Welcome to Me is a snapshot in the life of Alice (well-played by Kristin Wiig, a comedic actress who's more recent turns in dramatic roles have showcased her range), a woman diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder who wins $86 million in the CA lottery. The remainder of the film follows her as she uses her winnings to pay for her own talk show (modeled after her obsession, Oprah) and subsequent issues and oddities arise. We are hurriedly thrown into her world and only able to catch a glimpse of her pre-lottery life if we're observant enough to notice the details - the hundreds of VHS recordings of Oprah episodes, the stacks and stacks of lottery tickets, the copy of O Magazine she keeps with her, her loyalty to a certain convenient store where the clerk knows her order so Alice doesn't even enter the building.
Alice's show synonymous with the film is quirky and vulgar, but with rather matter-of-fact delivery. The financier of the show, she has the ability to do what she pleases (e.g. riding in on a swan boat or recounting her morning finding a stray pubic hair on her toilet seat).
The film has a very promising premise, yet lacks the depth such a subject requires. All of the relationships seem fairly superficial, even with her best (and only) friend who serves as only a listening board for Alice's problems. I'm surprised she stuck around as long as she did. Her 'lover' exists solely on a platonic level. Her gay ex-husband is the only person who actually has some level of concern and freely cares for her.
After the conclusion of her show, a letdown of a series finale, we leave Alice as she turns off her home TV - an action she has not performed in 17 years. Is she making a change? Is this a concrete conclusion or a hopeful attempt? With her 'lover's' gift, a personal camcorder, she once again has the camera turned onto herself. She as the subject of her own show and now as the protagonist of her own camera's recording, is what she has been the entire movie, the sole focus of her entire life.
Overall the film has good intentions, but it too rushed and lacks emotional depth. Welcome to Me is too short a film to create any investment in the characters or the story line. Alice's moments of struggle are acted superbly, but just because she is crying, doesn't mean I care to react. B-
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