Mulholland Drive : Could have been better as a straight up film noir mystery genre film

Could have been better as a straight up film noir mystery genre film

This isn't a criticism, more of an observation that Lynch could have sculpted a different kind of masterpiece if his goal was simply to pay homage to that film genre while infusing milder elements of weirdness into (kind of like what the Cohen Brothers accomplished with True Grit and the old westerns genre).

I say this because I found myself thoroughly engrossed in the film right down to every last little bit of dialogue right up until Rita opens the blue box, and then I felt like I was thrown off kilter and forced to go online and decipher what I just witnessed.

There were plenty of bizarre moments up until that point, but they matched the overall mood, and I just took them in stride as Lynch-isms and wasn't distracted in my enjoyment of what felt like a gritty detective movie.

An alternate ending where the mystery is tied off within the parameters of the realty we'd been observing before Rita opens the box (a big conspiracy involving the mob, Hollywood, and politicians seems obvious) arguably could have worked just as well!

Re: Could have been better as a straight up film noire mystery genre fil

Nah, it's one of those 'two separate but intertwined worlds' mobius strip type deals, and possibly the viewer is involved in the story.

Re: Could have been better as a straight up film noire mystery genre fil

You're characterizing what it, in fact, was. I'm talking about what it could have been if 100% contained within a linear storyline beginning with the car crash.

Could have been a masterful L.A. film noir myster/Hitchcockian thriller in-and-of-itself without even getting into the fragmented realities whatsoever. Arguably a more enjoyable movie to watch.

Re: Could have been better as a straight up film noire mystery genre fil

So take a brilliant, challenging, brain frying, thought provoking, endlessly re-watchable, mysterious, mind expanding,
spiritual, beautiful dark, top film of the centry so far (bbc critics poll) , ambiguouse , life changing, paradigm shifting, multi layered, experience for the viewer to pakrticipate in....and make it a bog standard movie.

......Brilliant ! why didn't Lynch think of that?

Maybe as he has a bit of imagination, love of art, love of the mystery of existence, to bother with bog standard.






Re: Could have been better as a straight up film noire mystery genre fil

Relax. Don't take it personally. He was just saying how the movie could have been something else.

Re: Could have been better as a straight up film noire mystery genre fil

He was sying it could have been better, by making it more pedestrian.

.....I'm up for a good argument before they close the board

Re: Could have been better as a straight up film noire mystery genre fil

I didn't read it that way. It could still be surreal and fragmented but followed a more singular genre to play with.

Re: Could have been better as a straight up film noir mystery genre film

professorPiehole,


"Could have been better as a straight up film noir mystery genre film"

Better for whom?


"This isn't a criticism, more of an observation..."

Suggesting it "could have been better" may sound like a criticism to some. The film gets a great deal of criticism as well as praise.



"...if his goal was simply to pay homage to that film genre..."

That is a big "if"!


"...(a big conspiracy involving the mob, Hollywood, and politicians seems obvious) arguably could have worked just as well!"

Ahha! Maybe that was not "his goal"?
ogt

PS: Personally I consider Lynch to be an artist creatively portraying matters that relate to his perceptions of the human mind.

Re: Could have been better as a straight up film noir mystery genre film

This is like saying 2001: A Space Odyssey could have been better as a straight up space opera film like Star Wars.

Re: Could have been better as a straight up film noir mystery genre film

I think that any good story or idea you are lucky enough to get could be taken in a number of different directions but ultimately, only one of them is going to be the right one. MD was perfect as is but, had lynch made a straight up mystery story along the same lines, I guess that would probably have been a pretty good movie too. But it probably wouldn't be great.
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