Mulholland Dr - A brilliant construction of an intangible reality

Rating: 9/10 (8 December 2017)

This is the kind of movie that gets better on every rewatch. The first time I watched this movie, I was left cold and puzzled, as almost the first three quarters of the movie just consists of weird sequences, all mesmerizing to watch and brilliantly created, but with little logic or plot, with the mood crazily jumping from pure horror to comedy to everything in between. To first-time watchers, I advise patience, as there is a method to the madness, and the last half-hour of the movie provides an answer to almost all the strangeness that went before it. (I should also point out that this is unlike most of David Lynch's other creative endeavours, which can be maddeningly surreal and logically unfulfilling).
On a rewatch though, one would be able to fully appreciate the brilliance of all the strangeness in the first three-quarters of the movie. There is a very strong rationale behind the weird sequences, as Lynch is committed to the construction of an intangible, irrational reality which nevertheless is intimately familiar to all of us, and which has its own set of rules governing its shape. Every little detail in this intangible reality has a specific meaning, and the way all this ties to the overall plot of the movie is nothing short of mind-blowing.
Lynch's script and direction is as usual, mesmerizing and entertaining, Naomi Watts gives an absolute masterclass in acting (in particular, the audition scene is probably the best acted scene that I have ever watched), Laura Harring is stunningly beautiful, and the background score is haunting and stirring and perfectly captures the mood of the movie. The story is ultimately a tragedy, and a cautionary message about the price that we pay for having dreams and then seeing them shattered.