Mulholland Drive (2001) (1 Viewer)

[JonZ]

I changed my mind about the Monster. I do think its represents Diane.

Just as the Old Couple represent her Innocence, the Monster represents what shes become - a monster.

 

[Seth Paxton]

Well this is certainly a common occurance not just with directors, but with artists in general. That's why I don't automatically hate remakes or retreads. It's not always about money, and even when it is to the producers the director might still have something else in mind that drives him to explore a style, theme, character again.

Sometimes when you create a look you like or a sound you like or a character you like, you as an artist want to interact with that again, no different than an appreciative audience wants more.

I find it to be as natural as wanting to "try something new" actually. It doesn't mean I have to accept their effort as good, but I can certainly appreciate their reasoning being better than "sell out" or "can't think of anything new". That might be true sometimes, but it's definitely not true all the time.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

JonZ-

OMG THAT MAKES SO MUCH SENSE! THANK YOU!

I'm sorry, I just love this movie and what you said makes a LOT of sense and just gets me really happy. Thank you!

(if the same thing was said before in this thread, sorry I missed it, I just looked in this thread for the first time in a long while)

 

[Tim Abbott]

First of all, let me start off by saying that I am an idiot.


I was very tired Sat evening and decided to rent a movie. I was looking for an older catalog movie that I had missed (for whatever reason) the past couple of years. I saw Mulholland Dr. on the rack and I thought "Hey, great! I love David Lynch. I mean Fight Club, the Game, Panic Room, what's not to love?!?" Well, you know that I was thinking of David Fincher, NOT David Lynch.

About an hour and twenty minutes into the movie, I pick up the box and think to myself what the heck is going on??? It was then that I noticed the 27 different references to Twin Peaks and made the proper connection in my mind.

Needless to say, I was not in the proper frame of mind for a movie of this type. Not only did I not enjoy the movie, I spent the last hour on the internet trying to figure out exactly what I watched.

I thought you might enjoy that story.

 

[paul_goz]

MD is a fascinating film, emotional experience or whatever else one wants to label it. The non-linear narrative and imppresionistic characters and clues are very reminiscent of the spanish writer Borges. Circular and elliptical narratives were being worked out by this writer in the 1940's.

Films such as MD, Lost highway and Twin Peaks are attractive to us for the very reason that they do not lend to easy interpretation. All great works of art, offer each individual, their own interpretation. No single interpretation is more valid than the next, regardless of the baggage each individual brings into the equation when forming their opinion.

 

[ZacharyTait]

Anyone know what this was about?

 

[MatS]

MD will be on USA Network tonight (in less than a half hour)

weird

I know one scene that won't be included
oh hell, I know more than one that won't be included
why bother

 

[Haggai]

My, my, I simply CAN'T imagine which scene you're talking about...

But this is the network that brought us "USA Up All Night", so I bet they'll try, although I don't know exactly how hot the girl-on-girl action has to get before they can't show it. It's pretty damn hot in this movie, so maybe they can't go quite that far.

 

[MatS]

you think Rhonda might return tonight

Forget g-o-g one does just fine on her own
I'm tempted to watch just to see the edits
even though I can put in the dvd to see the real thing

oh well if anything seeing this listed let me bump up the thread for this brilliant movie

 

[Matt Stone]

Wow, strangely enough nothing was actually excised from the film. They had blurred pixelation over the naughty bits, and bleeped the F-word, but no cuts.

 

[Citizen87645]

I finally got around to watching this movie. Actually, I saw the first half and the DVD locked up my player, so I had to wait another week before I could get a clean copy.



I haven't seen too many of Lynch's other movies. The last one I saw was "A Straight Story" so this was quite a switch. I saw "Blue Velvet" and "Wild at Heart" as a teen and really wasn't in a place to appreciate them. I had a passing interest in "Twin Peaks," but mostly due to my brother. In fact, most of my exposure to Lynch was because of my brother.



Anyways, perhaps because of the opening of "The Grudge" this weekend my initial impression of the film was not that it was a dream (at least as we know them) but a confluence of pain and trauma initiated by Diane's suicide and that we were given a glimpse into that "psychic turmoil" existing in the ether. I think the notion of the "death dream" gives my initial intepretation more teeth, though I'm still undecided about when the dream takes place.



The more I think about the film, the more I appreciate it for its ability in recreating the sense of dread I've felt from my own nightmares. There have been times when I've woken from a recurring nightmare unable to shake the dread it induced, despite knowing that I've woken and am free of it. After watching the film I was sort of in that place again, until a friend called and broke the spell. Based on that, one would think I would dislike the film, but I'm looking to add it to my collection. I guess I'm a masochist

 

[Matt Stone]

quote:I guess I'm a masochist

That's why I love Lynch (not that I'm a masochist, but the similar feeling the films give me

). My first real intro to Lynch was 3 years ago, when I caught Fire Walk With Me on IFC. The movie made me feel very, very dirty. I was mad, but not at the movie. I immediately bought the first season of Twin Peaks, and watched that. Then I worked my way through the rest of his films. Now, Lynch is probably my favorite director. I think Mulholland Drive and Eraserhead are the two films that absolutely tap into my nightmarish subconscious. Lost Highway and Fire Walk With Me do a good job too, but it always amazes me how Mulholland Drive makes me feel. Great film. I'm glad you're going to add it to your collection.

 

[Panatar]

After several viewings of David Lynch's 2001 film MULLHOLLAND DRIVE I've
recently sort of stumbled on what I consider to be new approaches to solving the perplexing riddles looping through this 'Moebius Strip' of a story.

The main theory I would like to postulate is that Lynch, in a very clear reference/homage to his favourite film 'The Wizard Of Oz', transplants or
morphs so called 'real' characters from actual reality into Dreamworld/Sub
Concious cyphers or dopplegangers. Just as Dorothy does in Wizard of Oz.

This theory is well known in MD circles, however what many may not realise
is that I think Lynch applies and expands this narrative device much further
with his film.

I've named this narrative device "The Multiple Doppleganger Theory" and if
you apply it to the various plotlines and characters in the story, I believe a
coehesive and rational explanation/resolution can be found for all the seemingly indecipherable 'loose ends' this movie contains and which repeatedly frustrate many viewers.

For me I first applied the 'Doppleganger Theory' on 'The Cowboy' character
because he intrigued me the most and I felt that his signficance in the
overall story, in my view, has been underestimated and overlooked by other
MD theorists.

The Cowboy is portrayed in Diane's dream sequence as a very strange, ominous, 'behind the scenes', spine-chillingly creepy underworld figure.

We can ascertain from gathering various plotlines together and connecting the dots that he is actually a very powerful and controlling presence throughout the movie.

I would argue that he possesses ultimate and supreme power over all the stories' characters as a kind of 'Puppet Master' if you will - the almost unseen
power behind Hollywood.

Lynch almost literally spells it out how this character is the one pulling all the strings, particularly regarding the activities of various Mafia/Mobster 'Henchmen' appearing in the film.

He can quite easily be interpreted as being the prime figurehead or 'Boss' of the organised crime syndicate ruling over Hollywood - the 'Head Honcho' (I think that term is in itself another clever Lynchian pun/in joke) from his 'Corrale' high above, overlooking the city of L.A.

He is the one ordering 'hits' on various characters in the plot. He is the one
ordering the shutdown of a movie production. He is the one ordering the
recasting of the lead female part in his movie by basically threatening/bullying the director Adam Kesher. Make no mistake, David Lynch is indicating to us in no uncertain terms that this is one nasty, sinister, all-powerfull, creepy 'dude' (another pun).

I also think that Lynch is trying to tell us that as well as being the 'top crime
syndicate boss' he could also be a crooked or corrupt high-ranking law enforcement/authority/official - I suspect a "Sheriff" or U.S Marshall.
'Just think about it for one sec' (another pun/clue).

So if I apply my 'Multiple Doppleganger Theory (MDT) on the Cowboy character you get an interesting result to say the least.

So we have Cowboy and I have discovered that he has 2 other main
dopplegangers that I can find and which I think are fairly obvious, however
there could be others.

They are: Gene (The Pool Man) played by none other than country music's
'Achey Breakey Heart' cowboy popstar - Billy Ray Cyrus (I swear Lynch
loves laddlin' on the in jokes).

The other is Woody Katz - the creepy actor Diane performs the sexually
charged audition scene with. This character to my mind comes across as
being like a washed up 1950's and 60's 'Western'/Cowboy movie star.
Check out the slang he uses and the way he speaks - very Cowboyish I
think.

So what does it mean if we accept that these 3 separate characters appearing in Diane's dream are all basically permutations and versions of the one primary character- 'The Cowboy'? Well, we put all the scenes and
verbal dialogues and exchanges that occured with these 3 characters together to build a more complete rendering, description, profile, study of the single primary character. The result of this process is you get a more detailed
character outline, which includes in-depth information about that character's
particular 'back story', their role in the overall narrative arch and most importantly their relationship to Diane in reality not in the dreamstate.

I believe Lynch applies this doppleganger principle to nearly all the characters,
scenes and even objects portrayed in Diane's dream.

I have deduced by using this method that 'The Cowboy' with his 2 other dopplegangers as represented in the dream is symbolic of Diane's relationship with her Uncle in reality.

In other words I think that Diane's Uncle was her hometown sheriff who had
ultimate control and jurisdiction over his county/territory and was in league with the local organised crime group (Mafia). And he was also her sexual abuser when she was a girl.

He most likely ordered the execution/assasination of Diane's mother and extorted her father.

We can aslo glean from this information that Diane is indeed from the poor
'Deep South' of America most likely along the banks of the mighty Mississipi
River and not Deep River - Ontario, Canada in the North. This is one of many red herring's Lynch has thrown in to lead us off the path. Indeed, I believe
Diane has completely fabricated the story about her origins and past to bury and also escape from various elements in her bleak and dark upbringing.
However, some elements of truth always re-emerge from her back-story that cannot be repressed and so they reveal themselves in their true form during her unconscious dreamstate and finally in her devastating conscious reality.

Here are other doppleganger examples which you could extrapolate, piece together and find new meanings and conclusions:

Diane's Mother in reality = Blue Haired Lady in Box Seat = Crone Behind Winkie's = Rebekah Del Rio = Club Silencio = Inside of the Blue Box =
Rita = Camilla

Diane and Camilla in reality = Dan & Herb in Diner = Betty & Rita = The
2 Detectives.


Diane's father in reality = Adam Kesher = Mr Roque (midget)

Diane's father & mother = The Old Couple

Aunt Ruth in Reality = Betty's Agent = Louise Bonner (Psychic) Red Haired woman at Sierra Bonita = Jitterbug Dancer In opening Sequence = Coco
= Adam's Mom (Coco II)

I would like to flesh out in even greater detail my complete Mullholland Drive interpretation, including Diane's and her family's back story in a future thread.

But for now I'll leave you with a brief summation.

I think, in a nutshell, MD is really a sad tale about how Diane suffered terrible physical and emotional abuse as a child, being raised in a poor Southern neighborhood. She was caught in the crossfire of smalltown, inbred, hill-billie type family disputes, in-fighting, feuds, murder, incest, police corruption, mob/gangster brutality and domination amongst many others.

She fled from home at a young age to escape the horrors of her upbringing
too the gleaming, glittering land of Hollywood -the land where dreams are made and to forge a new life for herself like so many hopeful and aspiring starlets before her. Yet all she ever experienced there was abject failure, more abuse and utter disillusionment - a repeat performance of all the negative things that happened in her early life and which she had hoped to put far behind her.

Diane ends up becoming the very thing she was trying so desperately to
get away from - a vindictive, spiteful murderer.

Lynch ultimately presents us with a very sobering, bleak and hopless indictment on the notion of 'The American Dream' and the hypocracy
of Hollywood.

Sunset Blvd, the movie Lynch himself has cited as being very influential on
his work and which very closely parallels MD's story should read as the final epitaph for this cautionary tale about the nature of dreams and dreaming.
It reads: Sunset Boulevard - Boulevard of Broken Dreams!

 

[Richard--W]

Panatar, I don't believe David Lynch deliberated over method and meaning as much as your analysis makes out, but it is a film that rewards repeated viewings and prompts endless discussion, and I always enjoy reading interpretations such as yours. Thanks for resuscitating this old thread.

 

[Jarred Knox]

It’s fascinating to me how people think this is a flawless masterpiece of cinema when it’s really just an absurdist pilot with twenty extra minutes or so tacked on.

Like, even if people completely understand its pilot origin they still think that Lynch designed the first 2/3rds as a dream sequence to be understood when Diane wakes up. Nothing was shaped to be a dream, all that happens was to actually happen outside of a woman’s head. Lynch had to salvage the footage somehow so he just has the waking up/flashback sequence tying up everything because he had no other options. I wish it had become a show because it would’ve been much more compelling as it developed, but even I can understand why some sequences of the pilot didn’t captivate the network.

I think the reason why cinephiles absolutely salivate over the feature film is that it’s all about projection - we’re so used to films following a standard structure with standard rhythms of tone, pacing, and development etc and when film lovers get an (accessible) taste of a diversion elsewhere they latch on for dear life. For most of the film we’re supposedly observers inside a tortured woman’s dream, and I’ve seen people get so exhilarated over the fact that there’s supposedly a mystery to be solved and we can analyze the symbolism of her subconscious. But for one there was never any attempt by Lynch in how this was shaped (again, the pilot footage was all supposed to be objective reality), and even if it was…so what? The issue with this kind of storytelling is that the second part of the film gives us the most basic parts of a doomed, unrequited love story, and yet people try their hardest to spin a kind of very detailed fan fiction from Diane Selwyn’s real life through projecting what they want into the dream scenes to make the movie feel weighty. There’s not nearly enough in the reality scenes that justify claims that the preceding parts are an intricately crafted scaffolding for what’s “revealed” later; the movie never becomes more than the sum of its (literal) episodic parts. Even the scenes with Betty and Rita that do make more sense as a sort of dream contrast it just feels like a standard Freudian dream analysis, it’s mildly interesting but not compelling enough to sustain a whole film and its would-be layers.

With the dream theory Diane reorders her horrible life using various genres of film as filters that she uses to make everything Hollywoodized and glossy, and I think film people grab onto that because they deeply identify with wanting to get lost in cinema, in a world of make believe to escape from their painful reality. There’s nothing wrong with that per se but they’re just using the empty vessel of Diane to project into the film something they really want it to be, rather than the film actually standing alone with its own layers, subtext, meaning, etc.