Mulholland Drive (2001)
"Mulholland Dr." (original title)

After a car wreck on the winding Mulholland Drive renders a woman amnesic, she and a perky Hollywood-hopeful search for clues and answers across Los Angeles in a twisting venture beyond dreams and reality.

Director:

David Lynch

Writer:

David Lynch

Stars:

Naomi Watts, Laura Harring, Ann Miller

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 40 wins & 33 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Naomi Watts	...	Betty Elms / Diane Selwyn
Laura Harring	...	Rita (as Laura Elena Harring)
Ann Miller	...	Catherine 'Coco' Lenoix
Dan Hedaya	...	Vincenzo Castigliane
Justin Theroux	...	Adam Kesher
Brent Briscoe	...	Detective Neal Domgaard
Robert Forster	...	Detective Harry McKnight
Katharine Towne	...	Cynthia Jenzen
Lee Grant	...	Louise Bonner
Scott Coffey	...	Wilkins
Billy Ray Cyrus	...	Gene
Chad Everett	...	Jimmy Katz
Rita Taggart	...	Linney James
James Karen	...	Wally Brown
Lori Heuring	...	Lorraine Kesher

Storyline

A bright-eyed young actress travels to Hollywood, only to be ensnared in a dark conspiracy involving a woman who was nearly murdered, and now has amnesia because of a car crash. Eventually, both women are pulled into a psychotic illusion involving a dangerous blue box, a director named Adam Kesher, and the mysterious night club Silencio.

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Plot Keywords:

dream | amnesia | california | car accident | los angeles california | 

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Taglines:

A woman in search of stardom. A woman in search of herself - in the city of dreams. A key to a mystery - lies somewhere on Mulholland Drive.

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, language and some strong sexuality

Details

Country:

France USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

21 November 2001 (France)

Also Known As:

Mulholland Drive

Filming Locations:

387 South Main Street, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£134,798 (UK) (4 January 2002)

Gross:

$7,219,578 (USA) (3 May 2002)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Les Films Alain Sarde, Asymmetrical Productions, Babbo Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

147 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Although commonly mistaken for "Girl with a Pearl Earring" by Jan Vermeer, the painting inside the apartment of Betty's aunt is actually a painting by Guido Reni entitled "Beatrice Cenci".

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Goofs

When Betty enters her Aunt's apartment for the first time, she leaves her suitcase out in the courtyard, and never goes back for it.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Betty Elms: Oh! I can't believe it!

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Crazy Credits

Credits have the movie director's name as 'Bob Booker' (not 'Brooker' as we hear). Furthermore, many of the characters' names are simply not mentioned at all during the course of the film (Billy Deznutz, Joe Messing, Bondar, etc.) but their character's names are all listed in the closing credits.

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Connections

References Sweet Jane (1998)

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Soundtracks

"I've Told Every Little Star"
Written by Oscar Hammerstein II and Jerome Kern
Performed by Linda Scott
Courtesy of Epic Records
By Arrangement with Celebrity Licensing Inc.

User Reviews

Possibly Lynch's best; brilliant, enigmatic, and masterfully filmed

Originally filmed in 1999 as a TV pilot, "Mulholland Dr." was rejected. The next year, David Lynch received money to film new scenes to make the movie suitable to be shown in theaters. He did so - and created one of the greatest, most bizarre and nightmarish films ever made.

The film really doesn't have main characters, but if there were main characters, they would be Betty (Naomi Watts) and Rita (Laura Elena Harring). Betty is a perky blonde who's staying in her aunt's apartment while she auditions for parts in movies. She finds Rita in her aunt's apartment and decides to help her. You see, Rita's lost her memory. She has no clue who she is. She takes her name, Rita, from a "Gilda" poster in the bathroom. So the two set out to discover who Rita really is.

David Lynch has been known for making some weird movies, but this film is the definition of weird. It's bizarre, nightmarish, and absolute indescribable. It's like a dream captured on film. By the 100-minute point, the film has become extremely confusing - but if you've been watching closely, it will make perfect sense. Having watched the movie and then read an article on the Internet pointing out things in the film, I now understand the movie completely.

The acting is very good. Watts is terrific. Justin Theroux is very good as a Hollywood director facing problems with the local mob. The music is excellent. Angelo Badalamenti delivers one of his finest scores. And the directing - hah! David Lynch is as masterful a filmmaker as ever there was.

Is this your type of film? Well, that depends. You should probably view more of Lynch's work before watching this movie. You'll need to be patient with the film, and probably watch it a second time to pick up the many clues Lynch has left throughout the movie. For Lynch fans, this is a dream come true.

"Mulholland Dr." is a masterpiece. It's brilliant, enigmatic, and masterfully filmed. I love it.