David Lynch
Lynch’s mysterious epic takes you down a long winding road out of Hollywood, through love, crime and fame, only to end your desires with confusion.
Initially, Mulholland Drive was a pilot for the television screen. It was intended to be a Twin Peaks spin-off, a mystery drama set in a small town in the late 80’s. Betty was a remake of the show’s infamous femme fatale Audrey Horne, who leaves for Los Angeles to become a movie-star. Lynch fell out with the American producers of the TV-show, who were unhappy with some of the content, so the script was later re-written to be presented as a feature film.
A short but pivotal scene in the film takes place in a diner. When a woman falls onto the floor into a dream like state, two men appear in a Winkies. One is particularly pleased to have met there, justifying that he’s dreamed of this before, whilst also telling the other that, in the dream, he sees a scary figure in the window. This eerie scene sets the tone for the entire film, and is confirmed by Lynch’s tagline: “A love story in the city of dreams.” The series of events happen in a dream-like manner, telling no real cohesive story, but certainly adding clues to what the director is trying to portray.
Nearly every character in Lynch’s production has a pre-empted stereotype which Hollywood has created in our minds; The mysterious hitman/cowboy, the alarming hobo behind the dumpster, the wide-eyed dreamer in Winkies. For this reason, we believe each and every character is vital to the entire plot-line, even though at times, it does seem so.
Until this day the director has never given a clear, concise explanation for the outcome of this film, however several film critics seem to have their own opinions, which widely differ. The plotline itself is a mystery, but also acts like the golden charm of the film, as you’ll never stop thinking about it.
Mulholland Drive
director DAVID LYNCH
year 2001
director of photography PETER DEMING
cast NAOMI WATTS, LAURA ELENA HARRING, JUSTIN THEROUX, ANN MILLER and ROBERT FORSTERI
words PRIYESH PATEL
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