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It's reassuring to find others are as awed / enthused with 'Inland Empire' as I am, having read so much whinging and bafflement from critics, idiots etc.
Having seen in on Sunday night, I would suggest it is hands down the best film released so far this century (certainly the best I've seen).
I shall be brief as I don't have much time to write this post:
In Lynch terms:
'Inland Empire' is Mega-Lynch, Uber-Lynch, more unrefined Lynch than one could ever hope to see, the towering pinnacle of Lynchitude. Thus far, this is the apex of Lynch with all that entails. There is enough Lynch-meat to keep Lynch scholars chewing for years to come.
In technical/cinematic terms:
Absolutely STUNNING. Going on the singularly grumpy and misleading advance word on the film, I was half-expecting some patience-testing marathon of blurry black & white, wobbly camera-work, abstract long-shots etc. Well not a bit of it!
In purely visual terms, this is the most thrilling, imaginative, beautiful and unique thing I have seem at a first-run cinema since, well... ever. There are sections where I swear I could have been watching some bizarro Lynch-world reinterpretation of (Fellini's) '8 1/2'. If Digital Video allows people to get their artistic vision across with this much power and clarity, then bring it on, and a bit of pixilation be damned!
In terms of emotional reaction:
I realise this should hardly be a surprise given his previous work, but for a film allegedly lacking in any conventional narrative (I don't believe it is, but more of that later), the range of powerful emotions 'Inland Empire' commands from the viewer is incredible. Even when you've lost any solid grasp of who characters are or what they're doing, the film nonetheless keeps you profoundly connected to them and the feelings they're experiencing, a connection which is only intensified by the masterfully expressionistic cinematic technique.
People have been saying this is a 'dark', 'nightmarish' film, and yes, obviously it is, more deeply so than any other film you're likely see this decade.... but it is most definitely NOT a cold or alienating film; for every moment of tormented misery or stark, screaming terror there is another of spell-binding beauty or utter hilarity...
...ah yes, the hilarity: there aren't quite as many laffs in 'Inland Empire' I would have appreciated (being a particular fan of Lynch's oft-misunderstood sense of humour), but the ones which are there are absolutely EXQUISITE. I laughed myself half to death in places, before being terrified to the point of blackout by the very next scene... did all these people proclaiming it "boring" actually watch the same film I did??
Explanation / Plot Interpretation:
Oh, I've gotta go - I'm not even gonna START on this one yet! |
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