A movie that is visually appealing, with a story line that is appalling

Rating: 5/10 (28 April 2002)

Upon first watching "Mulholland Dr." I was eagerly waiting what would be, as near as I could tell, another creative drama that falls into the same genre as "Magnolia" or "Requiem for a Dream." While it did live up to at least that expectation I had for it, it certainly did not live up to the expectation I had of it to be a good movie. By the time the movie was over (all 2.5 hours of it) the only thing I knew for sure about it was how bad it was. It seemed throughout the entire movie, especially the latter half, the director had been purposely trying to make every single person who watched it lost. The end of the movie doesn't even make an attempt to tie things together, only to make them even more confusing. Usually one can go back and watch a movie a second, third, or even fourth time until he/she understands it. I however would not want to waste another two and a half hours of my life, again.
The movie begins with a terrible accident on a road called Mulholland Drive. Just before the accident happens, a woman in the car that is hit is held at gun-point. She ends up being the only person to make it out alive. She flees the scene of the accident and heads into Hollywood. The next day, after sleeping on the sidewalk, she invades a stranger's house who turns out to be the aunt of a woman named Betty-- who is new to Hollywood. Betty finds the stranger in her aunt's house and interestingly becomes friends with her. It turns out the woman from the accident has amnesia, so Betty decides to help her find her identity.
I won't delve into the plot anymore, basically because it would take a lot more than 1,000 words. That is not the only plot that the movie deals with. The movie deals with about 14 plots simultaneously, then decides to change everything about 3/4 of the way through the movie. The only thing that is good about "Mulholland Dr." is the acting and imagery the director portrays. It appears that according to the rating this movie has gotten, the imagery doesn't have to make sense for the movie to be a masterpiece. I am actually past the point of caring to understand it. Watching this kind of movie makes me think that movie-making is all about shocking the audience with originality. This movie had originality, but its originality is without a point. If you want to watch a GOOD original movie that will keep you thinking, watch "Donnie Darko." If you want to waste your time, watch "Mulholland Dr."