Lost Highway
The first and certainly the best of David Lynch’s “dual-personality” trilogy that also included Mulholland Drive and Inland Empire, while it certainly features his convoluted style, is still more enjoyable and accessible than the other two entries to be perhaps his most underrated work. Lynch meticulously takes his time in the early going, developing the marriage between Fred and Renee Madison to the point where Fred’s frailties and paranoia take center stage before some shocking events occur. Here the theme of “what if you could be someone else?” is made clear as Fred has every reason to want to escape his current reality and assume the persona of Pete Dayton, mechanic. There can be no doubt that this is one of the best casts Lynch has ever worked with: Bill Pullman as Fred draws you into his plight with a magnetism he has shown on scant previous occasions; Patricia Arquette in a crucial dual role brings lots of sex appeal to the table along with abundant amounts of nudity; Robert Loggia brings his classic tough-guy persona to Lynchland and hits a home run in the process (the scene with the motorist is classic); Richard Pryor nicely portrays Dayton’s boss before descending completely into the hells of his MS; Gary Busey brings a surprising amount of strength and dignity to the role of Dayton’s dad; Natasha Gregson Wagner is sexy and vulverable as Dayton’s girlfriend; plus there are nice bits by Henry Rollins, Marilyn Manson, Giovanni Ribisi, and others, then there is Robert Blake as the Mystery Man: Presumably the one behind the other-worldly machinations, Blake brings the power and frightfulness to one of the most underestimated villains in screen history with limited screen time, and his monologue about the Far East sends chills down the viewer’s spine considering the circumstances of the actor’s real-life murder trial. The film’s main drawback is Balthazar Getty as Pete Dayton. It’s hard to put my finger on it, but when Pullman leaves the story and Getty takes over as the male lead, the film just loses something. Getty comes across as a moody Corey Feldman, and one is thankful the other actors hold the film together. While the viewer may wonder what parts of the film are a dream and the true motives of the Mystery Man, the arresting visual style and great rock soundtrack (easily the best lineup of music in a Lynch film, ever), bring everything together in a film that no fan of Lynch or surreal cinema can afford to miss…
9/10