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Production Company: Les Films Alain Sarde, Le Studio Canal
Streaming Service: Amazon Prime, Apple TV, The Criterion Channel, etc. However, I would recommend that, if possible, one views this movie in a theater, as I did.
Release Date: October 19, 2001
Rating: R
Runtime: 147 minutes ( 2 Hours and 27 minutes)
Description (Stolen directly from Google with minor alterations):
A dark-haired woman (Laura Elena Harring) is left amnesiac after a car crash. She wanders the streets of Los Angeles in a daze before taking refuge in an apartment. There she is discovered by Naomi Watts [sic], a wholesome Midwestern blonde who has come to the City of Angels seeking fame as an actress. Together, the two attempt to solve the mystery of her [sic] true identity. The story is set in a dream-like Los Angeles, spoilt neither by traffic jams nor smog.
Personal Rating: ∞/10
Reviewer Name: Dante Sebastian Gonzalez-Moore
Date of Review: 2/17/2025, originally watched 2/12/2025
I will begin this review by saying I did not have much of a connection with David Lynch or his films before he died. I had started watching Twin Peaks a few months before his death and finished the week after he died. As such, besides Twin Peaks, which was in many parts not directed by Lynch and was somewhat neutered by cable executives, I did not have much experience with Lynch's style of directing or any of his works, besides Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, which I saw previously that week and will be publishing a review of later. I had a vague idea of Lynch as a somewhat wackadoo and eccentric character but did not know the full extent of his style and works. Lynch fans may be well acquainted with his style and quirks, but those who are unfamiliar are in for a disorienting and confusing watch, though that is a positive statement when it comes to this film. I watched this film at the loft as a part of the Lynch memorial film showings that they recently held. Although my seat was not the greatest, as I was near the left of the screen in the front, experiencing the film in an actual theater, a rather nice one too, greatly enhances the film, at least in my opinion.
With that necessary preamble, I will say that Mulholland Drive is perhaps my favorite movie ever and perhaps the best movie ever created in film history. This movie has not left my mind for the past half-week since I saw it and perhaps never will. Every experience I now have in life will somehow connect to this movie. In a way, this movie has forever ruined what I expect from film and life, however, I can't exactly say I'm upset about it. I will now forever be chasing the high I got from this film, and I'm okay with that. This is a film that needs to be experienced by every single person on the planet Earth, at least once, and for that reason, I will give very little away about this film. I went in completely blind, I had no idea about really any part of this film, and I'm incredibly glad that was the case. This is a movie that can never be solved, I truly don't know if any possible interpretation of the events or themes is correct. I believe we can theorize and speculate as much as we want, but even after 10 viewings, could create an entirely new interpretation every time. I should watch it again to gain even half of a percentage of understanding of the film, which is perhaps, in part, another reason why I am not discussing much of the film itself, instead the feelings around the film and the experience of watching the movie. Really, this is less of a review and more of a call to action. Do not look up any plot details before watching this movie. Do not read the Wikipedia page, even the brief summary I gave above might have been too much. Watch this movie completely blind.
Billy Ray Cyrus has a rather small role, but, it's curious that Lynch cast him at all. Funnily enough, Cyrus later said that David Lynch had a part in destroying his family, in part because of the movie, so make of that what you will. Perhaps that, rather poignantly, somewhat ties into the film, but I won't speculate on that further. The most I will say about greater story elements and themes is the Romance: rather complex and rather queer. It comments on identity and what it means to love and give yourself to another person, to become one with another. Love is a throughline in the Lynch works I have seen, but, like real life, the love in Lynch's works is not always well-defined, but often very powerful either way. The characters and their dynamics are the core of this film, as with many films, obviously, but nothing is as straightforward as many films. We see the same actors as different people in different lives in different circumstances. Identity is another major theme of this movie and this, of course, does play a role. Naomi Watts is certainly the standout, her performance is amazing, and she plays an incredible double role. While her actual speaking while acting is great, her physicality during certain scenes conveys more than words ever could. Laura Harring is also amazing as the second lead, again playing two separate roles and managing to make them entirely different people. Her acting is more subdued than Watts's, which does play into the story, it is by no means a reflection of lesser abilities. Not to mention they're both incredibly physically beautiful. Lynch loooooooooovesssss casting beautiful women to star in his works. As you may have noticed, I struck out both character's names in the summary and have not named them, as I think even knowing their names beforehand will change this film.
The rest of the cast is not to be forgotten, however, I will not mention most of them for the sake of brevity. Justin Theroux, perhaps the tritagonist, plays a hotshot Tarantino-style director. He has some great comedic moments and generally plays his role well. The film often does bounce between humor and terror and romance all within the same scenes, but I can only really say I laughed at about one or two scenes. Not due to a lack of humor that I found funny, but just because of the way the film made me feel. The film creates a hyperreality that you are completely immersed in. I believed that all of these characters were real and felt real emotions for these real people. There was no relief from, for lack of a better phrase, the dark and mysterious energy that exists throughout the film, making it so that any relief attempted to be given by Lynch only further added to my confusion and discomfort. It was a good discomfort, of course. I sat in silence for a few minutes after the film finished, contemplating the ending and my life as a whole. This film alienated me: From life, from others, but most of all from myself. I contemplated who I am, what it means to be me, and what loosely comes together to form who I am. And I came to the realization, that I don't know. Does anyone? Perhaps not.
This review is meandering pretentious and mostly pointless. I'm not quite sure I'll be satisfied with this writing ever and I currently think it's mostly bad. I could talk about this movie forever, perhaps I will, I haven't said even a tenth of what I could say. If you have seen this movie and have thoughts about it email or text them to me, I need to discuss this film. I'll be the annoying film bro who brings this movie up in every conversation. This film has not and will not leave my mind. I've resorted to looking for fanfiction of this film just to continue my experience (there are unfortunately only 13 works on AO3). There's a great AMV, for lack of a better word, to a cover of Wicked Game by Chris Isaak, that I shall link, but, dear reader, you can only watch it after you have seen the film. This film is maybe the most cathartic experience one can experience. My life can now be split into two eras: BMD and AMD. My life Before Mulholland Drive and my life After Mulholland Drive. I will never be the same. Thank you, Mr Lynch.
TLDR: Watch the zenith of film as an art form, Mulholland Drive.
And watch this edit after
https://youtu.be/ii1L9dGGIo0?si=g6ta96ViY3gfBGsZ (Warning for slight nudity)
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