Loose ends vs. hypnotic images (as usual)

Rating: 7/10 (13 January 2005)

And who's winning the big prize? It's hard to tell. Every Lynch film has to be evaluated this way, I think. On one hand, you've got the surreal and beautiful happenings, and on the other, all the nonsense. You put it in the scales, and usually the first outweighs the second. By far.
This is the first time I found myself doubting about it, because the mind toying was just way too much. The last minutes felt like a rehash of 'Lost Highway', but even more hallucinatory and illogic, and condensed in much less time. The fact that the crazy part started just when the story was getting REALLY interesting was a pain too. They were all noticeable symptoms of what everybody knows: Mulholland Drive was meant to be a TV series, in the same vein of "Twin Peaks". So the first half of this movie is, basically, a pilot (introduction of characters, some action, a bit of thriller, humor...) with a zillion of loose ends, and the rest, a milk shake of undeveloped ideas. Creepy and fascinating, but too much incoherent even for Lynch.
The main reason this movie is, despite of all, a winner, is that Lynch has outdone himself this time. First, there are four or five shots in this movie which I can describe simply as unforgettable. Second, we are introduced to hilarious characters (the cowboy, for example) who are worth the movie alone. Third, we are presented with a few sequences in which Lynch shows a great sense of humor. And fourth, Badalamenti is still at top form.
So, yes, he has done it again. But the margin is getting narrow. I'm really looking forward his next movie, because I have no idea which path will Lynch take. I'm already waiting.
RATING: 7.4