MOTD : Inland Empire
Let me preface anything by saying I really like David Lynch. His movies and engaging and fun. He's kind of the Bob Dylan of experimental film as there's a palpable smirky joyousness in all his disorientation. Asimov or someone talked about the pleasure of disorientation once...Lynch is one of the few people out there who get it. I thought Mullholland Drive was a step in an interesting direction for him; unpackable enough it wasn't nonsense but tough enough it shook off anyone who didn't care to give it time. I give him time because I love the idea that everything doesn't need to be something and there can be dreams in movies and alternate realities of the same story and time travel. So yeah, I come from there.

Plot Summary: A polish prostitute and "lost girl" sits crying -- possibly hypnotized by the evil "Phantom" -- in a hotel room working through the pain of her dreams by watching a television program about rabbit people and an actress visited by her new "neighbor"/gypsy who gets her to look into her future towards her upcoming role in a remake of a cursed polish film which helps both actress and "lost girl" (arguably the subject of the film) find understanding and comfort within each other and themselves. Add on top of it Harry Dean Stanton needing a buck, musical numbers, a chorus of prostitutes, hypnotized murderers, crackheads as crackheads, films within films (for sure), time jumps (pretty sure), dream realities (also pretty sure), film/reality crossovers (for sure), parallel universes (pushing it) and a lumberjack and you are halfway there.

What does it all mean? well there's something about poland...or europe...something about Hollywood...something about being a whore vs. being a prostitute...and something about being "good around animals"...

Did I like it? Yeah, totally. I think this movie carries on the tradition of hard surrealism in his early films and short films but manages the forward narrative thrust of his later films giving you something to latch on to. With that push you have the ability to make of it what you will and enjoy/abhor what's going on. There are certainly tons of laughs and tons of scares/gross outs that anyone can enjoy.

I will admit seasoned Lynch vets might enjoy it more as it clearly builds on and explores some of his stock themes , with his stock actors, but anyone who likes a little nonsense can enjoy it just as much. Plus, it's on DVD soon and honestly, at 3 hours-ish, this movie can stand to be put down and picked up rather than existing as a whole block.

Hell, David Lynch would probably love that.



Tomorrow : Is another day. Whatever is free and online is fair game.

Cam