The Private Lives of Pippa Lee

The Private Lives of Pippa Lee

Starring: Robin Wright Penn, Alan Arkin, Keanu Reeves, Maria Bello, Winona Ryder

Directed by: Rebecca Miller

Reviewed by: Conor Flynn







Based upon her own as-yet-to-be-released-novel, director Rebecca Miller certainly knows how to project an assured sense of self confidence with her latest feature. Clearly there is something worthy to the production because the film adaptation itself has drawn together a terrific cast and the backing of actor/sometime producer Brad Pitt, however, the merits of the main character and the premise itself are somewhat questionable…

Pippa Lee (Penn) leads what most would see as an idealistic lifestyle; she is the devoted wife to a very successful author, Herb Lee (Arkin), and lives in a friendly neighbourhood along with her two children. With the decision made by Herb to move to New York and a retirement village, Pippa suddenly evaluates her entire life, looking into her past, coming to the conclusion that she is now trapped. Complications arise when Pippa discovers that Herb is having an affair with a younger woman (Ryder). Pippa additionally finds herself drawn to Chris (Reeves), but also dangerously close to a nervous breakdown…

The Private Lives of Pippa Lee is an absorbing drama that isn’t without its fair share of faults. The main problem, though it is debatable, is the central character of Pippa Lee; a character whose life is dramatically flooding with intrigue, but feels incredibly shallow. This material girl is born into wealth, gains even more wealth from an author and then legs it over to hunky Keane Reeves’ house the moment things go remotely askew. This adds a bitter pill to the proceedings which maybe hard for most people to swallow. The drama also feels slack thanks to the storyline which only begins to find its momentum towards the films closure. You still end up wanting to learn more about the characters, but it is only because the fine pedigree of acting on offer.

Robin Wright Penn manages to gloss over the lesser aspects of Pippa Lee and helps her character feel less superficial than she seems to be. Aiding Penn along the way is Alan Arkin in fine form. Mario Bello commands every single scene she is in, which is a real shame, as she isn’t in the film long, though her presence is felt through-out. That said; Bello is slightly upstaged by Winona Ryder who gives a great performance which adds much needed humour to the piece. Finally we come to Mr. Enigmatic himself; Keanu Reeves. One question never escapes this reviewer about Keane Reeves; is he acting or living out the experience as if it is genuinely real? After watching this guy on screen for over twenty years now, it’s still impossible to tell…

The Private Lives of Pippa Lee is a good antidote to whittle away ninety odd minutes. It certainly isn’t as dramatic as its narrative suggests, but through engaging performances it remains highly watchable through-out.