Shot For Shot: Mulholland Drive
A limo crashes high in the Hollywood hills. Somehow, the car was tampered with. A woman stumbles out, dazed and injured. She leaves the car behind, stumbling down the hillside and into a recently unoccupied house. She has forgotten everything, and in her purse is only $125,000 and a blue key. Rita meets Diane, and together they decide to try and learn who Rita is, or was. Then comes this shot, where Rita sits in front of the mirror, staring at an Old Hollywood poster.
Rita stares longingly at the poster in the mirror, albeit with a confused look on her face. She sees Rita Hayworth standing with a cigarette in her hand and a long blue dress on. The Rita at the mirror resembles her somewhat, and is wearing a towel almost as a gown. There is nothing on the walls, nothing in the room other than this mirror and this poster, and Lynch draws our eyes around this frame well.
Circles play a big part in this shot from “Mulholland Drive”. The curve of the archway behind Rita is seen in the mirror. The oval shape of the smaller mirror. The curve of the larger mirror. These curves are interrupted by lines. The edge of the frame that holds the poster cuts through the smaller mirror. The navy paneling strikes through the middle of the larger mirror and the archway. These curves and straight lines, specifically the archway and the trim, create the image of an eye and an open mouth coming up behind Rita, as if she’s about to be eaten by a creature, by the house, or by Hollywood. The imagery of the threat of being eaten by your fame is something that plays into the themes of “Mulholland Drive”, as Rita tries to rediscover her glory and Diane seeks her own.
The colors of the still are orangey, with a pearly sheen across the whole shot. Everything looks glossy and dreamlike, which ends up being a major part of the film. Fantasy is a theme of “Mulholland Drive”, since ⅔ of the way through the movie the original noir, Lynchian dreamscape we’d been seeing is pulled back to a darker, more realistic and sadder reality. The aesthetics of the shot reflect the larger ideas at play in “Mulholland Drive”.
The mirror is the essential piece to the shot, without it we couldn’t cram character development, themes, plot and larger ideas all into a singular still. But the mirror isn’t only there to bring everything together visually, it also has a strong presence on its own. Rita sits in front of the mirror, having just showered, at what seems to be a vulnerable time, not staring at herself as another might, but staring at the poster. Lynch uses the symbolism of a mirror just to subvert it. Rita doesn’t stare at herself, or think about herself, she stares at and thinks about her fame, her dreams and her identity. This subversion gives us insight into Rita’s character. The fact that her aspirations precede her tell you how important regaining her identity is to her. Her expression, of confusion, longing and frustration tell us about her emotional state at the time. David Lynch uses the mirror expertly, taking advantage of what it does for the shot and the viewer, but also what it does to shed light on character and theme.
Fantasy, reality, reflection and dreams are all major themes are ideas in “Mulholland Drive”. This shot expresses all of those well, not only in the subject but the aesthetics. Color and shape are both used to create a visually interesting image and also to dig deeper into the themes of the film. Lynch uses everything at his disposal to dig deep into the ideas at work in his script. The foggy, glowing look of the shot makes it feel dreamlike. The archways and baseboard create an open mouth, ready to swallow Rita up as she pines after fame, acting and her old identity to be regained. Rita ignores herself for her dreams. But just like her dreams of finding herself after a mysterious accident and losing her memory, they seem out of reach, cut off, or just a glimmer. Without acting and Hollywood, Rita doesn’t know who she is. She can identify with the glamor of fame, sharing a name with movie royalty, but that isn’t enough. The look of the shot tie nicely into this too. A pearly, soft sheen covers the entire shot like a film. Everything feels a little out of focus. These visuals put us in Rita’s head, without any memory. Without being able to get fame, Rita is nothing. She has nothing. Her entire sense of self has been lost, and she knows she must get it back. But how can she?
