Director: David Lynch
Rating: 5 out of 10
I know some of the Lynch-philes or Davidians (oops, that conjures up a whole different cult) will look at that 5 out of 10 rating and say "You're stupid, you just don't understand it!" I got news for you, bub, neither do you. There is such a thing as misunderstood genius in terms of art and film, but I question Lynch's work here. Now, I saw Mullholland Dr. and I know there was a narrative that made some kind of weird sense in there. I didn't understand the film, which is something I plan to rectify through subsequent viewings. I've only seen it 1 time, and even the most hardcore Lynch fan would tell you his films require at least 2 more sessions to grasp certain concepts in his work. Blue Velvet, however, does have a semblance of a narrative and is understandable in one sitting, though it's a pretty odd flick.
Eraserhead is a different beast altogether. I can guarantee you have not seen a weirder film than this, or a more sparsely dialogued film too. As I was watching it I was thinking about how little dialogue there is in the film, something that doesn't bother me a bit. Looking up some information after watching the film, I found out the initial script was a mere 20 pages long. Now, this can certainly work if the characters are doing something interesting or displaying character through their actions. But we never really learn too much about the characters in this film, they're just kind of there.
Lynch likes to throw unique and thought-provoking images up on the screen, surely enough to captivate an audience to watch the entire thing despite there being no real plot line. Our main character, Henry, lives in an industrial wasteland, all times surrounded by steam and pipes and machinery. He goes to visit a girl he dated a while ago (who is prone to spastic fits), has an awkward dinner, then finds out he impregnanted the girl and she had the baby prematurely. Next, they're married and living in Henry's apartment along with their child: a mutant baby that looks like a slimy E.T. or the little alien that pops out of the guy's stomach in Alien. Apparently, Henry's only form of entertainment is an itty bitty theater that exists in his wall behind a floor heater. There, a fat-cheeked blond woman does a weird dance, sings a song, and squashes what looks like little worm alien things that fall from above her.
Do I need to go any further? It's not even like a Peter Gabriel video or something, because the film is in black and white. No vibrant colors to dazzle the eye, just weird images shot in contrasting black and white. There just doesn't seem to be a purpose to the flick. They call it a horror movie, but I don't agree, as I'm sure most people wouldn't. There are a few horrific things that happen, like Henry slicing open a mini chicken only to watch it bleed and ooze as the thing starts moving on the plate, but it certainly isn't a scary movie by any stretch. I don't think the film is meant to be understandable, it's just David Lynch's weird brain ejaculating onto film, splicing it together, and somehow making movie out of it. People call it brilliant, and I'm open to a serious discussion of that, but it feels like those people believe if we can't understand it then it must be too brilliant for us to comprehend. I don't buy it.
You're probably wondering why I even gave it a 5. The short answer is: the images Lynch puts in front of us are pretty mind-bogglingly weird. Weird enough to make you wonder "What the hell else is going to happen here?" It kept my attention, and I can appreciate that.
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