Whatever may be said about David Lynch, there is no denying the fact that his films are an experience which can never be forgotten. And so it goes with Inland Empire, Lynch’s most ambitious and thought provoking film since his 1977 debut Eraserhead. 

Laura Dern stars as Nikki, an actress who takes on a comeback role in an adulterous love story, which co-stars known womanizer Devon (Justin Theroux) and is directed by Kingsley (Jeremy Irons). When the cast are informed that the film is actually a remake of a Polish film - which was believed to be cursed and then abandoned after its two leads were murdered – Nikki begins a decent into madness as reality and fiction merge.

An off kilter film which is as twisted and illogical as the most vivid of nightmares, Inland Empire contains a somewhat irritating loose structure which transcends space and time, delusion and reality, as the viewer delves deeper into worlds within worlds.   

Continuing with the supernatural tone and ambiguous themes found in 2001’s Mulholland Dr. (Portals into another world, commentary on the entertainment industry, lead actress playing multiple roles, etc.) the film also looks at adultery and the consequences of ill advised actions, while confusing its viewers by switching back and forth from the hills of Hollywood, to the suburbs of California, and to the snow covered streets of Poland.       

Shot over several years on hand held digital video camera (Lynch has sworn he will no longer use film when shooting his movies), Inland Empire was not supposed to be a feature film but a series of short films. Yet he noticed a common theme developing and it then morphed into a feature. Lynch also inserted his short film Rabbits -which consists of a family of rabbit people (played by Naomi Watts, Laura Harring and Scott Coffey) set in a sitcom format – for no apparent reason then to confuse his audience even more.  

There was no completed screenplay before shooting began, with Lynch writing new scenes everyday for his actors (both Laura Dern and Justin Theroux have stated before the films release that they had no idea what the film was about).

With such unorthodox film making – even by Lynch’s standards – the final product is much more open to interpretation compared to anything he has done in a long time. This makes Mulholland Dr. feel like a run of the mill TV movie. The trick is to connect the dots Lynch has placed on the screen. The problem is that not only are a lot of the dots hidden in far away, deep places, but some of them are damn near invisible! 

The film contains great performances by Grace Zabriskie’s as a tooth-saying, bug eyed neighbour, and by Harry Dean Stanton as hustler producer Freddie Howard.

Yet this is Laura Dern’s movie all the way, with Lynch taking her to places that most actresses would fear to tread. It was a welcome feeling to know that no matter what tangent Lynch would go off on, that Dern would be there for the ride, her performance almost like a life preserver keeping the viewer afloat amongst the stormy seas of Lynch’s madness.   

Inland Empire should not be labelled as “brilliant” or a “work of genius”. It is way too pretentious, too long, and too confusing for that type of praise. But it is definitely an original and unique watch, recommended for the hardcore Lynch fan than the more moderate type.