Showing Up is my introduction to Kelly Reichardt and her unique style of filmmaking. I have heard of her previous work and people around me have praised her subtly in those films. So even though I went in without a point of reference, I did walk in with expectations, which were met. Nothing really happens in Showing Up, but I felt every second of it. It’s a film with a strong theme and a simple story that pays off in the final moments without needing an action packed or melodramatic conclusion. Michelle Williams and Hong Chau seem to have a completely natural dynamic, coming through in their ease of connection to one another. The film lives in a weird middle space between comfort and sadness that just lingers in the air for the duration, leaving you to process those feelings and in my case, shove them down and forget they ever happened.
Lizzy (Michelle Williams) is living with her cat, surrounded by her most recent art projects in her house without any hot water. Jo (Hong Chau) is Lizzy’s landlord, preoccupied with her own art projects, unable to make time to fix Lizzy’s water. They both seem to have an amicable but surface level relationship, with hints that they rely on each other, knowing that the other will be there. Jo’s art consists of yarn sculptures, varying in sizes and colours. She is opening a show soon with promise that there will be a big attendance. Lizzy is prepping for her own show, sculpting human figures out of clay in different positions, also with a variety of colours and emotions in them. Lizzy also works in an art college, where students all around her are free and expressive, through so many mediums of art. She works in the office and it seems as though she keeps to herself mostly, even if her mother is the head of the school.
Lizzy’s art journey gets a bit sidetracked when her cat attacks a pigeon leaving her and Jo to care for the bird, co parenting it and nursing it back to health. This side story, along with one of family trials and tribulations add up to shape Lizzy as a character and give depth to those around her.
Michelle Williams is an actress that I don’t think I have ever been let down by. Her performance in this film is a lot more subdued but she embodies Lizzy which is impressive for an actor that to me is so recognisable. I lost both her and Hong Chau who fits the Kelly Reichardt style perfectly. They both carry the story together as if they actually lead those lives.
Lizzy is dealing with the realities of creating art as an adult, balancing the responsibility of living and working with the creativity of her work. She is surrounded by creative people that are a lot more free to make without boundaries. She lives with this quiet frustration that she can’t be as creatively free as someone like Jo or the students in the art college where she works.
The film has a hazy look to it, soft and grainy that gives it a quality that feels familiar while watching, like a film from the 90s or a memory. I think this visual decision is so important to how you connect to the characters, allowing you to settle into the film without much worry that its going to ramp up in pace and throw you off base.
The music embeds itself into the story, at times I had to take myself out of the film to even realise there was music playing. Andre 3000, who also acts in the film, contributes music through his flute playing which plays at certain points of the film.
The art of the film is really refreshing too, with unique style being showcased as the premiere displays. Both Lizzy and Jo’s artistic styles are not ones that you see everyday, giving them individuality in ways that deepen your understanding of them. Beyond the main characters, we have the art from the school, ranging from expression of movement to light projection. These broaden the film that little bit more, showing how free thinking and creative the world that Lizzy surrounds herself with is.
These technical and emotional elements come together to present a pretty impacting film, in ways that I don’t quite understand. There is a distinct humanity to the characters in the film, especially with Lizzy’s way of life. She is an artist that is limited by the boundaries of having to live in a world where we need to pay for things and put out fires of familial drama. Oddly, through her care of the pigeon, it seems that Lizzy comes out of her shell a bit more, feeling more present as the story progresses. She feels like a well rounded character and not one that is a vessel for a story. I appreciate films like this, that can take a slice of time and pack it with enough to leave you emotionally invested, without having to do all the violin strings and romantic pleading in the rain. This was my first film by Kelly Reichardt, but I can’t see it being my last.
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