Lynch's masterpiece

Rating: 10/10 (17 November 2019)

No film has ever been able to provoke such a vast range of emotions as Lynch's "Mulholland drive". I find it simply incredible that on my first viewing of this movie I watched in awe without any clear understanding of what had happened. Most of the time when a film is as confusing as this it can come off as pretentious; "Mulholland drive" however, can only be praised as a masterpiece for every aspect of it.
Watching "Mulholland drive" can only be described in one way: a surreal, dreamlike experience. I say this not only because of the bizarre atmosphere that runs throughout, but in the way that it captures the idea of dreams and nightmares. The first half of the film is made up of many dreamy sequences especially involving the main character and her excitement of being in Hollywood for the first time. I find that this part of the film always resonates with me as I cannot help but be reminded of the same sort of feeling I felt when arriving in Los Angeles for the first time; it simply felt surreal. The movie then throws a massive curveball at you towards the end of the film: suddenly we are no longer experiencing a fantasy of the protagonists emotional and desires, we are watching a nightmare. In the first act of "Mulholland drive" we are shown Betty being satisfied in every way, the second act shows us an equally dream- like, however this time nightmarish, narrative. Betty isn't appreciated by the great directors, instead she is mocked and taunted in almost every way.
I should not forget to mention the best set of performances I've ever seen in a film. Naomi Watts doesn't fail to capture the audience in the first half with her child- like vulnerability displayed as the role of "Betty". The contrasting role Watts takes on in the second part of the film creates a truly disturbing shift of tone. Laura Harring plays the amnesiac we see in the first act followed by the haunting object of desire in the second. Harring's vulnerability contrasted with her independence in the second half is an undeniably chilling shift.
"Mulholland drive" is so atmospheric that you will want to soak in second of it. Enter Lynch's dream world and take a trip up to Mulholland drive; you will not regret it