Aahana Swrup
In ‘Eat Pray Bark,’ the protagonist, Ursula Brandmeier, finds herself in an absurd situation after an incident plunges her political career into a PR nightmare. The Bavarian State Minister for the Environment and Consumer Protection makes an on-air appearance to talk about pet ownership and sustainability. During the interview, she accidentally ends up expressing her intense aversion to the idea of adopting a dog herself on live television.
The ensuing backlash becomes so overwhelming that her team eventually concludes the only way to ensure she holds onto her candidacy is for her to adopt a shelter dog. However, if that isn’t enough, her inability to train her new pawed-pal, Brenda, lands her in an exclusive dog training program in the Tyrolean mountains with a few other eclectic dog owners. Although the central storyline places little focus on Ursula’s political career, it remains a defining and grounding characterization for the protagonist.
Ursula Brandmeier’s Fictional Storyline Highlights Gender-Based Double Standards in the Public Eye
‘Eat Pray Bark’ is a comedy film that employs a fictional premise in its storytelling. As a result, the narrative, alongside the characters, is rendered a work of fiction credited to the creativity of screenwriters Marco Petry, Jane Ainscough, and Hortense Ullrich. The same is true for Ursula Brandmeier, the film’s protagonist. In real life, there are no counterparts for a politician whose career became endangered due to their public dislike for dogs. In the story, the character is introduced as a politician who has a promising career ahead of her. However, one misstep on live television sends her down a sharp fall from grace in public opinion.
For the same reason, Ursula spends the rest of the story attempting to turn herself into a dog lover to win back the voters’ approval. The film eventually turns this significant PR blunder into a stepping stone of self-discovery and betterment for the protagonist. Yet, the inciting incident itself also informs a crucial aspect of her characterization. Through Ursula’s political career, the narrative pokes fun at the real misogyny that courses through public opinion in the difference of perception between male and female public figures. Notably, much of Ursula’s frustration at her situation stems from the fact that she feels harshly judged for her personal preferences by her voters.
This is particularly grating for her because the same voters refuse to turn the same critical gaze towards her male counterparts. Notably, her fall from grace opens up the doors for another politician, previously canceled for embezzlement and more, to gain popularity among the constituents. Although the situation itself is exaggerated, it underlines a very realistic problem: gender-based discrimination and double standards in politics and other public-facing industries. Given the comedic genre of the film, this aspect of her storyline remains underexplored. Even so, it informs a substantial part of her characterization, allowing Ursula’s backstory to feel defined and grounded. Thus, the story ends up utilizing a hyperbolic scenario of cancel culture to add a realistic framework for an otherwise fictional character.
Read More: Is Eat Pray Bark Based on a True Story?
