The Mother

See it if you want to see Huppert give a chilling performance as a devouring, possessive mother in a drug-addled descent as she deals with separation.

Don't see it if you'll feel unfulfilled by the lack of emotional impact or genuine feelings; you expect any new or original insights into the Mother Complex

See it if Middle-aged isolated wife feels most alluring when reminded she is mother to prized son.Actor of international acclaim takes on Not-Broadway

Don't see it if Untrustworthy is any sequence appearing onstage (time shifts; incest) as perspective might prove to be from a woman taking a mental pause.

Also Huppert taking generous liberties of space onstage is thrilling.

See it if you're looking for a bold, new work that's challenging and unusual.

Don't see it if you prefer a traditional narrative, or you have trouble with accents.

See it if you feel compelled to see everything Huppert; you prefer hysteria to naturalistic acting. Sorry, I cannot think of any other reasons.

Don't see it if This play can't save Huppert and Huppert can't save the play. Both are so overblown to the point of farce, difficult to take seriously.

Also I hated this play, resenting that hyperbole is used to portray important issues and actions. The focus is understandably on the mother, but the other characters lack depth, dimension and stage time. At curtain call there was little more than tepid applause and much bottled up laughter - audience members saying they were thankful the play was finally over.... Read more Read less

See it if you are the president of the Isabelle Huppert fan club.

Don't see it if you have other theatre options. Uses repetitive scenes which grow tiresome after a while. Unsympathetic characters. Shades of incest.

See it if Every scene gets a take and retake in an obsessive mother’s mind as she progressively decompensates into mental confusion.

Don't see it if You want a realistic drama where everything is as it seems. French accent sometimes hard to understand.

See it if you are BIG fans of any of the actors.Other than that, avoid it.Dull,rambling,self-indulgent.Everytime it started to move, it died again

Don't see it if you can avoid it.Pompous & empty.Script went in 12 different directions.That'd be fine if I ever cared for a second what happened to anyone.

See it if you like Isabelle Huppert. Her performance is riveting and worth the time even though I felt no empathy towards her character.

Don't see it if you would be uncomfortable watching a character overtly flirting with her son. I felt uncomfortable at times.

See it if great performance by Huppert as a bitter wife & mother whose mental health is deteriorating & who has a disturbing obsession with her son

Don't see it if you want a traditional linear plot - scenes repeat with variations that make you question reality; want a happy story not an unsettling one

See it if you just have to see Isabelle Huppert on stage.

Don't see it if you expect to understand Isabelle Huppert French accent from anywhere other than the front row of the theater.

See it if you like Issabelle Huppert.

Don't see it if you don't like seeing the same scenes played over again

See it if Isabelle Huppert

Don't see it if Chris Noth

See it if You are eager to see Isabelle Hubbert, a brilliant actress.

Don't see it if You prefer a plot that makes sense & has resolution.

See it if You’re a fan of Isabelle Huppert. She’s a force of nature in the show, whether you like the show, her character, or the central premise.

Don't see it if You want a linear plot line. It dissolves, twists, repeats...you’re uncomfortable with the idea of incest, mental illness, or dementia.

See it if you’d like to be in the same room as Isabelle Huppert.

Don't see it if you’re not willing to fill in narrative gaps.

Also Huppert can take you right into her head when she stares off into space.... Read more Read less

See it if you love full out, committed acting.Huppert is brilliant and as always takes risks on stage.Here they work in a difficult and confusing play

Don't see it if you aren't interested in psychopathology or disturbed relationships.The play is only about Huppert's character.Everyone else is a reflection

See it if You want to see the talented Huppert crush this physically & emotionally challenging role See if you are ok with muddy reality & anxiety

Don't see it if You would be bothered by a lot of repetition of events from different perspectives or if you would get restless with tons of dysfunction

Also The performance will leave you breathless but the play will irritate the hell out of you.

There are things happening in the lead character's mind that may or may not be happening in reality. She may not be as paranoid as she first stikes you. But wait she may be even more obsessive and insecure ?? & she is definitely digging her own "snake pit" at an alarming rate

The play is intentionally written to create anxiety and there are moments that are like fingernails on a blackboard. You can feel yourself trying to resist the Mother's sprialling out of control. The whole experience is supposed to make you uncomfortable, so don't go if you hate that kind of theater. Even if you typically enjoy painful & intense drama you should prepare yourself

I still think it is a MUST SEE for Huppert's performace and if you saw Billie Piper in Yerma - both the play and the performance are comparable

Chris North's character is underdeveloped or he couldn't bring much to it

Cool staging... Read more Read less

See it if I chose to see this show because of the Atlantic Theater, the author & the cast including Isabelle Huppert and Chris Noth. It's a harrowing

Don't see it if portrait of a middle-aged woman, wife and mother's deteriorating mental state. Husband, son and son's woman friend seem to want to help.

See it if you want to see a tough performance by Isabelle Huppert. That is really the only reason to see this play.

Don't see it if you want to be engaged in a show. Don't see it if you are expecting it to be as engrossing as "The Father" with Frank Langella.

Also I found the repeated scenes did not really move the story along. I could not feel sympathy for the mother in this show. I thought Mr. Noth was "acting" rather than embodying the part. Justice Smith and Odessa Young were excellent. The run is sold out. I am not sure why unless patrons just want to see certain actors in the flesh.... Read more Read less

See it if you simply want to see Isabelle Luppert in a sometimes frenetic role. Her performance, for me, was the only highlight by the time it ended.

Don't see it if sadly, there are lots of reasons. It ran less than 90 min but felt agonizingly long. Disjointed structure. Stilted, dreadful characters.

Also Quite frankly, I think I missed the whole point. About half the audience gave a standing ovation but it felt more like recognizing the big names in the cast than anything about the actual show. I generally love Chris Noth, but in this play his movements and performance felt cumbersome and forced. The structure was fractured in a deliberate way, but it didn't work for me. It took me a while to warm up to Isabelle's performance, but the depth of her dedication to the role and her willingness to throw herself into it won me over by the end, at least as an actress. Not as a character. The characters are all kind of awful, and it made it difficult to find a message among so much futility and so many poor, unnecessary, and cruel choices.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see the magnetic Isabelle Huppert in a really, really bad play.

Don't see it if You have to be selective about what you see - there are so many good things to see, not a lot of reason to pick this.

Also Well, this one was a stinker. As wonderful as Huppert is, the play just isn't very good, so you end up spending 90 minutes just being entertained by Huppert, but wishing it would end. Chalk one up to good talent in a bad play.... Read more Read less

See it if you like plays that expertly weave thematic elements, that emerge and repeat with variation, plus a tour-de-force performance from Huppert!

Don't see it if you like your plays delivered a little more straight up, get confused easily, prefer a large production, have problem with French accent...

See it if you a big fan of Isabelle Huppert. She's very funny and generally rises above the faults of the play.

Don't see it if you are uncomfortable with mothers coming on to their sons. My companion was very turned off and consequently, didn't care for the play.

See it if you like provocative theater that makes you question your life. Bizarre perspective of the title character forced on the audience.

Don't see it if you want linear, understandable theater that only entertains.

See it if You like stories with multiple twists and meanings and complex issues.

Don't see it if You expect a play with light humor or simple topics.