| Mulholland Drive (2001) |
| Directed by David Lynch. Starring Naomi Watts, Justin Theroux, Laura Harring, Ann Miller, Billy Ray Cyrus, and Robert Forster. |
| I haven't seen many of Lynch's movies, but I decided to give this one a try because it actually made it to the local theatre. It starts out moderately coherently with an attractive young lady getting amnesia after a horrific car crash on Mulholland dr. in Hollywood. Instead of doing the smart thing and seeking medical help, she breaks into the apartment of the even more attractive Betty (played by Australian Naomi Watts). Betty is a struggling actress who's minding the place for her aunt, and instead of calling the cops, she decides to help the girl discover her identity. |
| That's about as detailed a plot synopsis as you're going to get from me. From here on in, the movie slips straight into the confusing halucenogenic world of David Lynch. The story becomes less coherent by the minute as Lynch replaces plot with surrealism. We see such bizarre characters as a microscopic elderly couple, a hideously burnt demonlike man, a very strange cowboy, a singer performing a french rendition of Roy Orbison's Crying, and even the king of the mullet, Billy Ray Cyrus. He's a much better actor than a singer, although I'd hardly classify that as praise. |
| All of this probably sounds like hefty criticism, but even though I wasn't sure what was happening a lot of the time it was still a wild ride. Lynch even throws in a steamy lesbian sex scene, obviously realising that males in the audience were hoping for one. It's always good to see artistic vision step aside for good old fashioned smut. It also features one of the most realistic looking corpses I've seen in a movie.The ending left me a little confused, and had most of the audience laughing or scratching their heads, but if you want to see what you get from too much acid and total creative control, then check it out. It's no Eraserhead, but is easily more insane. |
| Entertainment : 2.5 out of 4 |
| Watchability : 3 out of 4 |
| Overall : 2.75 out of 4 |
| Reviewed by Blake |
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