Drifting: A Director's Log: <i>Inland</i> revisited

January 26, 2007

Inland revisited

Halfway through my second viewing Inland Empire, I stepped out into the lobby of the Paramount Theater to get another cup of David Lynch's signature coffee and overheard two girls discussing whether they should stay or leave. One said she was dying to stay; the other, with tears streaming down her face, said she couldn't sit through another minute of it, and asked her friend for money so she could take a cab home. I hope I can someday inspire such fervent pillars of polarity with one of my films!

And as for Inland Empire, this Winchester house of a film with its endless dark hallways and close-ups that turn a simple laughing face into a terrifying demonic frieze - I suppose it made more sense this time around, even though 'sense' (in the traditional sense) seems more like a constraint when applied to this movie. True, I was better able to grasp the contents of the film and the order in which they occurred; recurring motifs were more noticeable, and little strands of connective tissue revealed themselves in places I'd previously overlooked. But I'm almost loathe to call attention to those details, because I really don't think they point the way towards any master key that will lay bare the film's mysteries. I don't think there is a key, or a mystery for that matter. It's all there, in a fairly straightforward sense, and going in looking for something that's missing will only take away from this one-of-a-kind cinematic experience. As I previously wrote, this isn't a piece of academic trickery that can be dissected, excavated, labeled and categorized; all the pieces are right there on the big screen - sometimes out of focus, sure, but that's more a fault of Lynch's PD150 than his storytelling.

Just before the film started, Rebecca Campbell called Lynch out on stage, introducing him as one of our national treasures. I'd be hard pressed to remember a moment when I felt more patriotic.

Posted by David Lowery at January 26, 2007 08:10 PM

Comments

ah, i wish i could've been there to see that...

Posted by: frank at January 27, 2007 12:40 PM

I'm bummed I missed a chance to see it again, especially with the Lynch-man himself. But, I did get to see a movie about a guy who got fucked by a horse and died.

Posted by: Bryan P at January 27, 2007 01:30 PM

Inland Empire is getting released here in a few months. I would also love the opportunity to have a film introduced by Lynch, my favourite film-maker. I appreciate your post's giving nothing away and the anecdote of the two girls - fantastic!

Posted by: Paul Martin at January 27, 2007 03:33 PM

If you're interested, I recently reviewed Lost Highway for Melbourne Cinematheque at ACMI. I've posted the review on my blog.

Posted by: Paul Martin at January 27, 2007 03:39 PM

Great review, Paul. I haven't seen Lost Highway since it played in theaters (it was the first Lynch film I ever saw, too, and it blew my mind). I haven't seen it since, though, because there hasn't been a decent DVD release of it yet, and I refuse to watch a bad transfer of it. I'm curious as to what I'll think of it now.

Bryan, I really want to see Zoo. What I have seen, unfortunately, is footage of the film's subject in...er, action. I suppose I feel like I'm a more well rounded, fully educated person now.

Posted by: Ghostboy at January 27, 2007 10:48 PM