With characteristic deliberate pacing and being deeply tuned to the subtle rhythms of daily existence, Reichardt explores giving life its tangible meaning through art-making, where we create and present for ourselves and others.
Review #2,819
Dir. Kelly Reichardt
2022 | USA | Drama, Comedy | 108 min | 1.78:1 | English
M18 (passed clean) for brief graphic nudity
Cast: Michelle Williams, Hong Chau, Maryann Plunkett
Plot: An artist on the verge of a career-changing exhibition navigates family, friends and colleagues in the lead-up to her show and finds that the chaos of life becomes the inspiration for more great art.
Awards: Nom. for Palme d’Or (Cannes)
Distributor: A24
Accessibility Index
Subject Matter: Moderate – Making Art; Friends & Colleagues; Dysfunctional Family
Narrative Style: Straightforward
Pace: Slow
Audience Type: General Arthouse
Viewed: The Projector Golden Mile
Spoilers: No
One of the great contemporary directors of our time, Kelly Reichardt has never made a bad film, and with Showing Up, she continues to prop herself at the forefront of American indie cinema.
Although garnering less fanfare than, say, some of her earlier works such as Wendy and Lucy (2008) and Certain Women (2016), Showing Up is a natural extension of her varied filmography, which always engages deeply with the milieu—and sometimes myth-making—of American culture or society.
Starring Michelle Williams in a restrained role (yet her face is a picture of frustration and self-doubt), Showing Up explores art-making as a conduit for reaching out to the tortured human soul. So Lizzy, a sculptor planning her new show, tries to create art as the deadline looms.
But it is difficult when she has a neighbour (played by Hong Chau) who regularly tests her patience, an injured bird to deal with, no hot water to bathe in, and a mentally unstable brother and separated parents whom she hopes would turn up on her big day.
“You’re not the only one with a deadline.”
With characteristic deliberate pacing that lulls us into the subtle rhythms of daily life, Reichardt shows us that our existence is rarely written with grand, operatic gestures; instead, how we lead our sometimes mundane lives is regularly fine-tuned by little actions over time.
And this is where that alignment with art-making becomes most pronounced—that to truly live is to appreciate how planned and serendipitous moments or actions dovetail one another, creating a canvas of limitless possibilities.
The movie title has a dual meaning: to show up for your loved ones and friends is just as important as achieving the goals one has set i.e. the showing is up.
Incomplete artistic projects, creative stagnation and procrastination are the banes of an idle existence. With Showing Up, Reichardt inspires us to continue creating and presenting for ourselves and others because this gives life its tangible meaning.
Grade: B+
Trailer:
Eternality Tan 
It is always good to know why a critic considers a film as somewhat wanting, which is how I interpret – perhaps wrongly? – your 3 1/2-star ratings.
I thought this one was worthy of 4 because it left all the right bits dangling…
LikeLike
It’s a 3.5/B+ rather than 3.5/B if that makes sense. B+ is my basic go-to rating for films that are worth seeing. It’s also the default rating that every film I watch starts with, which means it was consistent from start to end. I reserve 4 stars and above for films that do that but resonate more/most deeply with me for whichever reason.
LikeLiked by 1 person
OK, happy with that. I tend to not want to look at films you rate 3 1/2, so that is why I was wondering if you might want to give your readers some reasons when you have low-ish opinions of films.
When you assign 4 stars to a movie I almost invariably have a closer look at it.
This review was essentially a description of the film, but some evaluative comments are always helpful in guiding me to watch a film or not, and I appreciate critics who are willing to stick their necks out to point out aspects of a film which they found problematic, and which provide some justification for their ratings.
Thank you for your guidance.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I guess you can treat my 3.5/B+ as a ‘4’. I tend to be a bit more stingy with my ratings. I know a reviewer who often gives 4 and 4.5 to Hollywood blockbusters but I have since learnt to reduce it by at least 1 star to match my expectations. So a 4 star film to that person is probably at most a 3 for me lol
LikeLiked by 1 person