See it if you like John Patrick Shanley's great dialogue and story-telling. Timothee, the young boy is a fresh, refreshing, and talented new face
Don't see it if you're overly Catholic, sensitive about being catholic, or don't enjoy an interesting, autobiographical coming of age/growing up story.
See it if you want a coming-of-age tale that very much feels that it was written by a literate, 60 y.o. playwright making sense of his adolescence.
Don't see it if nostalgia steeped in literary references is not your thing or if you have no interest in examining the difficulties of one's mid-teen years.
See it if you enjoy coming of age stories. The playwright explores his with this play.
Don't see it if you don't enjoy coming of age stories or are looking for a diverse cast.
See it if you like coming of age stories, interested in the playwright's teenage years, like stories set in boarding schools, great acting debuts
Don't see it if you expect consistent characterizations, last minute unfair twists, are a fan of Robert Sean Leonard
See it if you like good theatre
Don't see it if you don't like John Patrick Shanley
See it if You want to realize that so young actor can handle entire play
Don't see it if You don't remember your teen ages
See it if you can be moved by a phenomenal lead who captures the essence of a super smart and super tormented young soul.
Don't see it if a somewhat stylized ending will hurl you into confusion.
See it if ...you love Shanley's work. ...you love plays that have a spiritual component. ....you love a complex and nuanced exploration of teen years.
Don't see it if ...you are looking for a yuk fest.
"It is filled with the sort of self-worshiping, self-flagellating self-centeredness you associate with boys tormented by their raging hormones. Even when it portrays other characters, 'Prodigal Son' is inescapably all about Jim...Jim is a character in search of an author to explain him to himself. Strangely enough, the man that Jim would become seemingly has yet to achieve the distance to make this struggling artist-in-the-making worthy of a play of his own."
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"A keen, passionate portrait of the author as a poetry-spouting romantic punk torn between literary dreams and his roots in the Bronx...He directs his own production with a tender hand...The play is lean and cool-headed, but it contains one or two emotional explosions that cast the previous action in a new light...The night’s revelation is lanky Chalamet as Jim, nailing the Shanley accent and swagger. He gives one of the most impressive stage debuts I’ve seen in years."
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"The language in Shanley’s script is beautifully crafted. Actors live their entire lives and don’t get to say such original and juicy turns of phrase. But it must be said that Chalamet does not rest on the strength of the words, he brings this tortured young boy right to you. He touches a common memory in our hearts; he’s that dangerous brilliant young man you never could have brought home to your parents and/or the young lonely person that you were at fifteen."
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"Telling the story of the two teenage years he spent at the Thomas More School confirmed him in his artistic path, it displays all of his mature talents for moral inquiry, rich dialogue, and compelling scene-making — and not incidentally creates a role that the 20-year-old actor Timothée Chalamet is able to knock out of the park. But 'Prodigal Son,' like its biblical namesake, is also a mopey and vexing testament to the confusions of self-regard."
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"Finely directed by the author himself and exceptionally well acted by a five-person cast led by Timothée Chalamet, 'Prodigal Son' is a heart-sore portrait of adolescent turmoil that bears the stamp of hard-earned truth on every scene…I want to see 'Prodigal Son' again soon, and I expect I will...It strikes me on first viewing as the best thing that Mr. Shanley has given us since 'Doubt.' You can’t get much better than that."
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"Thoughtful and measured, the show takes its own sweet time to reveal itself...Shanley, who directs, skillfully guides the actors well. His production is less successful. The scene changes are slow-moving, as trees slide and snap into place. The music, even though it’s by the likes of Paul Simon, tugs too heavily on the heartstrings. But those are all quibbles with this satisfying play."
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"Shanley has done an excellent job of directing his own play, entrusting the role of this overindulged youth to the extraordinarily gifted Chalamet…The real but largely unexplored drama lies in the conflict between the literary Jim, who writes beautiful poetry and philosophical essays, and the self-destructive Jim, who drinks, steals, and seems determined to get himself kicked out of school."
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"For a work that announces itself as highly personal, this is an opaque portrait revealing little beyond the author's romanticized self-image as an embattled hero...The writing doesn't match the elegance of the production...The chief reward is the acting, which keeps the play involving even as it grows more frustrating."
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