Mulholland Drive

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)

Brilliantly told...... hypnotic. Once I figure out exactly what the poet was trying to say, I'll pack my bags, drive to LA, and tap a celebratory keg on Mulholland Drive in Lynch's honour, but until then I'll just have a few beers to celebrate a disarming cinematic puzzle that harbours big ideas and never before seen narrative mastery, though it perhaps unnecessarily stretches out the action in the first two acts and delays the final big bang, during which I shuddered even at parts whose inflection is entirely inappropriate for this database, and I was already grasping for potential explanations, only to be outwitted again by Lynch, who has done something that only Jindra Petáková and her high school maths textbook have so far managed to do: weld my brain and condemn me to a grade between 4 and zero. I'll give it a four this time, because I admire the flamboyant command of attention on the level of so many characters, which turns out in the end to be so gripping and mutually motivated, and I'm looking forward to the second viewing, from which I'm already promising myself pure five-star ecstasy over the hypnotic cinematography, the music, the breasts of Watts and Harring, and of course the story, which has something to say, even though it utters it only in unknowns. I'm really eager to figure out how everything works, and with that David has clearly done his bit... 85% (10/25/2012)

Mulholland Drive is not a film for viewers who need a clearly defined script, who want to know the answers and a clear resolution. On the contrary, it is suitable for all those who like to play, enjoy a mysterious atmosphere, and have a solid dose of imagination. Mulholland Drive is primarily a typically Lynchian play with genres and pop-cultural references, a film with excellent music, great performances, precise editing, and interesting cinematography. A film that turned Naomi Watts into a major star. Overall impression: 95%. Along with the much darker "Lost Highway," it is probably Lynch's best piece. (09/24/2007)

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)

A chilling drama that kept me up at night and forced me to think. I really gave the film my utmost attention, and I was desperate not to miss the slightest detail that might then cost me a shred of explanation. Up to about the 110th minute, everything is understandable, but what takes place in the final scenes is something unbelievable, completely incomprehensible to me (though I felt at times that there were some clues to an explanation, ultimately I was "disappointed" in this respect) and fascinating. For another half hour after the closing credits, I remained sitting on the couch, staring dully at the DVD menu screen. For a moment I considered playing it again. :) Bottom line – David Lynch is the man, so very much the man, the direction is absolutely amazing, as is the music, sound, cinematography, and actors. A totally unique and almost "otherworldly" cinematic experience. (05/03/2009)