The Private Lives of Pippa Lee
Director: Rebecca Miller
Cert: 15
Time: 1hr 38mins
We all carry skeletons in the cupboard but rarely do they emerge in full daylight. Rebecca Miller’s film sets out to change that by focusing a spotlight on the life of Pippa Lee and more specifically its dim and distant past.
We begin with Pippa, wife of an octogenarian publisher (Alan Arkin) moving into a gated community for OAP’s. Here, as very much a younger woman, she cuts the gracious figure of a devoted wife, mother of two grown children and trusted friend to all. But her past is filled with turmoil – an array of erotic adventures, a diet-pill addicted mother and the suicide of an exotic rival. As the story unfolds she meets a new and soulful acquaintance (Keanu Reeves) who helps her to confront her volatile past.
There is an awful lot of weeping but if you can endure that this film has much to offer. The narrative never drags and in the process provides a fascinating insight on parental influence, the dynamics of relationships and the façade of the charmed existence. Robin Wright Penn is wholly believable in the role of Pippa Lee, a mix of insecurity and fragrance and carries the film through some of its minor tics.
Rating: 3/5
Patrons: 13
