Mulholland Drive vs Inland Empire.

[peter]

I first saw 'Mulholland Drive' (2001) ten, maybe fifteen, years ago and loved it from day one. I have seen it probably six times and each time I think I get a bit closer to working it out (Over a year since I last saw it and I can't remember the particular solution I came to at the time so please don't ask me).

Lynch released the film 'Inland Empire' a few years later (2006) and it was not until a year or two ago that I saw it. Of the two films I believe it was 'Inland Empire' that won higher critical acclaim, and it was only at the prompting of a media studies student of my aquaintance that I got round to seeing it. This guy was also an ardent 'Mulholland Drive' fan, but rated 'Inland Empire' as way the better of the two films. All fired up, I aquired a copy and sat down to watch it - and within a quater of an hour was lost in a labrynthine nightmare from which I never emerged until the films end. I could not begin to see a structure from begining to end. Where 'Mulholland Drive' drew you in to a story that only began to bend the reality of, well, reality as the film progressed, and in a manner that you sort of were able to keep a handle on but not quite, 'Inland Empire' it seemed took of from where MD left off (surrealism wise) and never let you get a grip at all.

Clearly I am not universally agreed with in my rating of Mulholland Drive as brilliant and Inland Empire as awful - but to what extent I do not know. What do you guys think?

[Hashi Lebwohl]

I saw only part of Mulholland Drive some years ago and I have never heard of Inland Empire so I'll have to look for it. Once I have seen both films we can discuss them.

[Holsety]

I have only seen one of the two films; let the fact that I can only claim that the film I saw was Inland Empire is based solely on the presence of anthromorphic rabbits in the wikipedia summary of that film testify to how little I remember it. I am not sure I really had any sort of conclusions/interpretations about the film when I saw it, and I don't remember now any of my reaction to it at the time of watching it (the only other thing is that I remember an actress - as in the character was an actress - played an important role in the movie I saw, but it seems that isa characteristic of both movies. I saw it only once, and while I don't feel intelligent enough to dismiss it, I can't give any sort of reason to praise it either.

[peter]

One of the interpretations of Mulholland Drive is that it is a story in the form of a mobius strip (I have my reservations on that one, but can definitely see the idea) where as i say IE seemed to have very little 'form' one could get a handle on at all. I have never seen the 'Twin Peaks' series or indeed film 'Twin Peaks; Fire Walk With Me', but on the strength of Mulholland Drive alone it has got to be done!

[Obi-Wan Nihilo]

This may be tangential to this thread, but I think I have figured out Mulholland Drive finally. Both incarnations of both female leads are all aspects of the same person.

Naomi Watts characters (inner child / "real" person):
Betty Elms - innocent, naive aspiring actress off the bus
Diane - the shattered residue of the above, the inner person that has been rejected by Hollywood and forced to compromise herself (see below)

Laura Herring characters (persona / splinter personality):
Rita - the actress as escape artist, using her craft as a form of emotional amnesia to escape her deplorable spiritual condition, using denial to hold onto sanity
Camilla - the actress / persona as both talented glamorous muse and voluptuous pliable cynic, who can convince everyone except herself that she is another person entirely; the talent that is twisted into spiritual poison

Diane pays the hit man to kill herself because she can't bring herself to do it. This may tie in with the lesbian eros, which under this interpretation should be seen as an unusually active narcissism. "Poison valentine to Hollywood" indeed.

Now, I only watched the last hour of the movie this time, but I swear when the two female leads are together, everyone else only reacts to one of the two of them at any one time. Sometimes it alternates, but usually Diane is the one giving a reaction shot which indicates to me that she is the inner experience of the person who is projecting the Camilla persona.

[peter]

Now that is an interpretation of the film that bears consideration. I'd need to watch the whole film from that perspective to see if I can get it to work for me [and will do so], but first, can it be elaborated upon. How do we see the 'theatre' scene and the blue box/monster in the alley opperating within this framework. And the cowboy and the 'coffe-spitter'. Also what is exactly happening at the point where betty[?] puts the key into the box and opens it [the point of the 'turn' in the mobius strip idea]. Any ideas on these that may help the above 'gel' on a re-watch.

[peter]

There is a film directed by Paul Thomas Anderson called Magnolia. I'm hoping that some of you 'filmbuff's' may have seen the film and may be able to help answer the following question.

The film, as those who have seen it will know, is a sort of 'ensemble' piece where various stories interweave and connect through coincidence and chance encounter, untill the whole thing ties itself up [in my opinion at least] rather beautifully and neatly. One thing I have never been able to tie up however. In one particular scene a policeman, who has been called to investigate a disturbance, finds a body [IIRC] in the bathroom of a house occupied by a large coloured lady. She is vocal in her protestations of innocence and at the 'invasion' of her privacy, and after the ensueing melee, the policeman sits in his car drawing breath. A small coloured boy comes to the window of the car and begins to 'rap' [as in sing] through the window. His rap song basically states that the policeman [and hence the viewer too] have, or will be, given all the clues with which to solve the murder, and whether they do so or not is down to them. Of course I can't, and I just wondered if anybody else ever had?

[I also stuggled to tie in the association of freak weather patterns into the whole in case anybody can make any observations here as well.]

Edit; Damn - how has this happened - it was meant to be a new topic. Must have pressed 'post reply' by mistake [Oh well - I'm guessing the same people who would see it elsewhere will also pick it up here]

[I'm Murrin]

I have indeed seen Magnolia a couple of times - it has an excellent performance by Tom Cruise of an arrogant, narcissistic celebrity, IIRC - but it was so long ago I can't recall the bit you refer to. I may try to see it again.

[peter]

Indeed Murrin - I was going to mention Tom Cruises portrayal of the mysoginistic narcissist which was so good myself. I've seen the film what, three times and still can't get these loose ends tied up.

[Obi-Wan Nihilo]

Now that is an interpretation of the film that bears consideration. I'd need to watch the whole film from that perspective to see if I can get it to work for me [and will do so], but first, can it be elaborated upon. How do we see the 'theatre' scene and the blue box/monster in the alley opperating within this framework. And the cowboy and the 'coffe-spitter'. Also what is exactly happening at the point where betty[?] puts the key into the box and opens it [the point of the 'turn' in the mobius strip idea]. Any ideas on these that may help the above 'gel' on a re-watch.

I'm not sure I have a great answer, except that it's Camilla who disappears into the blue box, which I've always assumed symbolizes compartmentalized depression. Diane's muse disappears into a blue box of self loathing and numbness. The rest of it either I didn't see or I'm not sure. I need to re-watch the whole thing myself, as the action seems to freely incorporate both actual events and metaphorical inner experiences.

[Cagliostro]

Two things happened as a result of my viewing of Mulholland Drive:
1. I realized I should never bother with Lynch again. As much as people have told me over the years that my tastes fit as a Lynch fan, I'm not and his movies annoy the piss out of me for some reason. Therefore, I haven't seen Inland Empire.
2. I developed a fetish toward the type of nipple that Naomi Watts has. Probably the less said here, the better.

I've seen Magnolia and felt about the same toward the movie that I did for Mulholland Drive, with the exception of the raining frogs scene. I also developed a temporary fetish for the musical stylings of Aimee Mann as a result of this movie. But for some reason, after seeing her in concert, that is over now. Not that she put on a bad show, by no means...I just simply lost interest.

[Hashi Lebwohl]

I'm not sure I have a great answer, except that it's Camilla who disappears into the blue box, which I've always assumed symbolizes compartmentalized depression. Diane's muse disappears into a blue box of self loathing and numbness. The rest of it either I didn't see or I'm not sure. I need to re-watch the whole thing myself, as the action seems to freely incorporate both actual events and metaphorical inner experiences.

So...they became Dr. Who companions?