Wow. What a trip. I think it's safe to say that if one thinks too much trying to make sense of the film, their head might explode. That being said, I'm gonna try to explain Mulholland Drive as much as I can before my brain starts to hurt.
One thing that is clear however, is that the film is ripe with surreal, completely out there and sometimes nightmarish images. Now one has to understand that a lot of these images don't really mean anything, going back to the principles of post-modernism but instead establish a certain idea that brings the film together. That idea is that there are two worlds in the film: the real world and the surreal nightmare world. Therefore, a lot of these images aren't metaphors and symbols for something but rather just there to establish this nightmarish alter reality. I mean let's be honest, it's pretty difficult to understand why an old couple is running out of a bag giggling, then crawling under Diane's door and tormenting her until she shoots herself. It is hard to tell which one is real or if either are real, after all the owner of the club Rita and Betty go to explains over and over again that everything is merely an illusion.
Another image that represents an idea are the mob bosses trying to manipulate the casting of Adam's film. They are not meant to be seen as characters but rather as the higher forces in the movie industry preventing the ones from trying to make art (Adam) from having to much power; they are there to keep Hollywood as a business but in the film this idea is exaggerated to the fullest extent. The mob bosses are portrayed as being, quite frankly, socially distraught. The two mob bosses that meet Adam answer with one word or don't even answer at all. Additionally, when they said "she is the one" they don't explain why in any sense and just stare senselessly at Adam. Then to make matters more awkward, when one of the bosses is offered expresso, he spits it out and rejects it in an almost childish fashion. During this whole scene, I was thinking about how these must be the two worst film pitchers ever.
Nochimson states that this film is "a grim angle of perception". That much like the characters in the film, we are forced to descent into darkness and mystery that we don't necessarily understand. And perhaps that the point after all. We don't know what's going on but we go for the ride after all. I mean in Club Silencio, the man said there was no band, that it is all an illusion but Betty and Rita stayed and watched anyway. Much like we did even though we were narratively, lost in this darkness.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
There's definitely something to be said for our own participation in such a weird film. While I'm sure many would say that given the choice, they wouldn't go out and watch Mulholland Drive, as viewers we can't help but wonder what lies around every corner. I think we stay with this film because it's a conglomerate of film genres, as Erin said in class. There's a certain amount of familiarity to it, but what I found interesting was that unlike Heathers, Mulholland Drive didn't just play with my expectations. More so, it brought me to a state of general confusion. The different genres mesh into each other, connected by stylistic - rather than narrative - elements like saturated colors, for instance, which makes the whole thing feel cohesive but seem random. I'm trying to say more in this comment than will practically fit I think...anyway I think it was one of Lynch's intentions to produce a film that felt like a dream.
ReplyDeleteWhat's really nice about this post is that you read the images and how they work, without attempting to force them into a meaning or taking them too literally. And yes, I think that Lynch is going for exactly that dream state in his audience. He pulls us into the nightmare right along with his characters, almost as if there's no separation.
ReplyDelete