Mulholland Drive

10/10

Recently, I read an excerpt from a book by Dennis Lim called "David Lynch: The Man from Another Place." In it, the author mentions how much Lynch despises interpretation of his work. He writes:

"Writing about David Lynch, it can be hard not to hear his voice in your head, protesting the violence being done to his work. 'As soon as you put things in words, no one ever sees the film the same way,' he once told me. 'And that's what I hate, you know. Talking—it's real dangerous.' Not for nothing does "Mulholland Drive," the Lynch movie that has invited the most fervent flurry of explication, end with a word of caution: 'Silencio.'"

This reminded me that 11 years before this edit I had written this very review on IMDb, which contained an interpretation of the film's plot. I've decided to remove all of that. Whether or not you are satisfied with a particular interpretation of the plot should be irrelevant to your enjoyment of the film. I enjoyed it before I had that satisfying interpretation. And I'm hoping that I can clear it from my mind the next time I watch "Mulholland Dr."

I will leave one thing from my original post. A quote by Peter Greenaway. "I would argue that if you want to write narratives, be an author, be a novelist, don't be a film maker. Because I believe film making is so much more exciting in areas which aren't primarily to do with narrative."

"Mulholland Dr." is something else. It is a film that will make you question your own sanity in many ways. Naomi Watts is the young, starry-eyed Canadian that wants to make it big in Hollywood. She is naive and thinks that dreams can come true if you want them bad enough. Watts discovers a very beautiful woman with amnesia (Laura Harring in a sizzling performance) in her aunt's house in L.A. and she becomes determined to help Harring out. Harring is mysterious and her near-fatal car crash occurred on the dark and winding Mulholland Dr. Throughout several oddball and very dark scenes take place. A young director (Justin Theroux) learns that Hollywood is run by strange underworld figures that are quiet, but ruthless. Another strange side-story is the mysterious man behind the diner that is seen in another character's dreams. An inept assassin also runs around causing unwanted trouble for himself and others. Then of course there are cameos by Robert Forster and Billy Ray Cyrus. The film twists into darkness as it progresses as Watts' and Harring's relationship turns sexual. A fine line between reality and fantasy is skewered and it comes down to a strange Pandora's box that holds the true secrets to "Mulholland Dr.". Oscar-nominated director David Lynch also shows that not all you see and hear is real, even though one's mind might think so. The film seems artificial at times, showing Hollywood as a nice place where dreams can come true. But then the dreams are turned into vivid nightmares of what could possibly be the true reality. David Lynch somehow makes this whole thing work and he makes it work beautifully in this reviewer's opinion. The film is a trumped-up version of "The Twilight Zone" and it adds many techniques that made Alfred Hitchcock the true master of suspense. Many wonder what this film is truly about. I am not sure. I am not sure Lynch even knows, but I am going to give it a shot. "Mulholland Dr." is the dark side of the human condition. It is a film that shows how easy one can lose one's soul if bad elements are let in. There are figures that seem somewhat supernatural to me in this movie. It seems that many of the characters are "messengers" that are all after one thing: Naomi Watts' soul. Watts lets the elements in and in the end she cannot overcome them. What she thinks she wants seems attractive on the outside, but there are cobras on the inside that will be too strong to fight off. In short, "Mulholland Dr." is a brilliant piece of film-making and it is brilliant due to its unique aspects and the fact that it is what one thinks it is. There is no right or wrong answer and it is a film that makes you think. "Mulholland Dr." is a complicated puzzle for the minds of cinema fanatics. 5 stars out of 5.

Originally filmed in 1999 as a TV pilot, "Mulholland Dr." was rejected. The next year, David Lynch received money to film new scenes to make the movie suitable to be shown in theaters. He did so - and created one of the greatest, most bizarre and nightmarish films ever made.

The film really doesn't have main characters, but if there were main characters, they would be Betty (Naomi Watts) and Rita (Laura Elena Harring). Betty is a perky blonde who's staying in her aunt's apartment while she auditions for parts in movies. She finds Rita in her aunt's apartment and decides to help her. You see, Rita's lost her memory. She has no clue who she is. She takes her name, Rita, from a "Gilda" poster in the bathroom. So the two set out to discover who Rita really is.

David Lynch has been known for making some weird movies, but this film is the definition of weird. It's bizarre, nightmarish, and absolute indescribable. It's like a dream captured on film. By the 100-minute point, the film has become extremely confusing - but if you've been watching closely, it will make perfect sense. Having watched the movie and then read an article on the Internet pointing out things in the film, I now understand the movie completely.

The acting is very good. Watts is terrific. Justin Theroux is very good as a Hollywood director facing problems with the local mob. The music is excellent. Angelo Badalamenti delivers one of his finest scores. And the directing - hah! David Lynch is as masterful a filmmaker as ever there was.

Is this your type of film? Well, that depends. You should probably view more of Lynch's work before watching this movie. You'll need to be patient with the film, and probably watch it a second time to pick up the many clues Lynch has left throughout the movie. For Lynch fans, this is a dream come true.

"Mulholland Dr." is a masterpiece. It's brilliant, enigmatic, and masterfully filmed. I love it.

The case history of 'Mulholland Dr.' is known: What should had been another excursion (after 'Twin Peaks') into the rivaled field of TV-series ended up abruptly after completing the pilot. It was too risky and twisted for the producers to venture an investment. Lynch used all the filmed and cut material and started new shootings to finish a completely new feature film. The result: One of the most impressive cinema experiences of this decade which can be ranked among the best works of David Lynch. His earlier movies 'Eraserhead', 'Blue Velvet' or 'Wild at Heart' kept aloof in an irritating way which hustled the viewer into the role of a voyeur, but never involved him as part of the plot happening such as here.

'Mulholland Dr.' is a puzzle where pieces are missing, others obviously were taken from 'Eraserhead' and 'Lost Highway', but it never seemed to be unfinished work. In the internet I came across with a lot of instructions and essays to explain this film. I am aware now that it loses its magic when you try to decipher it completely. All those detailed solution explanations are not only waste but also the questionable attempt to offer an answer where no such thing is completely required. Imagine this scenario: A little child is dissecting his teddy bear to find out where the secret and the specific of that bear lies. Is it because it wants to destroy his toy? Does the secret lie in the teddy bear or actually in the heart of the child? Transferring this to 'Mulholland Dr.' it means innocence is one of the most important conditions to watch and appreciate it.

David Lynch succeeds not only to picture the surface of human behavior life but also to grapple with everything beneath that. Human desires, dreams, obsessions and fears - all that what remains unspoken; emotions that are often repressed. 'Mulholland Dr.' has the intensity calling for a cast that completely takes issue with the substance. Actresses and actors who are ready to follow the visions of the director selflessly.Laura Elena Harring, Naomi Watts, Justin Theroux solve their task in such an impressing way that you wouldn't want or couldn't imagine another cast. While their acting at the beginning seems to be a little superimposed you soon will realize that this stereo typing is set in with a purpose to manipulate the viewer and to baffle him as soon as the red thread of the film is visible.

When you claim the criterion of a well made film in being able to lose yourself and dive into what you see on screen than Lynch succeeded in making a masterpiece. A modern masterpiece that manifest David Lynch's status as one of the most important, creative and courageous directors of the present. Like every film maker who go beyond the limits he is confronted with criticism and ignorance. This will fade as soon as you find the individual key to Lynch's world of films. 'Mulholland Dr.' is more than just a sleeper – it is a must see for everyone who loves ambitious cinema. And besides, the film is a pay-off with Hollywood, in form and content, which in that distinctness was hardly dared before.

I feel it's hypocritical to call a movie a "masterpiece" (which this is), while at the same time slapping it a bit for the very essence of what it is and tries to achieve... but that's what keeps this from being a "10" for me. Because, after watching and then exhaustingly reading about the film (and understanding more about it that way), it's pretty obvious that many/most people won't "get it" fully the first time... and that detracts a little... even though the complexities are what ultimately makes it great. Does that make sense?

It's a Catch-22. You can't KNOW about it before you start... that would ruin the presentation... and yet there's a very legit chance you won't fully understand it either if you go in cold. It needs either a 2nd viewing, or the post-movie research to understand (if you're willing to do that, and even if you DO, you're going to want to watch it again anyway). All the clues are there and it all makes sense, once you know. But it is so intentionally deceptive, it's hard to know what you don't know.

But it's brilliant, artistic, evocative, and clever. It slaps hard at Hollywood and the dream machine, and the disillusionment of aspiration. There is quite simply nothing like it. It has been called "the best film of the 21st Century," and I won't dispute that. But it IS hard to follow and understand and demands more of the viewer than almost any film I've ever seen. So I'd say watch it, draw your own conclusions, read about it, hear what others think and believe... and then watch it again. You will be rewarded

But there is no denying that it is absolute brilliance, and David Lynch's crowning achievement.