Mulholland Drive (2001)

“A Love Story in the City of Dreams”

But it’s a strange world.

Mulholland Drive is writer/director David Lynch’s masterpiece. It’s an elaborate tale of finding yourself while creating a puzzle of who you really are. The film follows an amnesiac, played by Laura Elena Harring, who seeks help from an aspiring actress, played by Naomi Watts, to solve the mystery of who she is.

Naomi Watts’ performance is dazzling. Her character Betty is very kind with a bright face and radiating heart. She goes to Hollywood to become an actress while staying at her aunt’s lavish apartment. That’s where she meets Rita. She soon becomes tangled in this Hollywood underworld run by the mob that involves director Adam Kesher. Rita brings danger to their lives, and what the viewer sees isn’t all that what it appears to be.

Mulholland Drive originally started as a television pilot, but was added an ending and turned into a full length feature film. The half-pilot half-feature film resulted in an ambiguous ending, leaving the film’s interpretation open to discuss. The film is dark and creepy and haunts your psyche that makes you think. It leaves a stain on your brain and you’re left trying to clean it off, and then you just give up and leave it there. It’s a real psychological thriller, but unlike any other psychological film out there. It takes on a whole new different style than Rosemary’s Baby or Sisters. Lynch’s camerawork displays weird visuals that explore the characters mentality. One factor contributing to the psychological aspect is the narrative. This narrative is a cryptic narrative. The backstory is limited, and what you do know about the characters is quickly dismissed and new information is given. The narrative plays a huge role in the open ending, and while some call the film “an offense against narrative”, it does tell a pretty comprehensible story.

Mulholland Drive is such a successful film and opens perspectives on beautiful interpretations, themes, and narratives that have left an impact of film. It is David Lynch’s best film yet and I give the film an amazing 5 out of 5 and you can buy it now on DVD.