The National Theatre’s Inter Alia has landed with the kind of intensity that demands silence once the lights go up. Written by Suzie Miller — whose Prima Facie became a global sensation — and directed by Justin Martin, this new drama is drawing widespread acclaim for its piercing look at justice, privilege, and the uneasy space between public duty and private love.

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At its heart is Jessica Parks, a Crown Court judge played by Rosamund Pike, whose life is upended when her teenage son is accused of sexual assault. For years, she’s presided over cases involving consent and sexual violence. Now, the system she’s served so loyally turns inward — and she’s forced to confront her own blind spots, her maternal instincts, and the moral cracks in her profession.

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Critics across the board agree that Pike is extraordinary. Her performance has been described as “electric,” “riveting,” and “impossible to look away from” — a masterclass in restraint and unraveling. She captures the unbearable tension between intellect and emotion, as a woman caught between two versions of herself: the judge who believes in the law, and the mother who can no longer trust it.

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The production itself has also earned praise for its precision and clarity. Martin’s direction balances psychological realism with sleek theatrical design — clean, clinical, and unnervingly intimate. Lighting, projections, and video elements are used to reflect Jessica’s fractured sense of control, while Suzie Miller’s writing keeps the tension simmering even when the stage falls silent.

Not all reviews are uncritical. Some argue that Inter Alia leans too heavily on Jessica’s perspective, leaving other characters — especially her son — underdeveloped. A few find the writing overly didactic in moments, spelling out legal and social arguments that might have been more powerful left unsaid. Others note that the play’s emotional intensity is relentless, occasionally overwhelming its quieter moments of reflection.

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Still, the consensus remains that Inter Alia is one of the most urgent, topical plays to reach NT Live in years — a companion piece to Prima Facie, but more expansive in its questions and more troubling in its answers. It examines not just the failures of a system, but the people who uphold it, and the impossible choices love demands when justice and family collide.

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For cinema audiences, this production offers all the immediacy of live theatre with the intimacy of the camera — every flicker of Pike’s expression captured in high definition. It’s not comfortable viewing, but it’s essential.

In short: Inter Alia is a fierce, thought-provoking drama that grips both heart and conscience. It’s the kind of theatre that starts as a story and ends as a reckoning.