A droll, easygoing procession of slights, obstacles and microaggressions on the road to an artist’s gallery opening, “Showing Up” could be classified as co-writer and director Kelly Reichardt’s first comedy since her “Old Joy” 17 years ago. But labels are deceptive. There’s subterranean seriousness underneath the deadpan-comic surface here, and much of Reichardt’s previous work found plenty of quiet comedy and seemingly accidental lightness amid some pretty tough lives.
This one’s a portrait of low-level frustration, endured and finally, slightly dispelled. Set among some denizens of the Portland, Oregon, art community, filmed largely on the campus of the former Oregon College of Art and Craft (closed in 2019, reopened and reimagined for the movie), “Showing Up” offers moviegoers a paradoxical experience if they’re up for it. It is a serene, pulse-lowering charmer about Lizzy, a ceramic sculptor played by frequent Reichardt collaborator Michelle Williams, who herself is anything but serene or pulse-lowering.
Reichardt and her screenwriting partner, Jonathan Raymond, spend a few days in close, empathetic proximity to this defensive crouch of a character. Lizzy comes from a family of artists, habitually sidelined by her divorced parents (Maryann Plunkett and Judd Hirsch) who always considered Lizzy’s brother (John Magaro) the prodigy. Lizzy has a deadline to meet: As she hustles to complete her series of ceramic dancing, leaping women, life keeps throwing her curveballs.
