When it rains it pours. And although the skies over Oregon are dry for Wendy, an Indiana gal on her way to Alaska to find work in Kelly Reichardt's film "Wendy and Lucy" trouble drenches her like a Pacific Northwest downpour.
"Wendy and Lucy" screens at UWM's Union Theatre, on the second floor of the Student Union, 2200 E. Kenwood Blvd., Friday-Sunday, May 1-3. Show times are at 7 p.m. except on Sunday, when it starts at 5 p.m. Admission is $6, $5 for UWM staff, faculty and alumni association members and $4 for UWM students.
Reichardt's "Old Joy" screens each night after "Wendy and Lucy."
Wendy, played by Michelle Williams, is driving with her dog Lucy in a 1988 Honda Accord, headed to Ketchikan, Alaska, where she hopes to land a seasonal job at the Northwestern Fish cannery.
Although a mechanic warns her about a problem with one of the belts on her car's engine, she keeps going. Waking up in Oregon one morning she finds the Accord won't start and so begins a trying hiccup in her journey that tests not only her financial situation but her mettle.
As she tries to assess her situation and work out her next move, Wendy is met with a string of hard-nosed townies. First, the security guard at the Walgreen's kicks her out of the lot for sleeping in her car. Then, she ends up on the wrong end of a battle with a self-righteous teen grocery store employee.
Worst of all, she gets separated from Lucy and suddenly getting out of this town no longer seems like the most important thing for Wendy.
As she sets out to find Lucy, Wendy starts to encounter twinges of consideration, even if it seems most still won't -- in the end -- go the extra mile for a stranger. The security guard at the Walgreen's lets her use his phone, the local mechanic -- although he has bad news -- is willing to haggle a little on the repairs and the receptionist at the dog pound at least welcomes Wendy with a rare smile.
"Wendy and Lucy" is a slow-moving film, but that's pitch perfect for the story, based on a short tale by Jon Raymond (who co-wrote the screenplay with Reichardt).
The washed out colors reflect Wendy's ruptured plans and the reception she gets in this cold town. When the chips are down, Wendy finds that a lot of people would just prefer she disappear.
Williams - who was nominated for an Oscar for her role in "Brokeback Mountaun," is more than the star of the film; the camera is trained on her for nearly all of the film's 80 minutes. In the many moments without dialogue -- other than the always-present plaintive wail of a train whistle -- her face tells us all we need to know.
Rock and roll fans will want to watch the early scene in the film in which Wendy and Lucy encounter a group of ragged travelers at their encampment. One of them, Icky, is played by singer and songwriter Will Oldham, aka Bonnie Prince Billy.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
