Through the main female character Christine (Miranda July), contemporary art, for once, is presented in an approachable, humanistic, vulnerable, real way. The film shows the itinerary of a young woman who will, at the end of the film, blossom into an artist. Her art will be displayed at the center for contemporary art in her city. It’s as if art may play a crucial role in social life. Our hero becomes whole by attaining, at the same time, the status of lover and artist.
Unlike other films Christine, who is also the director, presents a very nice mirror image of Miranda July’s life. This supports the philosophy of art and love that the character displays. Here the director and the character are one. It unfolds as a giant performance art piece. She is not presented as a diva or an unattainable goddess. She is psychologically fragile and uncertain, while feeling attacked by self-doubt.
The art directly nourishes itself from this void. Her art is recreates the presence of love through the connection of two lonely people into a couple. The photos are often of people in an exotic landscape or somewhere in nature. In this ideal setting our artist uses (in a poignant yet comic way) her voice to create a sense of communication, harmony, and dialogue between these people.
The director also shows the importance of art being connected to real life. Her art is a perfect illustration of her needs and quest in life; a soul mate, a lover, a sense of family. The sense of family is tenderly illustrated by her real job of driving the Elder-cab. It is not glamorous, but indeed noble as she drives the elderly around town and talks to them. It’s a nice little tribute to a harsh reality in Hollywood. Most of the time being an artist in an unattainable dream, and a real constraining job is the destiny for many struggling artists.
Elder-cab is her company where she is a cab driver only for the elderly. It shows a sense of compassion for people in this culture that tend to be marginalized and isolated. She offers a sense of mobility, freedom and companionship to these people. This is because she identifies with these people.
The car becomes a space of intimacy; two people, questions, answers, confessions about life, death and despair. The fish incident perfectly represents the content of their discussion. The epic, yet mundane, adventure of the fish being abandoned and exposed reflects their own lives. The imminent death and momentarily salvation echoes their fragile belief in hope.
The older man will play a crucial symbolic role in the film. His love story with Helen foreshadows Christine’s love story with Richard, the recently separated shoe salesman. Very intelligently Miranda July decides not to show the passing away of Helen. Through her own art, Christine (Miranda July) will play through the love between Helen and the older man. Christine resuscitates the love between the old man and Helen through her art, as in the museum she offers the older man the chance to achieve Helen’s dream of going to the Mayan Ruins with him. The Mayan Temples represent the last foundation of a forgotten and lost mythology/civilization. Art transcends death, transforms life and serves love. Art was a example of death and rebirth.
Her quest for love is first experienced through another moment of performance art where a trivial, mundane incident is transformed into a parable of life. A long walk in the streets becomes the symbol and projection of their walk together through life. Each signpost in the streets becomes a symbol of a landmark in the future life of the couple to the afterlife. It accounts for the spiritual power that art may deliver.
Her art has achieved the rebirth of the old couple and now the young couple will have a chance.
The perfectly cyclic structure of the film perfectly illustrates two key concepts: art imitating life, and life imitating art. In the beginning of the film we have her doing voice overs for two people facing the sun.