The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Tuesday, February 16, 2010 - 5 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Tuesday, February 16, 2010 - 5 'Pippa' prevails Just do it already Suburban drama channels 'The Feminine Mystique' By EMILY BOUDREAU DailyArts Writer Pippa Lee's world looks nearly * perfect on the surface. Lee (Robin Wright Penn, "New York, I Love You") has been hap- The Secret pily married to a recently l retired, much Pippa Lee older publisher Atthe Michigan (Alan Arkin, "Marley & Me") Elevation and now they've moved into a suburban neighbor- hood in Connecticut to live out the rest of their lives in peace in "The Private Lives of Pippa Lee." The film opens with a celebra- tory dinner. Pippa Lee, the guests all agree, is an "enigma"- and she is. Penn is remarkably good at being mysterious. She says very little in the first few scenes, but her ges- tures and little smiles as she clears away the plates hint at a compelling past. As the film progresses, the sugary coating of her life dissipates. She is trapped and no longer knows who she is. Now that she has found her- self in a neighborhood full of elderly citizens who die and get wheeled out by paramedics, she realizes she needs to find a new purpose in life. Unfortunately, the more she tries to start a new life, the more her past comes back to haunt her. She starts sleepwalking and develops an uncomfortable attraction to her neighbor's "half-baked" son Chris Nadeau (Keanu Reeves, "The Day the Earth Stood Still"). The story is helped by the vari- Life on a dairy farm: creepier than you think. ous side characters to which the audience is all-too-briefly intro- duced: Pippa's speed-taking mother (Maria Bello, "The Yellow Handker- chief") and her aunt's-lesbian lover (Julianne Moore, "I'm Not There") who takes pornographic photos are among the most intriguing. While not always fully developed, they add an element of fantasy that allows the narrative to have its sarcastic edge. "The Private Lives of Pippa Lee" has a dryness to it that prevents it from becoming too dramatic and can even be comical at times. The struggles of the characters are not to be taken too seriously and pos- sess a refreshing spontaneity that makes uncovering the next element of Pippa's story enjoyable. Blake Lively ("Gossip Girl") plays the younger Pippa Lee in flash- backs. Her performance is solid, but it's difficult at times to see the connection between her character and Penn's. Lively wanders in and out of various situations without Now that we've plowed through Valentine's Day weekend, you've probably got a few chocolates left in that heart-shaped box, your roses are just starting to wilt and you've scraped the bot- tom of the ten and Jerry's pint bare. Because relationships are on our minds with the passing of this pseudo-holiday, our televi- sions are naturally barraging us with romance. "The Office," "Community," "Modern Fam- CAROLYN ily," "30 Rock," "HowI Met Your KLARECKI Mother" and plenty more TV favorites just aired their Valen- tine's Day episodes, getting us all excited that our two favorite characters willfinally realize they're supposed to be together. Of course, they don't. They never do. The most we get on the Valentine's Day special is a wistful glance as character A (once again) acknowledges feelings for character B. Valentine's Day is an excuse for TV shows to keep up the "Will they or won't they?" romantic tension between their lead characters. It's the oldest formula in the book for shows to set up a potential romantic partnership and hint at it incessantly. It took five seasons for Jeannie and Major Nelson to get mar- ried in "I Dream of Jeannie." And today it's even more annoying with shows that seemingly let go of the potential relationship only to bring it back into focus when the plot lags. I understand that "Scrubs" underwent a network change, but J.D. and Elliot's on-again, off-again relationship was the most irritat- ing thing on television. What if their story was real? When you've got two friends with great chemistry who aren't together, maybe it excites you at first, but if that untapped relationship sits for years it starts to become really annoying. If you know someone in an on-again, off- again relationship, you know you're not going to sit down with a bowl of popcorn when they start to talk about it. You're going to roll your eyes, sigh and wish they would just make up their minds. Isn't it strange how relationship troubles are entertaining when they're fake? We spent 10 years watching the rise and fall (and rise again) of the romance of Rachel and Ross on "Friends," but we can't stand the same from people we know. Clearly, that's because we're only putting up with the TV drama for about an hour each week and we can turn it off when it gets old. Still, there are a few couples on television that don't make me want to change the channel. Jim and Pam of "The Office" are happily mar- ried. They went through the requisite four seasons of awkward tension before they got there and "The Office" is starting to lose its edge, but the show hasn't completely failed in the wake of their wed- ding. Jin and Sun only had one season of turbulence on "Lost" before they became the loving, happy couple they are - unless you consider Sun thinking Jin is dead for three years as being unhappy. They're main characters who are in on all the action and don't need the added romantic drama of going back and forth between Sawyer and Jack. I'm looking at you, Kate. There isn't a single "Lost" fan who enjoys your complicated relationship with the men of the island. OK, so those examples of happy TV couples are weak - one resulted from the drawn-out tension I hate, and the other has much bigger problems to deal On-again, off-again TV relationshps are ruining primnetime. with - but that's exactly my point. There ought tobe some modern television stories that revolve around normal people in normal relationships. The only recent show that I can recall that has done this and done it well is ABC's "Modern Fam- ily." The whole premise of the show is to examine the life of the typical American family, showing that the typical American family doesn't exist. We see three very different happy couples all with regular happy-couple problems like arguing over how to punish the kids. It's simple, it's funny, it's compelling and it doesn't need seasons of relationship drama to keep it that way. If one show can do it, why not more? The exas- perating love stories of today's television should be reserved for middle-school girls who care about that sort of thing. Let's end the "Will they or won't they?" plot device, because we all know how it's going to end. Of course Ross and Rachel will be together, J.D. and Elliot will get married and, clearly, Kate ends up with Jack. Now I'm goingto go buy myself another pint of Ben and Jerry's. Klarecki. isn't spooning anything but ice cream. To be her on-again, off-again lover, email her at cklareck@umich.edu. ever really establishing who she is or how she makes the jump from being a problem child to the woman everybody adores. Of course, this loss of identity is a common theme in suburban- based dramas. "The Private Lives of Pippa Lee" mirrors the plight of the suburban housewife laid out in Betty Friedan's book "The Feminine Mystique." Lee experi- ences boredom, emptiness and loss, but director Rebecca Miller ("The Ballad of Jack and Rose") clearly intended the film to be more than just another tirade against the sub- urban prison. And she succeeded. "Pippa Lee" doesn't dwell on its titular character's melodramatic past, but instead focuses on her connections with the people in her life and the way they affect her mental state. With all the changes and uncertainty that her life and those involved in it bring, there's enough room to be pleasantly sur- prised. Artful contradictions Wandering with Wolbers By ERIN STEELE Daily Arts Writer How can art represent stead- fast beliefs - beliefs held so strongly that their possessor In Spite of could only be the Evide called stubborn? teEdn The Gallery Through Project's latest Fed.21 exhibition, "In Gallery Project Spite of the Evi- 205S. Fourth Ave dence," asks art- ists to abstractly answer the central question, "How is it that people can main- tain steadfast beliefs in an idea even when presented with evi- dence that seems to contradict it?" The Gallery Project presents "In Spite of the Evidence," a thought-provoking multimedia exhibition featuring 32 estab- lished and emerging artists who have set out to answer this very question through the lens of their own artistic vision using every medium imaginable, including video, digital art, collage, sculp- ture and more. All the pieces on display, like Sherry Moore's "Safety Net," which is assembled with only safety pins and thread, may leave the viewer wondering how each artist feels about his or her beliefs or other opinions and how such views can be interpreted in his or her work. "The idea is that people have someth think a tendenc other p or evid present belief,", GloriaI galleryt Since the ga themed "The is cultu thought alistic," All th case th well as country or new t Es el Gal "We' voicesa speakin added. Thisf differen potentia it like " whichd victions "We ing they believe in or sial, but we tryto think of subjects bout, and that there is a that are of interest in the world," y for people, even though Pritschet said. Past exhibits have eople disagree with them included "Nature Repercieved," ence to the contrary (is "Animal Intelligence" and "Gen- ed), to still have their own der Agenda." said founding co-director Because of the gallery's com- Pritschet, who runs the mitment to exposing different with Rocco DePietro. points of view, Pritschet often its opening in April2005, finds it becomes a launching pad lery has curated nine for newer artists. exhibits each year. "We have some people in mind goal is to have work that who we invite, but as a nonprofit rally aware, courageous, (organization) one of the things t-provoking and individu- we've always done is we will Pritschet said. look at people's submissions," ae exhibits typically show- Pritschet said. "We try to support e work of local artists as emerging artists and to provide artists from around the a venue for seldom-heard voices. , who may be established We look at people who are mar- to the art world. ginalized from the art scene, but we never compromise and have mediocre work." Pritschet mentioned that one of her greatest pleasures was to vidence at present the work of a well known artist who had won several Very Project. awards in New York City right next to an artist who was apply- ing for an MFA at the University of Michigan. re interested in as many Although The Gallery Project as we can get who are was originally intended by its g to the theme," Pritschet founders to be a five-year proj- ect, Pritschet and DePietro, both focus on a wide variety of artists themselves, have recently t viewpoints diffuses the decided to extend their lease for al controversy of an exhib- two more years. Their next exhi- In Spite of the Evidence," bition, "Mind," which opens with deals with personal con- a reception on Feb. 26 and runs like religion and politics. through March 28, will celebrate don't try to be controver- the extension. By BRAD SANDERS Daily Arts Writer Saskia Olde Wolbers takes audi- ences on journeys throughtheir own psyches. The London-based film- maker will be pre- senting five of her NowThat distinctive films as part of the Penny Part of Me W. Stamps lecture Ha Become series on Thursday at 5:10 p.m. at the Fiction Michigan Theater. Thursday at There's noth- 5:10 p.m. ing typical about Michigan Theater Wolbers's films Mi - there are no physical actors, as the audience is transported into the eyes of the nar- rators who wander through unfamil- iar and dreamlike worlds and express their thoughts through voice-over. The lecture is titled "Now That Part Of. Me Has Become Fiction" because her films are meant to have the effect of the "traveling imagi- nation," which is how Wolbers describes the common experience of people when they read fiction. The films also use narrators who attempt to construct their own realities, like a man who lies to his family for sev- eral years, saying that he's a doctor. "The ideas for my films come from a variety of sources, usually a situa- tion that is described by a newspaper that doesn't have much insight into the real story, so you have to imagine it," Wolbers explained. "I'm very led by chance, and that's what I come across." Wolbers's complex storylines are told in intricately constructed set- tings that represent anything but reality. "Apart from the film I made in 2007, which is set in West Africa, everyfilmisinan aquarium,withliq- uid dripping from the sets," Wolbers said. "The sets are miniature and are usually made from a combination of metal and plastic." Her filmmaking style is uncon- ventional as well, as she usually lets the results of the filming process dic- tate the overall story. "As I work very organically, the complete text is not finished until I am done with all of the filming," Wolbers said. "It is sometimes very intuitive, but at other times very directional." Wolbers will be showing "Kilo- watt Dynasty," "Placebo," "Interlop- er," "Trailer" and "Deadline," as well as scenes from a new film. The audience can expect more than just viewing Wolbers's ground- breaking films. They will also hear what goes on behind the scenes. "I talk about the research that's involved, alittle bit about how I make the films, the process, references ... as well as other things that influ- ence me," Wolbers explained. "The lecture will start with a still image usually referring to the research, and each transition between films will be accompanied by a different still image." Wolbers is very passionate about her work and hopes to entertain as well as enlighten the viewers of her films. Films for a rainy afternoon. "I think that the perfect audience walks in on a rainy afternoon and finds this story that's quite intimate in a way," he said. "It has sort of a photo- documentary style, even though the visuals are more akin to fiction than to filmmaking, because you're not really seeing what you're hearing. I guess there's an element of mystifica- tion - Itry to create a different sort of space for the audience members." Xile f ihi iJC an 43aij Invites you to see Shutter Island Thursday, February 18th State Theater For your chance to receive a pass to check out the new thriller, come down to The Michigan Daily office through 2/17 and sign up for our email list to be in the loop for more great offers! *No Purchase Necessary. While Supplies Last. Seating is not guaranteed and is available on a first come, first served basis. Theater is overbooked to ensure capacity. Employees of the Michigan Daily and promotional partners are not eligible to win. IN THEATERS FEBRUARY 19TH www.shutterisland.com ,.,nmoe vowneu s e v e t-..spa. Attend an information session. Wednesday, February 17th 6:30 p.m. U-M International Center, Room 9 800.424.8580j www.peacecorps.gov Life is calling. How far will 'you go? 4 r a