Somehow, Inland Empire makes above scene scary.
Thesis
A few nights ago was the perfect night to watch Inland Empire. Zech can attest to the utter terror it struck within my heart of hearts, but also to the emotional stirrings therein. This is definitely an Important movie, though I'm not sure it's a good one to review.
Summer Movie Review (01)
Inland Empire [2006]
Written & Directed by
David Lynch
So this is probably his masterpiece, right? It's his longest and most impenetrable, and probably his most enjoyable and affecting by the time it's over.
Laura Dern masterfully portrays an actress (and several other personalities, all described by the film's tagline: "Women In Trouble"). If I weren't so sleepy, I'd be interested in discussing the film through a feminist lens, perhaps examining her various performances of gender and femininity with each role in the film. For now, I'm content to say that she really knocked it out of the park. Lynch too. I almost never understood exactly what the plot or characters were supposed to signify, but I was never disengaged from its emotional underpinnings.
This seems to be Inland Empire's greatest achievement, and the key to its success. Every scene, every shot was striking and evocative. With only hints and suggestions of plotlines and themes (many of which felt similar to Mulholland Dr), the movie continuously and thoroughly engaged with me on an emotional level. Much of this is thanks to Dern's stellar performance, which ranges from darling to snarling, but also to Lynch's montages and Angelo Badalamenti's stirring score. There's a weird heart, a special heart to this film.
I could write more about rabbit horror-sitcoms and Polish prostitutes, but I'm not sure how useful it would be in understanding or advertising the movie. This is Lynch at his most Lynchian, but also at his best. The various conflicts and intersections he has
explored throughout his career are realized and find some sort of resolution at the end of this three-hour-long meditation on identity, time, and filmmaking.
Honestly, this is a poor way to start my Summer Movie Reviews. You don't want to watch this unless you already do. It's a hard sell. Also, Summer Movie Reviews were copped from Ros.
Conclusions
I only had 30 minutes of battery life to write this. Also, I'm tired. Congrats to my bro for graduating. Now I'll probably just listen to more Beyonce and then go to bed. I saw Cave Of Forgotten Dreams last night. I'll probably review that. So sleepy. Love y'all, fam.
Ps It should be noted that Blogger is terrible with image formatting. WordPress soon?
I was going to post the trailer for the movie, but I got too scared. Maybe I'll post it in the morning. For now:
Very intriguing. I'm not usually capable of getting into surrealist movies for the very reason that there is no discernible plot. It leaves me with the question "why do I care to keep watching? What should I be looking for?" And your justifications for why you found Inland Empire enthralling make me want to give more experimental movies like this another chance. I saw the trailer for this a long time ago and it looked just unsettling enough to make me uncomfortable in the dark.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DOty7PLWg0
Fuck. I just watched it again and I forgot about that face. That face isn't cool.
Anyway I saw Eraserhead in high school and it was intoxicating in a really boring way. By that I mean, I wanted it to end about a third of the way through, but it insisted on assaulting me with its slowly-unfolding ugly, trippy imagery. I don't think I'll be giving that one another chance.
Entertaining review.
Lol Jeremy Eckart. I could see how you wouldn't be a huge fan of surrealist movies, kind've. I enjoyed Eraserhead pretty well, frightening to say the least, but I'll give this movie a try ol Beaney-boy.
ReplyDeleteIt's worth it, for both of ya!
ReplyDeleteMaybe I was in the right mood to go for a ride, but every single scene felt important and interesting, almost completely devoid of context.
Also, when am I seeing y'all this summer?
I'll probably be seeing you in August. Both of you actually. I'm gonna come to Bloomington early to move my stuff into my house. But probably no earlier than August. I'll be in Morocco 11 days from now and I'll be staying there all through July.
ReplyDelete