Mulholland Drive

As a series, it might not be bad. Yet as a standalone film, it rides the wave of films with unreliable narrators, and that perpetual dreamlike atmosphere and the combination of Lynch and his favorite films just makes for a new collage. However, the latent Sapphic themes and the crush on the Paramount gate are elements I’m always interested in. (10/23/2016)

A film about the purity and vulnerability of the human soul, about life’s dreams and the desire to fulfil the expectations that are placed on us. A film about the fear of touching the ideal, about disappointment, desperation and hatred, about the ugliness of the world outside (specifically Hollywood in this case). This film doesn’t have one clear point, there is no “right key” to it. Mulholland Drive is a mosaic of multiple ideas that could have been put across in a much simpler, but not as interesting and compelling way. The number of connections in the film that tell you something depends on your personal experiences and your awareness of their place in your life. A simultaneously cruel and beautiful soap opera. (10/04/2005)

A psycho(il)logical and strange picture that is hard to grasp... So, in fact, the type of classic that we are used to getting from Lynch. If it had ended twenty minutes earlier, this would have been maybe the most graspable Lynch movie ever, but at that moment is breaks into the most bizarre movie ever. Lynch on his best film-making (not series-making!) form. (05/12/2012)

I can't help it, but I guess I've seen too many Lynch films in too short of a time, which leads to the fact that I don't like "Mulholland Drive" as much as I could. But when I watch this film, I see elements from all of Lynch's previous works that he has directed. There is something from "Twin Peaks", there is something from "Lost Highway", from "Blue Velvet" and also a certain intensity from "Wild at Heart". It's great that Lynch maintains his style, that it's still him, but his mind games are rather painful for me. The craziest thing is that there are people here trying to analyze the film with the belief that there is a clear explanation of what we're watching. With Lynch's films (especially the recent ones, except for "The Straight Story"), there is simply no key. It's not about understanding what the director meant, but simply taking something from the film, finding your own path, but not expecting that yours is the only correct one. Lynch is brilliant in this respect, but he is also repetitive in this aspect. (03/19/2014)

A really tough nut to crack, even the squirrel from Ice Age wouldn't be able to handle it. Lynch plays an unequal game with the viewer and it may not be to everyone's taste. I appreciate Lynch's disregard for sales and going about his business, but I guess the distributors of Mullholland Drive weren't jumping for joy at the $7 million US box office. If I were them, I would announce a competition "Whoever understands this film wins a dinner with Lynch in person". It wouldn't cost them anything because no one would come and they would at least get some interesting advertising. Lynch not only gives no answers (and that's a good thing), but he gives no clues to understanding his visions. He only mumbles, but very skillfully. For the first twenty minutes I had a hard time getting into the action on the screen, but gradually Lynch wrapped me around his finger and I devoured one scene after another. I didn't ask for an explanation, I took the whole thing as a sequence of mini-stories that may or may not have a connection. I enjoyed putting the pieces together, I embraced Lynch's game. And why I’m not giving it five stars then? Because Lynch overdid it with the final half hour. Everything has its limits, even Lynch's riddles and plot twists. I can totally see him having royal fun over all the "what was that about" discussions. Once again he took a shot at the audience and got away with it. And by the way, Naomi Watts is amazing here, acting and visually. (03/16/2004)