Young and successful director Matt suffers a severe trauma that triggers agoraphobia.
This is his story.
There is a cadence to good writing that you become aware of if you pay attention to that sort of thing. Each character has a unique voice and each voice moves the story forward, woven in the dialogue, the motions and the background.
Good writing is hard. It requires consciously listening to your characters and bouncing this question against the script over and over.
Would this character do that? Would this character say that?
Writer/Director Leon Pierce, Jr. can write.
There isn’t a lot of wasted motion in this film and that is a rare thing these days. There are so many films that get lost in Act 2 or trip over themselves in Act 3, but not Welcome Matt.
The title character, Matt, is played by veteran Tahj Mowry.
Mowry may be 35 years old, but has been working in entertainment since he was 4! Mowry does a fine job playing the brilliant, but broken director that is trying to piece his life back together through the sadness and pain he experienced. His emotional range is strong and nothing seems forced as the story unfolds and we share what happened to him. It’s a very strong performance.
Matt’s girlfriend, Angela, is played admirably by Jazsmin Lewis.
This is a really strong performance because at numerous times, Lewis has to act like she’s not acting, while making it obvious that she’s acting to the viewer. If that sounds like a convoluted explanation, imagine how hard it must have been for her to do it in front of the camera. I was seriously impressed.
This is a strong film about loss, pain, and recovery. It’s about anxiety and trauma coming out at a time when the entire world has been traumatized consistently for the last 18 months.
How we emerge from that trauma has yet to be seen, but maybe Welcome Matt can help some of us find a pathway out.
Dean Cole is strong in a small, comic relief/wise counselor role. GG Townson is absolutely adorable as a vulnerable therapist trying to bring Matt back to his friends and family from over a year of agoraphobia induced isolation. It’s important to note that at no point in this film does anyone make light of the trauma or the resulting anxiety. It is treated honestly, respectfully and with compassion.
The imperfections in the film are minor, but they are there. While Dean Cole’s performance is solid, I am not 100% sure his character needed to be in the film at all and Matt’s mom and the pacing of the traumatic reveal could have moved a little better, but in the end nothing could really dampen my enthusiasm for Welcome Matt.
It is a smart, loving, thoughtful film and completely enjoyable to watch.
4 out of 5 stars
* * * * *
Produced by Leon Pierce Jr., Jazsmin Lewis, Jenna Cavelle
Written and Directed by Leon Pierce Jr.
Starring Tahj Mowry, Deon Cole, Jazsmin Lewis, Adriyan Rae, Dorien Wilson,
G.G. Townson, Aaron Grady, Malik S, Derrick A. King, Phil Biedron, Kristen Hurt
Welcome Matt arrives in theaters and On Demand on May 28th
