Mulholland Drive (2001)

On January 15, the entertainment world lost a truly unique and highly influential talent….David Lynch (Blue Velvet, The Elephant Man, Twin Peaks) who passed away at the age of 78 from emphysema.  Over his illustrious career, he directed twelve feature films and was nominated for four Oscars including Best Director for this acclaimed classic released in the fall of 2001.  Considered by many fans and critics to be Lynch's best film, this mind-bending mystery has since garnered a devoted following from cinephiles who have enjoyed developing and sharing theories regarding its complex plot.  The overall story mainly focuses on two women, one an amnesiac nick-named Rita (Laura Harring) and the other an aspiring actress named Betty (Naomi Watts) who is new to town.  The town is Hollywood, where dreams of fame and fortune sometimes come true....though more often they lead to bad things. :o And as these two ladies develop a relationship.....well as most other Lynch stories go, let's just say that they get pretty strange.  Also included among the stellar cast are Justin Theroux, Jeanne Bates, Robert Forster, Brent Briscoe, Patrick Fischler, Dan Hedaya, and Billy Ray Cyrus. (Yes you read that right.) 

Rest in Peace Mr. Lynch….your legacy will live on WELL beyond your time on this earth. 

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon

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Transcript

MULHOLLAND DRIVE - 2001

Directed by David Lynch    

Starring Naomi Watts, Laura Harring, Justin Theroux, Ann Miller, Mark Pellegrino, Chad Everett, Robert Forster, Angelo Badalamenti, Robert Forster, Patrick Fischler, Michael Cooke, Monty Montgomery, Lee Grant, James Karen, Melissa George, and Dan Hedaya 

Genre: Mystery Thriller (Audio clip)

This remains the only David Lynch film I have ever seen in theaters....I remember pretty much enjoying it as not only a unique, engaging piece of cinema but also an in-theater experience filled with no shortage of gasps and nervous laughter. :) Not sure if Lynch was going for audience participation but he certainly crafted a twisty mind-bending thriller which keeps you on your toes. At points, it feels like a rambling Tarantino-lite sort of crime caper, at other points a pervy DePalma-like mystery, and at other points a dark inside-Hollywood satire from the '90's....and it DOES get increasingly dark towards the end. 🙄 And strangely enough, it still moves and holds together quite well! 

If nothing else, it's a genuine acting showcase for Naomi Watts who is simply dazzling, just portraying so many different facets of hope AND hopelessness throughout. Everyone else in the cast is delivering memorable notes especially Laura Herring as the closest this story comes to have a femme Fatale....or is she? 🤔 Justin Theroux also steals every one of his scenes as a put-upon director even though it feels at points as if he's letting his dark, wire-rimmed glasses do much of the acting.

There are genuinely funny sequences including a comedy of errors murder/theft featuring Mark Pellegrino almost reprising his role from The Big Lebowski? And there are some genuinely affecting scenes including seeing a certain character drown into isolation late in the film.  I THINK I get what Lynch was going for, trying to spin a dark morality tale of Hollywood's exploitation of actresses in only the most elliptical manner he can...but of course he keeps such throwing enough disparate elements at the screen to leave me unsure....which might be the point. 🤫

We've got Chad Everett getting horned up during auditions, Dan Hedaya being intimidating in the boardroom, a truly random cameo from Billy Ray Cyrus (!) in the bedroom, a mystical cowboy character who I swear HAS to be played by William Sadler (alas he's not), and the notable return of Michael J Anderson from his memorable appearances on "Twin Peaks" as the diminutive dream figure who said everything backwards.😉 It also features several gorgeously shot vistas of the Hollywood Hills thanks to DP Peter Deming (The Menu, Drag Me To Hell) and yet another gorgeous atmospheric score from Lynch regular Angelo Badalamenti. From a technical standpoint it's pretty impeccable and very much thanks to an impressive central performance by Watts, I find this to definitely be among Lynch's best, possibly only second to Blue Velvet.

Best Needledrop (best song cue or score used throughout runtime of film): 

Brooklyn’s Own favorite son composer…the late, great Angelo Badalamenti was a long-time collaborator of Lynch’s and returning to conduct another moody score for the filmmaker, he did not disappoint.  Off the bat, the two main characters SEEM to be Betty played by Naomi Watts and Rita played by Laura Harring…they form a bond through some pretty unique circumstances….which develops into a romance.  I say off the bat because by the end of the movie, they appear to be playing very different characters or at the very least, mirror images of what they first seemed to be.   Regardless throughout the film, there is one recurring orchestral theme we hear over many of their scenes together and it is LOVELY….Badalementi’s trademark extended string notes dominate this piece of music simply known as “Mulholland Drive – Love Theme.” (Audio clip) 

And yet as gorgeous as that recuring score is, it is definitively NOT the musical highlight of this film.  No that would occur about 90 minutes into the film in a genuinely affecting sequence which has always stuck with me just for the sheer simplicity of it.  In fact when seeing this in theaters back in early ’02 I believe….after years of watching Lynch’s output via “Twin Peaks” on TV or several of his films on cable and more often than not just being confounded….I remember actually thinking: “Wow this is beautiful…..NOW I get what makes David Lynch stand out so much!”   It is one of those textbook definition scenes for WHY Music is Essential to Film.  It occurs when Betty and Rita sit down in an old fashioned theater in LA….and we see a diegetic solo rendition on-stage of Roy Orbison's classic  "Crying" only sung entirely in Spanish by Rebeka Del Rio, otherwise known as "Llorando.”  And just as touching is how both actresses start to cry as the song builds….(Audio clip) 

Wasted Talent (most under-utilized talent involved with film):

As just a sheerly haunted yet luminous presence in this movie, Laura Harring still leaves quite a mark and the overall emotional pull AND tragedy of this film would just not work as well without her. (Audio clip) 

However since receiving widespread acclaim for her performance in this movie, Harring’s acting career has been kind of spotty….some potentially interesting stuff including an adaptation of Love in the Time of Cholera, John Q with Denzel, and the one role I personally remember her in….playing the Travolta’s main villain’s wife in 2004’s SLIGHTLY underrated Punisher movie starring Thomas Jane.  She’s done a lot of TV and if nothing else has worked pretty consistently since then….but nothing THAT notable.  It could be just another case of a promising actress that Hollywood just didn’t know what to do with….but I’ll say this from her IMDB: she has had ONE hell of an interesting life!  

She’s of mostly Mexican descent but also has direct lineage from German royalty….the Bismarks, yeah.  Before becoming an actress, she was a beauty queen before working at points as a professional tango dancer AND social worker….fascinating stuff, would have just loved to have seen more of her as an actress at the very least. (Audio clip) 

Trailer Moment (scene or moment that best describes this movie):

Now for any die-hard fans of this movie, I’m probably going the obvious route here…definitely among THE most iconic sequences of the film even though it doesn’t feature either of our main characters.  It occurs early in the film and likely sets the dream-like tone for the remainder of the film….I’m of course referring to the diner scene which takes place at Winky’s. (Audio clip) 

The scene is mostly a mysterious exchange between two men: the polished Herb played by Michael Cooke and the beleaguered Dan played by Patrick Fischler.  We don’t know what these two folks do, their relationship, nor even the context with which they are meeting at this diner….and that’s ok.  The important thing to know is that Dan is FREAKED….he feels like he has been in this place before but within a dream, a dream he is scared to relive. (Audio clip) 

Of course the payoff of this scene occurs when the two men walk carefully out the back of the restaurant to see what Dan fears is in the alley.  And their discovery?  Calling it a jump-scare is likely too simplistic but it DOES pack a punch.  Now there have been dozens of various interpretations of what this scene MEANS in the context of the movie, popping up online over the past 20+ years.  I don’t pretend to understand the full meaning but that doesn’t matter – this simple sequence is a five minute MASTERCLASS of performance, shot selection, and DEFINITELY sound design.  There’s this eerie whirring sound sort of the background which just keeps the viewer further on edge throughout.  No matter the meaning, it remains of Lynch’s best! (Audio clip) 

MVP (person or people most responsible for the success of this film):

If you’re listening to this review, chances are you were already aware that on January 15 of this new year 2025, the entertainment world lost a TRULY unique and highly influential talent….David Lynch who passed away at the age of 78 from emphysema.  Much has been written and recorded since then to remember him so I have no illusions of being able to add much to that.  But I’ll say this….as a writer, director, and just all around narrative creator, he was something special….a man with an original vision to say the least.  He drew comic strips, put on stage plays but of course….his most renowned creations were in film and television.  

Growing up right around the same time he was breaking out, I have to admit that I have not always appreciated all of his work….Wild at Heart and his original version of Dune were cable staples which I saw several times, never really enjoyed….watched most of the first season of “Twin Peaks” and was admittedly blown away by what it was able to accomplish on network television at the time.  Consider me embarrassed to admit this but I actually had NOT seen Blue Velvet until just a few months ago…and that was thanks to the good folks reviewing at it at the Blank Check podcast.  

But I was blown away by that film just as I was with this film.  As idiosyncratic as Lynch was with his style of writing and direction, you can CLEARLY see the influence he has had on any number of creators since then…..Quentin Tarantino, the Coen Brothers, Ari Aster, Yorgos Lanthimos, Jordan Peele, recent Oscar-nominee Coralie Farget….he was a true pioneer for mainstream American cinema with regards to use of shadowing, fractured narrative structure, retro style, you name it.   And that’s ALL on display here…for writing and directing one of his true masterpieces, David Lynch is the MVP.

Final Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Rest in Peace Mr. Lynch….your legacy will live on WELL beyond your time on this earth.  And wherever you are right now…however strange or confounding it might be to most myself included, I’m sure you’re finding some type of unsung beauty to appreciate.  

Streaming on Prime Video

And that ends another REALITY-BENDING review!