Trauma Therapy (Tyler Graham Pavey, USA, 2019)
Trauma Therapy is a purported thriller wherein four people of various levels of dysfunction agree to spend a weekend with oh so cutely-named Tovin Maven, a self-help maven, in a remote cabin deep in the nameless woods. Maven, played capably by Tom Malloy, is clearly modelled on EST founder Werner Erhard, as he tolds seminars constructed to convince the attendees to face their primal fears and recognize that their main obstacle to a happy and successful is themselves.
In the film, four lucky strangers, Matt (Chase Coleman, easily the standout of the group) John (David Josh Lawrence) Danni (Luciana Faulhaber) and Beth (Emily Humble) are chosen for their specific and individual neuroses, and invited to spend the weekend with Maven in an experimental therapy aimed at righting their emotional wrongs. As the program progresses, the sessions become increasingly disturbing, as Maven pushes each member to challenge their greatest fears and traumas.
There are a number of problems with the film, first being the premise itself. What may have been relevant in the 1970s and 80s, when EST training was in its heyday, feels oddly out of synch with the times. Without any attempt to tie the plot to contemporary themes, the whole premise falls oddly flat. Further, the characters are either too dumb or damaged to recognize how they are being manipulated, which makes them increasingly difficult to empathize with. Finally, director Tyler Graham Pavey shows no flair for the genre, as he generates little tension in the therapeutic sessions, and fails to use the setting to create feelings of dread or claustrophobia. The aforementioned woods are as generic as the themes, storyline, and its characters.
Trauma Therapy is a purported thriller wherein four people of various levels of dysfunction agree to spend a weekend with oh so cutely-named Tovin Maven, a self-help maven, in a remote cabin deep in the nameless woods. Maven, played capably by Tom Malloy, is clearly modelled on EST founder Werner Erhard, as he tolds seminars constructed to convince the attendees to face their primal fears and recognize that their main obstacle to a happy and successful is themselves. In the film, four lucky strangers, Matt (Chase Coleman, easily the standout of the group) John (David Josh Lawrence) Danni (Luciana Faulhaber) and Beth (Emily Humble) are chosen for their specific and individual neuroses, and invited to spend the weekend with Maven in an experimental therapy aimed at righting their emotional wrongs. As the program progresses, the sessions become increasingly disturbing, as Maven pushes each member to challenge their greatest fears and traumas.
There are a number of problems with the film, first being the premise itself. What may have been relevant in the 1970s and 80s, when EST training was in its heyday, feels oddly out of synch with the times. Without any attempt to tie the plot to contemporary themes, the whole premise falls oddly flat. Further, the characters are either too dumb or damaged to recognize how they are being manipulated, which makes them increasingly difficult to empathize with. Finally, director Tyler Graham Pavey shows no flair for the genre, as he generates little tension in the therapeutic sessions, and fails to use the setting to create feelings of dread or claustrophobia. The aforementioned woods are as generic as the themes, storyline, and its characters.
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