Review of The Private Lives of Pippa Lee (2009) by Margaretha T — 30 Nov 2009

It's hard to keep a film with such a large cast engaging, but Rebecca Miller pulls it off (for the most part) with this adaptation of her own novel; perhaps her familiarity with her own work has helped make this seemingly simple tale into a complex character portrait.

Robin Wright Penn is excellent as always, constantly making us think we know Pippa until the actress conveys such ambiguous tendencies that we are gleefully lost in this character. Because the film focuses so much on her, other parts of the film seem under-developed, particularly those regarding the relationships between characters played by Arkin, Ryder, and Belluci.

They all give fantastic supporting performances, but they do the best with their underwritten material. Still, "Pippa Lee" is an interesting work that maintains an illusive yet somewhat bright tone while garnering strong performances.