David Lynch: Hollywood’s Treasured Gem
The famed surrealist director has been diagnosed with emphysema, but that isn’t stopping him from retiring. But what made him so good?
Hollywood hasn’t exactly been kind to its longest-serving and greatest auteurs. Many directors seem to be given the backhand by many studios with no funding or just a rejection of ideas coming their way. Seriously?! One of those treasured gems is the genre-defining artist that is David Lynch.
Known best for his redefining of the surrealist movement within the film industry and for changing television shows for the better. Lynch has unfortunately made many headlines recently after announcing he had been diagnosed with emphysema, a lung disease caused by his many years of smoking.
Lynch said: “I have to say that I enjoyed smoking very much, and I do love tobacco — the smell of it lighting cigarettes on fire, smoking them — but there is a price to pay for this enjoyment… Recently I had many tests and the good news is that I am in excellent shape except for emphysema. I am filled with happiness, and I will never retire.”
Many people, like myself, will be very glad the hear the last part of that quote. He is without a doubt one of Hollywood’s most endearing and genuine directors ever frankly. Unique film after unique film, this man has changed and continues to change generations. His impact extends beyond the 1990’s hit of “Twin Peaks” and many Gen Z have brought his work into their lives.
A surrealist dream:
The dream began for Lynch in 1977 with his debut outing with “Eraserhead”. Seeing this film in 1977 would have been the weirdest experience because near to nothing had been made of its nature at that time. Lynch’s experience with ambiguity, with a dark and industrial reflection on fatherhood. Lynch puts Philadelphia at the forefront for a lot of his inspirations but it shines through here. He was so obsessed with its dark times when he knew it, and just how miserable it was. The surrealism of Lynch’s work can be found in so many motifs across nearly his entire filmography.
The motif above all in his body of work is the red curtains. This vale of obscurity and mystery hides so much but yet so easily movable. The first reuse of this image comes in his 1986 masterpiece “Blue Velvet”. This film is such a perfect starting point for Lynch’s career dive into this dream-like stance. The trademark suburban nightmare comes into full swing here. Who doesn’t find the suburbs scary?! An endless hell of constant similarities in the buildings and environment, which plays to Lynch’s style perfectly.
Over time Lynch’s surrealist work has only evolved and become darker and more complex. “Lost Highway” in 1997 and “Mulholland” in 2001 are the perfect dark dreams. Profound studies of identity through Lynch’s erotic and bizarre eyes. Repetitive themes of his suburban hellscape, red curtains, and dark roads. In 2007 Lynch released his most recent feature film, “Inland Empire”. A film unlike anything in his filmography. A full dark descent in madness, with almost no sense of cohesion; and it’s wonderful. A digital nightmare of extreme close-ups of Laura Dern’s face.
Studio interference and a change in genre:
In 1984, Lynch’s biggest sadness hit theatres: his “Dune” adaptation. Considered by many people to be his worst film, it still isn’t as bad as many people make it out to be. Yes, it was cut to bits by the studio and Lynch wasn’t able to secure the final cut, but it’s so unique. Lynch brings his surrealist qualities into play here and gives us some fantastic vision sequences and all-around awesome visual concoctions. It is not that bad!
Amongst Lynch’s surrealist works, there are the odd few standouts: “The Elephant Man” and “The Straight Story”. If anything, these films just show how much range he had. Under many director’s hands, however, “The Elephant Man” could’ve easily turned into the usual biopic slop. Instead, Lynch turns into one of the most emotionally charged tales of identity and personal image.
Whilst having been nominated for Academy Awards, Lynch has never actually won a single one. Whilst he did receive an honorary one a few years back, it still doesn’t feel right. The real award is the impact he’s had on many people’s lives. A form of escapism and uncomfortable feelings that draw people back repeatedly.
Changing TV for a generation:
On Sunday, April 8th, 1990, the world of television began to change. A change that would shape and take hold over nearly 30 years. Across three seasons of generational television and one masterstroke of a film, “Twin Peaks” was born. A show that reflects upon itself and the rest of the TV industry. An extremely meta melodrama of trauma, murder, and fish in percolators. Lynch’s signature red curtains are the staple image of this show. An endless void of zig-zagging floors and people speaking in reverse. Kyle MacLachlan, as Dale Cooper, leads a cast of supreme talent with Sheryl Lee’s, Laura Palmer at the centre of everything strange about this show. A show that spawned in other shows like The X-Files and NYPD Blue in its wake. The impact of this small town and its soothing opening credits should never be underestimated.
At the time when David Lynch, and co-creator Mark Frost, announced they were making a show back in 1988, people raised many eyebrows. A highly credited film director moving to TV? Especially in a time when time had lower standards and was fairly formulaic, can you really blame the people? No wonder it changed television history. For 2 seasons Lynch and Frost terrified audiences, but only to their amazement. The show went through fallouts and down periods, its impact however never waned.
The Return:
After the feature prequel film, “Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me”, released in 1992 to a booing at Cannes Film Festival, the world of that picturesque American town, went to bed. It wasn’t until 2017 that Lynch’s most important project of his career, his magnum opus, was released. Amid his poor condition now, it is an absolute miracle that Twin Peaks: The Return exists.
A major shift in tone from the first two seasons, but a season that embraced Lynch’s modern workings in the grandest of fashions. This, his latest work is, clearly influenced by his first major work, “Eraserhead”. Black and white sequences with a stage in one of the many settings. A gorgeous bit of retrospect to the film that started it all for him. Lynch caps off this generational change for the people who had to wait 25 years for more. It had all finally come around to a close.
