Direction: Kelly Reichardt
Country: USA
American independent filmmaker Kelly Reichardt is one of the most consistent storytellers of our times. In her eighth feature, Showing Up, the director of First Cow (2019) captures the artistic community of Portland and trivializes it in a positive way. For this comedy-drama film, she teams up again with one of her favorite actors, Michelle Williams. It’s their fourth collaboration after Wendy and Lucy (2008), Meek’s Cutoff (2010) and Certain Women (2016).
Williams is Lizzy, an uptight artist in socks and crocs who is not confident enough about her work. She has no hot water for a while and is forced to take care of a damaged pigeon brought by her best friend, neighbor and landlady, Jo (Hong Chau), who is also an artist. One can feel some tense rivalry between the two but also closeness and affection. Aside this aspect, and on the eve of an important exhibition, Lizzy has to deal with her dysfunctional family - a mother (Maryann Plunkett) in denial, an excessively convivial father (Judd Hirsch) who seems not to care about a thing, and an isolated brother (John Magaro) with mental problems.
I must admit that, due to its drowsy tone and lazy pace, the film may feel apathetic and unresponsive at times, almost as if it has no direction. One needs to give it time to develop and compose. With each step, the story gains depth, the characters get a clearer shape, and topics start to work appropriately together. The notion that artists are people with common problems gives the film a human dimension, and there's a wise exploration of the intricacies between artistic creation and the ordinary, everyday life.
Reichardt is subtle but incisive in her analysis. Showing Up is an observant, critical, gently lilting, and hyper-realistic account that uniquely captures the inner world of an introverted and peculiar artist.
