1175 Inland Empire

[dadaistnun]

The website has updated the U.S. theatrical schedule into map form. Apparantly Alaska can suck it.

[Tommaso]

Finally IE is coming to Germany (this Thursday), and I was lucky enough to see an original language preview yesterday evening. Curiously, I also think like Antoine Doinel that it's less difficult than everyone thinks and that there's a totally coherent explanation, although after just one viewing I wasn't able to piece everything together. But my first vague interpretation is that nothing is 'real' apart from that girl watching TV, and what we see is basically what goes on in her mind. The Laura Dern plot(s) are things she sees on TV, but they become influenced/modified by her own wandering mind, which involves the Polish plotline. I assume that the real problem is that she somehow lost her husband and child and is finally re-united with them, but before that happens, the film shows her own feelings and thoughts as 'projections' (in the psychoanalytical sense and in the obvious sense of 'filmic projection' on a screen). As her mind constantly associates, the Dern plots get blurred and modified by her own experiences. Just think of your own experiences when you watch a film: sometimes you see something in a film that reminds you of something in your own life, and your mind wanders and brings your own thoughts to what happens in the film itself. As Dern is at least partly a projection of the Polish girl, it is natural that they become one in the end and that Dern disappears (a beautiful scene indeed). I don't know whether this makes any sense, but that's how I saw the film. Somebody in this thread compared IE to "Finnegans Wake", and as that book also plays with the personal experiences and associations the reader brings to it, I find the comparison quite fitting.

As to the 'meaning' of the film: obviously it's about how Hollywood 'projects' our dreams, and sometimes Lynch drives his point home rather bluntly, as in that scene where Dern bleeds to death on the stars of the Walk of Fame (though it's filmed magnificently). I quite liked the DV look, as it precludes the film from looking as 'realistic' as those Hollywood dream factory products it criticizes. And I didn't think it was one minute too long. A compelling, fascinating experience, without the over-indulgence in shock effects and violence for its own sake that I sometimes sense in Lynch. For me, his best film since a very long time (probably since "Elephant Man", and yes, I DO like MD), perhaps his best ever.

[nredding2]

Inland Empire is coming to Ottawa in late May, so I am sure it will show in other major Canadian cities as well.

[Michael]

And I didn't think it was one minute too long. A compelling, fascinating experience, without the over-indulgence in shock effects and violence for its own sake that I sometimes sense in Lynch. For me, his best film since a very long time (probably since "Elephant Man", and yes, I DO like MD), perhaps his best ever.

I agree except that now having seen INLAND EMPIRE twice, I'm more partial to Mulholland Dr. than IE. There is something going on in MD that I love so much and it's not there in IE ...I can't put a finger on what it is. Does anyone feel the same way?

[rs98762001]

I agree except that now having seen INLAND EMPIRE twice, I'm more partial to Mulholland Dr. than IE. There is something going on in MD that I love so much and it's not there in IE ...I can't put a finger on what it is. Does anyone feel the same way?

Yes, absolutely. Every frame of MD is perfect, and by the end it's a shattering emotional experience. IE is a little hazier, less focused, a masterpiece with flaws and frustrations.

[Michael]

Every Lynch film is a masterpiece - yes, even Wild at Heart and Fire Walk With Me. However, MD remains the most solid and emotional film Lynch has made so far. I saw MD a few times when it was first released in theaters and on DVD and again immediately after seeing IE the second time recently. I definitely prefer MD mostly for its firework of staggering emotions and structures. For instance, the scene in which Betty/Diane holding hands with Rita as they trek up the back woods toward the dinner party at the director's place never fails to reduce me to tears - we finally understand why Betty's been obsessed with Rita. Lynch doesn't tackle this kind of emotional depth with IE in my opinion of course. And MD's Club Silencio sequence is Lynch's finest moment. None of IE matches the heartstopping power of that moment.

[Michael]

But it's a movie I always WANT to watch again.

I feel the same way about MD. One problem I had with IE is that it was difficult investing emotionally with Laura Dern's character. It was very frustrating. Repeated viewings on DVD will most likely change that, like Denis' L'intrus - the most frustrating film ever! - which took me a few viewings to finally embrace. But IE is still amazing, funny, scary and visually stunning film.

With MD, it gives us the room to grow with the two women as they pave the path to solve the mystery so for nearly two hours, we slowly invest with those two. It's cheerfully straightforward and almost charming that we want to root for them and help them with their investigating. But things flip over once they come home from the night at Club Silencio. Betty disappears mysteriously in the bedroom. Rita comes looking for her in the same room and then suddenly disappears into the blue box. The aunt walks in surveying the now-empty room like nothing happens. All of sudden the emptiness of all this overwhelms - the two women that we come to know and love for nearly 2 hours become nothing - zero. No matter how many times I watch MD, this scene still overwhelms me with disturbing emptiness and sadness. And the 20-minute shattered finale that follows makes one longs to return to Betty's fantasy of warmth, love, need, success and stability.

[dadaistnun]

DVD info?

Extras:

LYNCH 2 (BEHIND THE SCENES OF INLAND EMPIRE WITH DAVID LYNCH)
TALKS WITH LAURA DERN AND DAVID LYNCH MORE THINGS THAT HAPPENED (ADDITIONAL CHARACTER EXPERIENCES)
THEATRICAL TRAILERS (3)
STILLS GALLERY (73 PHOTOS)
DAVID LYNCH COOKS QUINOA

I finally got to see this over the weekend, and I am so glad I was able to see it theatrically. Yes, the video image looks a little shitty at times (some of the scenes in Dern's house/mansion early on) but at others it's gorgeous (the footage shot in Poland). As far as what it's about/what it means, I don't even know where to begin and I like it that way. I feel it, I 'get' it, on an intuitive level. It's like a colonic for the brain. Loved it.

[Antoine Doinel]

Good news Buster K! Us Montrealers are getting a complete David Lynch retrospective in May including Inland Empire.
Details here.

So great! Not only a theatrical release, but a whole retrospective?! The wait was so worth it...

Hold the excitement Buster K. I just found out the "retrospective" films are projected DVDs, not from prints. I don't know how any self-respecting arthouse would do that, but there you go.

[BusterK.]

Oh that's disappointing, although i was only planning to see Eraserhead and Mulholland Drive. But there's no way i'd pay to see a projected DVD, fuck no!

[marty]

Has anyone in Paris been to theDavid Lynch exhibition which just opened a few days ago?

I will be in Paris in a few weeks after the Cannes Film Festival finishes and am very eager to check it out as I don't think it would ever come to Australia.

[cinemartin]

Every Lynch film is a masterpiece - yes, even Wild at Heart and Fire Walk With Me.

Dune's a masterpiece?

[Tommaso]

Dune's a masterpiece?

Well, almost. I really love Kyle McLachlan in "Dune" (almost as much as in "Twin Peaks"), and the film has great visuals and Lynch's usual bizarreness. Of course it's still a space soap opera, but that is rather due to Herbert's novel, and it may also suffer from being too short (although Lynch, understandably, disapproves of that longer TV version) . Anyway, I like this infinitely better than "Star Wars", and its character as a commercial flop comes from disappointing the expectations of the Lucas/Spielberg clientele rather than from the film's few inherent flaws. And the greatest revelation: we see Sting as he REALLY is !

[Solaris]

Has anyone in Paris been to theDavid Lynch exhibition which just opened a few days ago?

I will be in Paris in a few weeks after the Cannes Film Festival finishes and am very eager to check it out as I don't think it would ever come to Australia.

It is highly unlikely that it will ever come to Australia, however it is possible, a Kubrick exhibition did come to Melbourne a few years ago.

As for INLAND EMPIRE coming to Australia, the original date was April 27, then Dendy postponed it till June 21. Yesterday they announced it will not be released until "the final quarter of 2007".

[John Cope]

Every Lynch film is a masterpiece - yes, even Wild at Heart and Fire Walk With Me.

Dune's a masterpiece?

The only real problem with Dune is that Lynch can't direct comprehensible large scale action set pieces to save his life (the attack on the fortress and the final battle only work as texture or mood--gotta love Patrick Stewart's firm grip on his little dog). And Lynch can't direct these things because he clearly doesn't have any interest in them and that's okay by me. His blatant disinterest makes for fascinating cinema in its own right.

On a side note, of course FWWM is a masterpiece. It's his best film.

[mikebowes]

Re: the David Lynch exhibit - there is a LOT of content there, mostly in the form of doodles, notes on hotel stationary, envelopes, etc. It seemed like hundreds of them all kept well and presented in chronological order. A lot of the drawings are small and with great notes interspersed - thought on actors for rolls, budgets, shopping lists. There are several large format paintings with objects adhered to them - bones, phones... And downstairs there are approx. 50 photographs. In the Cartier Fdn. building which is a great building to visit on its own, the exhibit is definitely worth the price of admission.

[Jeff]

From DavisDVD:

Rhino Entertainment and Ryko Distribution will release Inland Empire on August 14th. Filmmaker David Lynch's latest masterpiece, shot entirely on handheld digital cameras, arrives as a two-disc set featuring a 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer and Dolby Digital 5.1 audio mix. Bonus materials will include "Lynch 2: Behind The Scenes of Inland Empire With David Lynch," "Talks With Laura Dern and David Lynch: More Things That Happened (Additional Character Experiences)," 3 theatrical trailers, a 73-page stills gallery and David Lynch Cooks Quinoa. Retail will be $29.95.

[foggy eyes]

The two-disc Optimum R2 UK is being released on 20/08 (and is available for pre-order now at Amazon).

[Solaris]

IE is preming at the SydneyFF this year which is presumably the reason for theatrical delay (Dendy has it.)

When is the Sydney festival?

[Solaris]

Hmm, looks like I'll be importing the R1 disc in order to see this, (I'm guessing an R4 release will not happen until early next year!).

[dadaistnun]

From Variety:

'Lynch' has a secret documentary
Film chronicles director's 'Empire' process
By Steven Zeitchik

David Lynch is still messing with us.

The director, who self-distribbed his impenetrable "Inland Empire" -- and then campaigned on its behalf by sitting with a cow on the corner of Hollywood Blvd. and La Brea -- has a new trick up his sleeve.

Turns out that when Lynch spent two years hopping around the world shooting "Inland," he had cameras rolling on him as well.

The result is a previously unknown full-length doc titled "Lynch," which documents the filmmaker's process of making "Empire."

"Lynch," which was financed by a Danish government film fund, will be shopped at the Cannes market in hopes of snaring buyers from the international territories where Lynch is adored. Theatrical rights will be available in every global territory except North America, where, like "Inland," the movie will probably be self-distribbed; DVD rights are available worldwide.

A half-hour piece of the docu titled "Lynch 2" also has been included on the DVD of "Inland," which Rhino Entertainment will release on homevid Aug. 14.

Just who got such access to Lynch's famously quirky set is unclear; the director is "choosing to remain anonymous" and is credited only with the nom de plume "blackANDwhite." The mystery director, who "lived and worked at Lynch's home," said in a statement that, "My goal is to present to the world the unique experience of being with David Lynch for a prolonged period of time, watching him as he creates on a day-to-day basis."

With such intimate access, is it possible that the director is Lynch himself?

Reps at Lynch's distribution shingle denied the possibility. "I can tell you 100% that it's not David," said Eric Bassett.

Bassett described the doc as a film that exists "somewhere between a documentary and a David Lynch movie." It also "shows some rough stuff that I'm pretty shocked David let out," Bassett says. "There are a lot of problems on the set. David admits he has no idea what he's doing sometimes."

The moniker of Lynch's distribution arm may give a clue as to how the helmer views the creative process and, indeed, the world.

It's called Absurda.

It might be "unknown" to Variety, but the filmmaker has been keeping a blog about his film since last year. You can watch the trailer on the myspace page. It's pretty funny.

[Jean-Luc Garbo]

I love that trailer. Some of Lynch's outbursts remind me of an uncle. "No no no no no. Holy shit!"

[dadaistnun]

Updated dvd specs from DavisDVD:

David Lynch's upcoming two-disc DVD of Inland Empire will include a feature called "More Things That Happened (Additional Character Experiences)." What is that exactly, you ask? Hows about over 90 minutes of deleted footage that will be edited together into a mini-feature!

[dadaistnun]

The Rhino press release:

David Lynch's Inland Empire Out On DVD August 24th

DAVID LYNCH EXPANDS HIS Inland Empire

The Celebrated Director Adds a Host of Extras for the DVD Debut of His Acclaimed Film Including an Amazing 75 Minutes of Additional Scenes, Plus Interviews, Behind-The-Scenes Footage and Much More

Available August 14th from Rhino Entertainment

LOS ANGELES -- David Lynch's acclaimed film Inland Empire will make its DVD debut this summer with Rhino Entertainment. Overseen personally by Lynch, the DVD will feature the director's mind-bending cinematic journey generously embellished with a number of extras including a massive collection of additional scenes entitled "More Things That Happened." Other bonus materials include a making-of featurette, interviews with Lynch and the film's star Laura Dern, a photo gallery and theatrical trailers, plus footage of Lynch at home cooking quinoa -- an edible seed similar in texture to couscous. Inland Empire will be available August 14th from Rhino Entertainment for a suggested list price of $29.95.

Filming entirely in digital video allowed Lynch to explore many different pieces of the puzzle that make up the rich tapestry of Inland Empire. Lynch had a wealth of additional scenes that were integral to his original vision of the film. For the Inland Empire DVD Lynch dove further into the story to include scenes that enrich the original mystery. "I'm very happy with the DVD because it continues the story of Inland Empire and people can discover 'More Things That Happen'" says the director about the special bonus features on the DVD.

Starring Dern, Jeremy Irons and Justin Theroux along with Harry Dean Stanton, Diane Ladd and special appearances by Grace Zabriskie, William H. Macy and Julia Ormond, Lynch describes Inland Empire with characteristic understatement as "A woman in trouble."

A surreal visual voyage, Inland Empire was shot in both Los Angeles and Poland. It features some of Poland's biggest film stars and took more than two years to complete. Lynch worked from a script that he developed during shooting which makes the behind-the-scene moments especially illuminating.

Since its premiere last September at the Venice Film Festival in Italy, the film has provoked intense reactions. Manohla Dargis of The New York Times describes Inland Empire as "fitfully brilliant, a plunge down the rabbit hole of the director's imagination and a spellbinding companion to his masterpiece, Mulholland Drive." Peter Travers of Rolling Stone lauds the film as "a puzzle whose pieces you'll keep trying to put together in your head long after you leave the theater." and Nathan Lee of The Village Voice praises Dern in the "Performance of the Year."

Inland Empire
DVD Price: $29.95 U.S.
Street Date: August 14, 2007
Pre-Order Date: June 29, 2007
Total Running Time: 310 +/- Minutes
DVD Catalog Number: R2 183036
Discs: 2 Disc Set
Distributor: Ryko/Rhino
Rating: Rated R

DVD EXTRAS:
David Lynch Cooks Quinoa
Lynch 2 (Behind The Scenes Of Inland Empire)
Stills (73 Photos)
Stories (With David Lynch)
Theatrical Trailers (3)
More Things That Happened
Ballerina

I suspect that "Ballerina" is the short film that played at Cannes this year. I think I read somewhere that it was to be his contribution to To Each His Own Cinema but was completed too late (or something like that).

[Michael]

Every Lynch film is a masterpiece - yes, even Wild at Heart and Fire Walk With Me.

Dune's a masterpiece?

But that's the movie David Lynch openly dismissed and regretted making. Last time I saw it, I was a young boy (about 25 years ago) and I don't remember much of it except for a splatter of images.

Back to IE, I finally revisited it (3rd viewing) when it came to Miami Beach very recently. My feelings remain the same. It's way too long. It could've benifitted from tighter editing. It's not anywhere near as seductive as Mulholland Dr. It does have some moments of brilliance but not enough to stand up to the likes of Mulholland Dr. and The Elephant Man (both are utterly beautiful in every aspect) and even Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (which contains some of the most raw and emotional direction I've experienced).