A Slow Drive
Betty (Naomi Watts) shows up in Hollywood with dreams of making it as a big star, she is fresh faced, enthusiastic and naive, She also finds herself sharing digs with Rita (Laura Harring) who has been suffering from amnesia ever since by a sheer stroke of luck there was a car crash and it stopped her from ending up the victim of a hitman's gun. Then there is Adam (Justin Theroux) who is not happy when he learns his movie is no longer his movie because the mob own it and plan to use it for one of their actresses. What it the connection between these people, you will have to watch to find out?
David Lynch and his movies are cinema's equivalent to Marmite, you either like him or you don't. You may admire his movie's looks, you may be impressed by the actors he casts in his movies but when you start to watch you either think great or WTF. I belong in the second as with the exception of "The Elephant Man" I have never really got Lynch and his movies. Saying that I admire the man for making movies his way with his style and his creativity even if those things tend to be what get in my way.
So that brings me to "Mulholland Drive" which right from the surreal dancing which opened the movie I knew was going to be a struggle. And so it was with various story tangents going on from the woman with amnesia to the director taking on the mob as well as the man in Twinkies the diner. It may all a bit too over the place for me but there was a definite sense of mystery going on especially when Betty and Rita try to get to the bottom of what happened for Rita. But as I said it was too scattered for my liking and unfortunately what at times for me is semi watchable ends up out there and far too WTF for my liking.
Now there is a reason for this as "Mulholland Drive" was originally intended as a TV series but the channel pulled the plug on production. So what Lynch did was to go elsewhere and get funding to shoot a host of other scenes and package them as a movie. You can see where the additional scenes come because they are vastly different to the first hour and more the out there sort of stuff I expect from Lynch.
What this all boils down to is that at times "Mulholland Drive" is quite watchable but then at others it is too out there for my liking and as a whole it is out there. Fans of Lynch will probably like it but for those who prefer more linear, logical and straight forwards movies may find it a step too far.
