly subtle in his performances and it worked out for him.

Updated On: 4/24/23 at 02:59 AM

[JasonC3]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 5:52am

I increasingly pay little attention to the Critic's Pick designation and focus more on the review itself.  The Critic's Pick to me sometimes feel like one of those somewhat meaningless nutritional labels companies attach to their product to try and convince us it is better than it really is.

Updated On: 4/24/23 at 05:52 AM

[BJR]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 6:24am

I am not here to defend Green, but it seems odd to be attacking him for what many have said, including people on this board like myself: the play isn't a great play, but she elevates it.

[cam5y]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 7:01am

Green is certainly within his rights to think that Comer is stronger than the play (and not alone in doing so) but his comments about her Liverpool accent were pretty offensive (it’s neither “peculiar,” nor a “twang,” nor really similar to the Beatles, as accents change over time).

Updated On: 4/24/23 at 07:01 AM

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 9:44am

I think it’s a fantastic play with some flaws but don’t care if it’s not a Critic's Pick. I’m confused by it but not enough to care. It won’t impact sales (nobody is going to pass on tickets because of that) and they still have great NYT pull quotes to use.
 

Does “critics pick” even mean anything to anyone anymore besides people like us who read these boards?

[BETTY22]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 9:52am

Surprised it didn't get a NYT CRITIC PIX 

[pethian]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 10:52am

Jordan Catalano said: "Does “critics pick” even mean anything to anyone anymore besides people like us who read these boards?"

 

I've wondered that too, but meanwhile every show that gets one slaps that NY Times Critic's Pick medallion on every piece of show art and advertising they do-- like it was the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval. (Yes, I know, I'm dating myself.)

 

Updated On: 4/24/23 at 10:52 AM

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 11:15am

DTLI Consensus: The evidence is clear: Jodie Comer gives one of the most riveting lead performances of the season in a fantastic play. 

13 positive, 1 mixed (the NYT).

https://didtheylikeit.com/shows/prima-facie/

[InTheBathroom1]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 11:30am

With The Thanksgiving Play being a Critic's Pick and this not being one, I'm wondering if Jesse Green is having a crisis of taste.

Also, disappointed this wasn't reviewed by more women.  It's 2023 and only 2 women reviewed this piece which is kind of crazy to me.

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 2:02pm

AMNY:

Review: ‘Prima Facie’ is a provocative #MeToo legal thriller

https://www.amny.com/entertainment/review-prima-facie-is-a-provocative-metoo-legal-thriller/

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 2:03pm

WSJ: ‘Prima Facie’ Review: Jodie Comer’s Barrister on Broadway

https://www.wsj.com/articles/prima-facie-review-jodie-comers-barrister-on-broadway-28c81e25

"The description “solo show” can be a red flag to frequent theatergoers—including this one. But “Prima Facie,” thanks to Justin Martin’s dynamic direction, the expertly constructed unfolding of the drama, and Ms. Comer’s captivating performance, never feels like a talkathon. Ms. Comer moves smoothly and swiftly between portraying numerous characters, differentiating each with nimble precision while never quite erasing the presence of Tessa herself—a remarkable acting feat.

Well, there is one talkathony passage: “Prima Facie” sags briefly toward the conclusion, when Tessa (or Ms. Miller) feels the need to spell out in detail how misguided and damaging the legal approach to many cases of rape can be. “The lived experience of sexual assault is not remembered in a neat, consistent, scientific parcel. And because of that, the law often finds the evidence ‘unbelievable.’” This peroration is unfortunate and unnecessary, since the brilliantly conceived drama that has preceded it has already seared into our minds these uncomfortable truths."

[FLarnhill]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 2:42pm

InTheBathroom1 said: "With The Thanksgiving Play being a Critic's Pick and this not being one, I'm wondering if Jesse Green is having a crisis of taste.

Also, disappointed this wasn't reviewed by more women. It's 2023 and only 2 women reviewed this piece which is kind of crazy to me."

Hot damn! It's just an opinion. You wanna bash the Variety reviewer for calling Comer tiresome, too? You people, I swear to god. 

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 2:55pm

I don't know how I missed the Variety review (by a woman BTW) last night. I looked for it more than once.

‘Prima Facie’ Review: Jodie Comer Commands the Stage in Broadway Drama

https://variety.com/2023/legit/reviews/prima-facie-review-jodie-comer-broadway-1235590985/

"What’s good about this play is also what’s not so good about it: Tess, while she’s still looking at the world from a position of power, explains how the law works when it comes to sexual assault, and it’s enlightening. And yet it’s also dull and somewhat artless. The writing is good in the way that eating your vegetables is good, but there’s no poetry. We’re strictly talking about law and the way lawyers think.

As for Comer, she’s playing an overwrought ass who drinks too much and talks too much (she’s telling the story from a lot of people’s points of view, so there’s a lot to say), and that gets tiresome. She’s pushing in the first half of the show, playing for laughs to an audience who already loves her. (The applause when she arrived on stage for the first time was deafening.) There are a lot of distracting sound effects as well—disco music blaring, or a heart beating so loudly you can hardly hear Comer speak—and one longs for quiet, and for just one moment of stillness.

The play becomes more interesting, though, during and after the rape, when the glee is gone and Tess comes down to earth to suffer with the rest of us. Comer slows down, and instead of speeding through the story—manically changing costumes on stage, moving furniture around from scene to scene—she stands onstage in her own body, with her bare feet on the ground."

[rubytuesday]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 3:29pm

InTheBathroom1 said: "With The Thanksgiving Play being a Critic's Pick and this not being one, I'm wondering if Jesse Green is having a crisis of taste.

Also, disappointed this wasn't reviewed by more women. It's 2023 and only 2 women reviewed this piece which is kind of crazy to me."

I noticed that and felt the same disappointment. There are several women on the NYT alone that could have reviewed it.

[pacificnorthwest]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 3:31pm

Good grief... re: not a NY Times' critic's pick. I know I'm not the first here to ask what the hell Jesse Green's problem is.

But my real question is, what are the chances that in the wake of the reviews, or next week after the nominations, that the "strictly limited" 10-week run will be extended?

Feel very lucky to have seen the final preview Saturday night. And FWIW, I'd posted a question a couple of weeks ago about the seats in the last row of the orchestra and whether the mezzanine overhang would interfere with the view. I'm happy to report that it did not, at all. Sightline was perfect.

 

[Dylan Smith4]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 5:13pm

pacificnorthwest said: "Good grief... re: not a NY Times' critic's pick. I know I'm not the first here to ask what the hell Jesse Green's problem is.

But my real question is, what are the chances that in the wake of the reviews, or next week after the nominations, that the "strictly limited" 10-week run will be extended?

Feel very lucky to have seen the final preview Saturday night. And FWIW, I'd posted a question a couple of weeks ago about the seats in the last row of the orchestra and whether the mezzanine overhang would interfere with the view. I'm happy to report that it did not, at all. Sightline was perfect.

"

I doubt it will extend because there is already another show (from what we know) planned for the Golden in July. What I hope will happen is that after the show concludes its run, The National Theatre will put Prima Facie back on its streaming platform. 

[DurantPlummer41]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 5:17pm

Is the stage high in this production? Would sitting in the first 5 rows be too close?

[Dylan Smith4]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 5:20pm

DurantPlummer41 said: "Is the stage high in this production? Would sitting in the first 5 rows be too close?"

I sat in the rear mezzanine but could tell that the stage wasn't too high. You should be fine a few rows back from the stage in the orchestra. 

[lapinitsa]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 5:44pm

DurantPlummer41 said: "Is the stage high in this production? Would sitting in the first 5 rows be too close?"

That's where I sat, in the 4th row,  and I thought it was fine.

[pacificnorthwest]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 6:11pm

Dylan Smith4: That would be awesome. I had no idea it had been streamed, or that it might be again. Was that for live performances only at the time? 

[Dylan Smith4]

Posted: 4/24/23 at 6:19pm

pacificnorthwest said: "Dylan Smith4: That would be awesome. I had no idea it had been streamed, or that it might be again. Was that for live performances only at the time?"

Originally, it was a NT LIVE event. Then a couple of months ago, it was on the streaming platform for UK audiences only for a limited time. I think that after the Broadway run concludes, they should put it back on for US and UK audiences. The same thing goes with Leopolstadt when that closes this summer.