Review of Mulholland Dr. (1999) by Gavin D — 06 Aug 2013

Mulholland Drive is mesmerizing, a real tour de force of a film. Though one could spend a lifetime trying to make sense of it all, I think the great Roger Ebert had it right when compared the film to a dream.

The whole thing isn't a story, it's an experience. Lynch plays with his audience here, creeps us out, turns us on, draws us into a mystery that cannot be solved. As with many movies, my first viewing turned out to be unsatisfactory.

Not because the film was bad, only because I kept waiting for an explanation to the whole thing. Now, going back, like to a dream once had, I was able to absorb the film like a sponge. One scene that stands out in particular is the diner scene.

Never before have I ever been so scared of an image on a screen. The Exorcist is a terrifying film, but I've watched it a hundred times, and the visceral power it held over me is long gone. When I saw the figure emerge from behind the diner however, I felt my heart sink within my chest.

There is little sound in the shot, no screams or clangs or clashes, no violins, only a soft organic whooshing, like the flesh of a corpse, reanimating. I've watched this diner scene as many, if not more, times than I've seen The Exorcist, and it gets to me every time.

If I digress, it is only to show how well Lynch directs here. Returning to the main focus, Mulholland Drive is a great film, and anyone with an open mind hoping for a truly unique and satisfying movie-going experience will find it here.