Network (NYC) NYC Reviews and Tickets

"About two-thirds of the way through 'Network,' comprehension dawns. Up to that point, a lot about the bells-and-whistles Broadway version of the 1976 movie has been irretrievably confusing—director Ivo van Hove has crammed every multimedia gimmick he can think of into it...We watch it in smash-zoom high-def on the back wall’s movie screen—largely ignoring Cranston’s world-caliber acting happening just in front of us...There’s not a lot to learn from this version."
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"What’s different about 'Network' on stage, in addition to Cranston’s awesome portrayal, is Ivo van Hove’s very kinetic and immersive direction...The first hour of 'Network' is absolutely mesmerizing...But as with the movie, 'Network' on stage becomes overwhelmed by Chayefsky’s pontificating about the evils of modern society — and Hall isn’t a very judicious editor."
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"Seeing Cranston perform is the only thing that made the evening at all worthwhile for me. Everything else about the production is so overblown, so frenetic, so gimmicky and so disjointed that it wore me down long before it ended...Somewhere midst all the cacophony there’s a cautionary tale about the media that still resonates even though the media themselves may have changed...Go to see Cranston if you are a fan. Otherwise, just rent the movie."
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“van Hove’s direction...is spot-on and exciting. Making the most of the star performance by the terrific Cranston, The director has done a spectacular job of staging this National Theatre production...What van Hove has accomplished is creating a lively, busy and frequently hectic television studio atmosphere...It all has a dynamic effect...There is some extra baggage that should be eliminated...Rising above even the best of the staging is the mighty performance of Cranston.”
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"We already know that Beale’s populist anxieties have become our living nightmare. What director Ivo van Hove’s slick but mostly soulless production fails to do is couch much of this in heart-pounding human drama, despite a deeply felt and characteristically robust turn from Bryan Cranston...Aside from the 'Breaking Bad' star’s visceral performance, most everything else about Van Hove’s production feels rather more hospitable to androids than human players."
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"The absolute genius of Ivo van Hove’s production is to give this a churning, gripping immediacy, as TV cameras swoop over the action and relay images to a giant screen centre stage and on smaller screens throughout the auditorium. And it is propelled by a searing, shatteringly committed performance from Bryan Cranston...That stage is slightly smaller than it was in London, but the impact is even more shattering."
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“Ivo van Hove brings his signature style to an intense and intelligent stage production of Paddy Chayefsky’s prophetic 1976 film ‘Network’. An easy highlight of the Broadway season, Bryan Cranston gives a Tony Award-worthy performance as news anchor Howard Beale’s descent into a rage-filled demagogue. The message is the medium, and vice versa, in this technically brilliant and thrilling new drama.”
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"When do you really feel you are feasting on the meat and bones of the play?...Mostly when Bryan Cranston’s beautifully, near-perfectly-performed newscaster-turned-furious-prophet Howard Beale is speaking...Cranston’s performance is a wonder...There is one final glorious visual trick that confirms van Hove and Versweyveld as superior stage magicians—even if, with 'Network,' their box of tricks feels a little overstuffed. Bryan Cranston provides all the magic this production needs."
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