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Mulholland Drive

Mulholland Drive

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: a confusing, but fairly good movie
Review: A film by David Lynch

The first thing to mention is that this was a confusing movie. I knew that I was watching a quality film, but as the movie went on, I was less and less sure about exactly what it was that I was seeing. After it was over, I had no idea what just happened, but I enjoyed the time spent (2 and a half hours).

A woman is in a car wreck. She appears to be the only survivor and she stumbles away from the scene of the accident until she makes her way outside an apartment complex (a fairly nice one, at that). She falls asleep behind some bushes, and when daylight comes, she sneaks in to one of the apartment and stays there. A woman named Betty (Naomi Watts) arrives at that same apartment to take residence there. Betty discovers the woman, who calls herself Rita (Laura Harring), but Rita has amnesia and does not even remember her own name. Betty befriends Rita, and tries to help Rita figure out what happened to her. This part is fairly straight forward, but as the film progresses there are little things thrown in that do not make much sense even though we think that it may be important. I do not want to reveal what these are for fear of spoiling some of the enjoyment of trying to unravel this movie. Even with the semi-confusing stuff, the movie mostly makes sense until close to the end where there is a twist (not your typical plot twist, but rather one that changes how you look at the whole movie) and this confused me more than anything else in the movie. I understood what happened, but I didn't get it. Someone explained the movie to me later, and I'm still not quite sure it makes sense.

This is a strange movie, but good. The acting was good with Naomi Watts and Laura Harring impressing. I can't really comment on the Lynch's directing because that depends on how much the movie really made sense and connected together. I enjoyed it, but this is the kind of film that takes multiple viewings to truly make sense of it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Mullholland Drive -- Visual Poetry
Review: David Lynch's Mullholland Dr. is a movie that demands something new from its audience, but it is does not mean you have to be a brain surgeon to figure this movie out. This movie is obviously split into two parts. In the first half, Naomi Watts' character is an aspiring actress and her life seems to play out like a dream. Everything seems sublimely perfect -- in one scene it is almost histerically perfect. When she steps off of the airplane in Los Angeles for the first time with the elderly couple, the scene reminds you of the type of over-the-top happy scene you would find in a movie from the 1950s. It is done intentionally. Later Watts' character finds herself slowly becoming a star in Hollywood -- her luck is almost too perfect. But, it's not perfect. Under this facade there are monsters lurking -- as is illustrated visually by the man scared of the monster behind the diner. When Laura Harring's character is first introduced, she is in need of help and Watts gets to be the hero. But as the second half of the movie emerges you realize that Watts is the one who needs help. She watches as Harring becomes a star and everything about Hollywood now follows the path of the negative things we here about the town. People become prostitutes and waitresses and ruin their lives. What Lynch doesn't say is which one is real and which one isn't -- I guess neither is really true or false. It depends on your perspective, but since it's all really a dream anyway then parts of both are true. Lynch's movie is like poetry -- what you see is really a metaphor for something else. The crux in understanding Mullholland Drive lies in watching it without expecting a linear plot line like you would in your normal Hollywood fare. It is a poetry on film -- brilliant.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: In the Eye of the Beholder
Review: I came to MULHOLLAND DRIVE with extreme reluctance. Although I've seen most of Lynch's work, it has been more by accident than by design, and I had no expectation of great interest in the film. For Lynch is an extremely divisive director: you either like his work or you do not, and by and large I fall into the latter category. So I sympathize with those who loathe everything about the film--but at the same time I am surprised by how much I myself admired it.

Opening with an attempted murder thwarted by an unexpected car-crash, the film presents us with a beautiful woman (Laura Harring) who stumbles into Los Angeles in shock and suffering from amnesia. Using the name "Rita," she crosses paths with pert and pretty Betty Elms (Naomi Watts), new to the city and in search of a film career. Betty quickly decides to shelter Rita, and the two women begin to search for Rita's true identity.

A number of subplots, seemingly random incidents, and bizarre events complicate the basic premise; even so, I think most viewers will be able to buy into the film and find themselves extremely curious about the film's approaching conclusion. But therein lies the rub, for it is exactly at this point that the film suddenly deconstructs and forces you to completely reevaluate everything you've previously seen.

A number of recent films, including the extremely popular SIXTH SENSE and THE OTHERS, have used a similar device, a sudden twist that spins your basic perception of the overall story. In both cases, however, these were logical extensions of the basic plot; the device in MULHOLLAND DRIVE, however, is not, and it does not so much spin perception as it completely overturns and then completely reinterprets the entire film up to that point. And there are only two possible reactions: jaw-dropping astonishment or a savage disgust with the whole thing.

There have been endless interpretations and analyses of this film, and many people complain that they don't understand it. I may be running against the tide here, but I have to say that you shouldn't try to "understand" MULHOLLAND DRIVE; instead, accept it as a journey into an extremely disturbed mind as it plays games with itself. For with this film, Lynch essentially takes us inside madness itself, an insanity that dreams Hollywood dreams grown into monsters of the subconscious.

Yes, I do think there is much to admire here in spite of several very obvious flaws--not the least of which is a distinct difference in tone as the film shifts between portions originally planned for television and portions filmed when Lynch realized he could salvage the project as a feature film. But at the same time, admiring is not necessarily liking: MULHOLLAND DRIVE is a very dark place, and for myself one visit was enough.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: CRAZY!!!!!!
Review: Ok im so confused on how this movie got five stars by EBERT!!!! from the Chicago sun times i was like wow! I rented the movie on DVD and was trying to stay awake. The movie is a complete mess! it really dosent make sense to me. I tried and tried to make sense of it but i really couldnt. Ebert said that the whole movie is a dream, but still its really boring and stupid and the lesbian sex scenes really didnt have to be in the movie....lol then ending was totaly confusing, and i couldnt wait till the movie was OVER!!! but i guess the only pro i can give the movie is the way it is visualy but thats about it. I wouldnt recomend it to anyone......really!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: One of the worst movies I ever saw
Review: Mullholland Drive is definately one of the worst movies I ever saw.

If you understand the plot, please email me and let me know. Myself and a few million others would love to know.

The movie is beautifully made. But there are many stories that in no way are connected.

Lynch may be some type of genius in some circles, but this movie, is a disaster.

As I said, if you are one of the nine people in the USA who understood the plot.... please clue me in.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: A strange film
Review: There was once a time when I thought David Lynch was a great director, the result of viewing his masterpiece, Blue Velvet and the early episodes of Twin Peaks. Unfortunately, as demonstrated by the later episodes of that TV series, Lynch had gradually changed from weird and good to just weird for the sake of weird. Making something comprehensible seemed to take a back seat to dancing midgets, and my appreciation for his work diminished. Mulholland Drive shows flashes of his Blue Velvet brilliance, but is generally as disappointingly strange as many of his more recent films.

The story opens with a beautiful woman riding in a limousine along the street in the title. Just as the driver and his partner are about to kill her, she is involved in a car crash that leaves her with amnesia and everyone else dead. She wanders into the life of another woman who is an aspiring actress and the two of them investigate who she is. Meanwhile, a movie director is forced by mysterious people to cast a specific woman in his movie for reasons that are never clear. In fact, there is a lot that isn't clear and seem almost thrown in to intentionally make the movie more muddled. Maybe on some level, it all makes sense, but I prefer a movie that doesn't require multiple viewings and a user's guide to attain any level of comprehensibility.

The movie is not all bad...far from it. In many places, it looks pretty good and if you look at it without worrying about the big picture, you might enjoy it. But most viewers will demand more out of a movie than what this delivers. I cannot give this movie a whole-hearted recommendation, but I can say that if you go into it not expecting to understand it, there is a bit of fun to be found.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Come one people...
Review: I'm truly convinced that people that give this train wreck 5 stars want to be thought of as artsy, hip, and cool. A movie shouldn't have to be be watched 20 times or researched on the internet to figure out what the hell it was all about.

The people probably can't wait for Vincent Gallo's "The Brown Bunny" to come out so they can 'love' that too.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: fun to watch
Review: You know, guys, what am i thinking? I think that movie that has 160+ one-star reviews here on amazon should be really great and fun to watch. I mean, think about it - if movie is really bad or mediocre it doesnt get many reviews at all, or it gets average,3stars boring reviews.

Do you like Terry Gilliam movies? "12 monkeys"? "Brazil"? Lovable "Fear and loathing in Las Vegas"? WHat about "Fight club" or "Heavenly creatures" or "Pi"? Or maybe you are advanced enough to appreciate modern european cinema (Trier, Kusturica, Tarkovsky etc.)? Maybe you are into weird japanese stuff(Kitano,Oshima) that Tarantino loves and pays tribute to in his latest release "Kill Bill"?

Maybe you are just a pothead dude that smokes a lot of reefer and enjoys watching "Half baked" or "Doors" multiple times every week?

In any of those cases you gonna LOVE "Mulholland Drive". Hovewer, if you are a "a normal guy" who likes "Bruce Almighty" and "Pearl Harbor" (just examples) you better stay away from this movie!
Go rent some easy digestible Hollywood mush and enjoy it!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: the greatest artistic film ever released
Review: A mind-blowing film experience that is Lynch's masterpiece. If you aren't into artistic movies that make you think...and that require multiple viewings...then this isn't for you.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Pretention Does NOT Equal Greatness
Review: Two words perfectly describe this movie: SO WHAT!

David Lynch once again shows that he has the intellectual mind of a peanut.

Hey, look at that weird old lady! How about that Cowboy? Lesbian love scenes? We've got 'em!

Was it all a dream? A slow, slow, slow moving dream?

Yawn.


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