19. [Movie Review]: Mulholland Drive (2001)- No hay banda

25 May, 2023

Wow. This movie is so confusing. It's better with friends. Just trust me, I would have not had as much fun.

Some !spoilers! ahead. I don't want to ruin the ending for you (if you really want to watch it) but :/

Silencio!

There's so many characters- according to David Lynch they all represent some sort of battle with identity (paraphrase)

Cast

Naomi Watts as Betty/Diane Selwyn (the blonde hair lady who talks so weirdly omg)
Laura Harring as Rita/Camilla Rhodes (the brown hair lady who is an absolute bi-con)
Justin Theroux as Adam Kesher (the Smash Mouth look-alike director who smashed the limo of the italian guys)
Ann Miller as Coco (the Karen-esque landlady at the apartment)
Mark Pellegrino as Joe (the (allegedly clumsy) hitman)
Dan Hedaya – Vincenzo Castigliane (the Italian guy who spits out the espresso lmfao)
Angelo Badalamenti as Luigi Castigliane (part of the Hollywood Italian mafia lmfao, the partner to Vincenzo)
Michael J. Anderson as Mr. Roque (The big boss of the Hollywood conspiracy- to me he literally looked like an alien in a chair, with a human-like flesh mask covering his ginormous head)
Bonnie Aarons as Bum (the scary bruja/witch or monster)
Monty Montgomery as The Cowboy (yeehaw 🤠 we see him 3 times!)
Melissa George as Camilla Rhodes (the girl in the auditions and she kinda makes out with Laura Harring lol)
Billy Ray Cyrus as Gene (I screamed: Hannah Montana's dad?! when he was in bed with that lady lmfaoooo)
Patrick Fischler as Dan (eyebrows guy at the diner)

[Fun fact: the apartment complex had real-life Hollywood starlets as the people who lived there! this is key in this movie]

Mulholland Drive (2001) is about a young pretty blonde girl who just arrived in LA. Diane/Betty (Naomi Watts), a mysterious brunette Rita/Camilla (Laura Harring) with amnesia and a suspicious history, and a filmmaker (Justin Theroux) who literally is screwed over in every part of his life. It's a very dream-like setting and the story evolves in a very intricate maze-like manner- with the most constant variables being the symbolism and the metaphors- the longing and the extreme paranoia.

There's no concrete conclusion to this film, it's a lot more than that. The director really wants you to engage with the mystery. You have to figure it out yourself and think about it within yourself. You will probably end up in different interpretations as your friends. Honestly, it's so wonderful.

If you scour the internet, there are so many deep interpretations about this movie. I really can't think of something original about it.

The director gave ten clues on the box copy of the movie. Here are those ten clues written out, and I'll try to give you my interpretations once I fully think it through. Just wanted to give you all my initial feelings after watching such a doozy of a film.

David Lynch's 10 Clues:

Pay particular attention in the beginning of the film: At least two clues are revealed before the credits.
Notice appearances of the red lampshade.
Can you hear the title of the film that Adam Kesher is auditioning actresses for? Is it mentioned again?
An accident is a terrible event—notice the location of the accident.
Who gives a key, and why?
Notice the robe, the ashtray, the coffee cup.
What is felt, realized, and gathered at the Club Silencio?
Did talent alone help Camilla?
Note the occurrences surrounding the man behind Winkie’s.
Where is Aunt Ruth?

There are so many scenes you have to decipher. It's probably because it was supposed to be a tv series before it was scrapped. There are 3 acts presented in such a topsy-turvy confusing story structure- but you just get it. Each interpretation is ultimately dependent on the person. It's absolutely brilliant. Apparently, people have dubbed it as a "love letter" to Old Hollywood, but since La La Land (2016) came out, people have actually changed that moniker to "La La Land's evil twin".

Mulholland Drive is, to me, "delulu" (delusional): the movie. This has been the most discussed film of all time. It literally defies interpretation and logical comprehension yet proves immensely thought-provoking to those who choose to go down the David Lynch rabbit hole.

I keep thinking about different interpretations to this movie. This is the funny one I have stirring in my brain right now. So the elusive- "Aunt Ruth". I think everyone's living in her head. This movie is made in 2001, right? Why is there a "Jitterbug" dance in the beginning of the film? She's reliving her youth!

Aunt Ruth is recalling her "Hollywood" heyday. Look the important scenes in this movie seem like they're from fifty years prior to 2001- like a very 1950's feel. The dance contest, Betty's audition, Adam's auditions he holds for his movie, the cars that the drive, the whimsy dialogue from Betty and the Hollywood execs.... Also, Ann Miller (She was a driving force in Old Hollywood during the 1930s-1950s. Mulholland Drive was actually her last film before she died! That's so cool)

In my interpretation, "Aunt Ruth" arrives in LA as a naive, doe-eyed aspiring actress. She learns that she has to give into the "Hollywood" scene by sleeping her way on the casting couch (Camilla = couch? hospital bed? "cama") so she can get acting roles. I think Ruth is actually the main character of the movie. She's Betty, she's Camilla, she's Diane.

The only time you really get a grasp of who Aunt Ruth is- is when you see Betty talk to her on the phone. She tells her about the stranger living in her apartment, but Ruth, a really stubborn old woman, wants to forget about her days as "Camilla", who slept around with producers and held this "cool girl" persona. She wants to be the naturally talented acting star, Betty- who honestly keeps this wide-eyed and ambitious personality. She wants to "kill" the Camilla persona and remain the pure and innocent Betty.

This is a particularly confusing movie to figure out. It says something without saying anything about it and you are left with the feelings about it, even without knowing what the hell is going on. When you know what's going on, it fits together so well- your realization and interpretations improve the film so much. That's the most important thing about the film- the ability to communicate things that words cannot do, but simply give you a glimpse behind through its symbolism, evocative acts, emotions, etc.

I rated it as 4/5 stars on Letterboxd. There were more layers than a crepe cake, and just like a crepe cake, I absolutely ate it all up.

~ no hay banda, it's all a tape. il n'est pas de orquestra, it is an illusion!!!

<3 K

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