What is Matt and Mara movie all about? Everything we know so far

On August 23, 2024, the trailer for the Canadian drama film Matt and Mara, starring Deragh Campbell and Matt Johnson, was released by The Cinema Guild on YouTube. The 1-minute 45-second trailer garnered significant traction among audiences who viewed it over 10,000 times.

Written by Samantha Chater (Queens of the Qing Dynasty (2022) and Kazik Radwanski (Anne at 13,000 Ft. (2019)) and directed by Radwanski, Matt and Mara is scheduled for limited release in the United States on September 13, 2024.

The story of the film chronicles the lives of the titular characters after they reconnect after a considerable period. Both the characters are at different stages of their lives, going through their problems, but what brings them together is their shared interests and their strange sense of belonging.

---

When is Matt and Mara releasing in theatres?

Matt and Mara will be released in theatres on Friday, September 13, 2024. It will premiere at the prestigious IFC Center in New York and will have a limited release in the United States.

At the time of writing this article, no information about the film's availability on streaming platforms is known. However, popular streaming platform MUBI has put up a post regarding the movie along with its synopsis and its cast, which can be considered as a hint of the movie's arrival on the platform.

---

What is the film about?

The official site for the Toronto International Film Festival has released a full-length synopsis for the upcoming film, which reads:

"Matt (Johnson) and Mara (Campbell) were friends in university. But that was years ago. Now, Mara is a creative-writing professor in Toronto, married to Samir (Mounir Al Shami) and raising a toddler (Avery Nayman)."

It continues:

"And when Matt, now a successful author who moved to New York, wanders into her classroom, they pick up exactly where they left off — hanging out for hours on end, sharing dumb jokes, and generally being each other’s escape valve."

Additionally, the film harps on the boundaries that old pals with shared history must maintain to avoid any confrontation and its consequences.

---

What do the critics have to say about the movie?

Matt and Mara has been nominated across several film festivals, including the Berlin International Film Festival, the Toronto International Film Festival, the Istanbul Film Festival, the Mykolaichuk OPEN Audience Film Festival, the Las Palmas Film Festival (winner of Best Film) and the Jeonju International Film Festival.

Based on limited reviews, the film has garnered an overall positive response from the critics. On the popular reviewing platform, Rotten Tomatoes, the film has received an approval rating of 86% based on 14 reviews.

Nadine Whitney from AWFJ.org writes about the film:

"Two imperfect and indulgent people who open and close doors in their relationship as they hold each other to account simply by existing. Matt and Mara emerges as tender depiction of a bittersweet, deep and complicated connection."

Sarah Manvel from the Critic's Notebook writes:

“Matt and Mara could have been delicious. But in this form we are not even being served the cookie dough. All that's here is some raw ingredients with the hope we'll mix them ourselves."

r.

---

The Matt and Mara movie is produced by Daniel Montgomery and Candice Napoleone. The film has been made under the banner of MDFF Films and is distributed by The Cinema Guild.