Lynch tries too hard to be enigmatic

Rating: Null/10 (4 January 2002)

Where to start? Well, it's David Lynch at the helm so this film can, and invariably does, go anywhere. Mulholland Falls doesn't have a plot as such, but it begins with what initially promises to be an intriguing mystery. A mysterious brunette (Laura Elena Harring) suffering from amnesia turns up in the apartment where bright-eyed wannabe starlet Betty (Naomi Watts) is preparing to launch her Hollywood career. The two subsequently embark on a mysterious and puzzling journey to discover the identity of the woman (now calling herself Rita). At the same time, top Hollywood director Adam (Justin Theroux - American Psycho) is being pressured into casting an unknown actress in his new movie by mysterious and threatening movie moguls. At first he refuses, but finds that the power of the faceless overlords is disturbingly persuasive. Sound promising? Well it's a wonderfully directed film noir with great dialogue and Lynch's eye for the terror lurking behind the mundane hasn't been this sharp since Blue Velvet. However, half way through the movie, and with an intriguing solution in sight, Lynch decides to tear-up the characters and plot to take us in a completely different direction. This would be fine if the new plot line bore any resemblance to the previous. Instead the viewer has wasted over an hour becoming embroiled in a mystery which Lynch has no intention of resolving. Some people call that daring, others call it infuriating. It seems Lynch was preoccupied with being mysterious. As a result many people who don't understand what the hell's happening would rather applaud than admit to being baffled. The nub of the flick rests on Lynch's attempt to show the audience the thin line between reality and fantasy by making them as unsure of what's real as the characters. However, where The Usual Suspects left audiences in awe at the revelation, viewers of Mulholland Drive will simply feel cheated - assuming they can understand what on earth's going on. It's hard not to admire Lynch's brilliant eye for the atmospheric and the surreal, but this makes the way he destroys the film so much more irritating. The sad truth is that it'll still be better than 80 per cent of cinematic releases this year, but really, if he could only keep his head out of his arse, Lynch might see that he's too talented to waste his time trying to be enigmatic.