Mulholland Dr. (2001)

	Directed by: David Lynch	COUNTRY USA/France GENRE Neo-noir/ Mystery/Thriller NORWEGIAN TITLE Mulholland Drive RUNNING TIME 147 minutes
	Produced by: Neil Edelstein Tony Krantz Michael Polaire Alain Sarde Mark Sweeney
	Written by: David Lynch

Cast includes:
CHARACTER	ACTOR/ACTRESS	RATING
Betty Elms/Diane Selwyn	Naomi Watts
Rita/Camilla Rhodes	Laura Elena Harring
Coco	Ann Miller
Vincenzo Castigliane	Dan Hedaya
Adam Kesher	Justin Theroux
Detective Domgaard	Brent Briscoe
Detective Harry McKnight	Robert Forster
Gene	Billy Ray Cyrus
Cynthia	Katharine Towne
Woody	Chad Everett
Luigi Castigliane	Angelo Badalamenti

Review

At the turn of the millennium, young filmmakers were falling over themselves to reinvent storytelling – blurring fact and fiction (Spike Jonze), running stories backwards (Christopher Nolan), or dropping a late twist that flips everything on its head (David Fincher, M. Night Shyamalan). David Lynch, on the other hand, had been doing this long before it was trendy, and on his own terms.

His 2001 film Mulholland Dr. may be a narrative puzzle, but thematically it’s a sly masterstroke – dissecting the American Dream through an exploration of alienation, false identities, failed love, and the kind of “coincidences” that feel anything but. It starts as a mystery, blooms into a love story, and ends as a character apocalypse. Lynch’s real genius, though, lies in his handling of the individual scenes and making them connect through his typical unconventionality: lush noir shadows, postcard 1950s Hollywood, tender detective romance, and his trademark semi-surreal creepiness. Fragmented though they may seem, the pieces flow together in a soft, dreamlike trance.

Naomi Watts is the centrepiece of it all, delivering a performance of staggering range – alternatingly sweet, seductive, and sensational. Lynch utilises her like Hitchcock utilised Tippi Hedren or Grace Kelly. She’s magnetic in the unforgettable audition scene, in one of cinema’s sexiest love scenes, and in the riveting finale.

Mulholland Dr. offers a lot, explains little, and trusts you to make sense of its scattered keys. Lynch’s use of metaphor over outright surrealism makes the film less of a riddle to solve than a mood to live inside – it’s personal, demanding, and immensely rewarding. Aesthetically and thematically, this is Lynch's most accomplished work.

Quotes

Cynthia: "You're broke!"
Adam Kesher: "But I'm not broke!"
Cynthia: "I know, but you're broke."