Inland Empire

David Lynch’s movies bear the same creative signature, but each and every one of them is different. With the exception of Inland Empire. This film is just a collage of already seen “Lynchian” things and some tricks to make the story more tangled, escalate it and bring it to a close. It’s basically a longer, club version of Mulholland Drive without beautiful actresses, spicy erotic scenes, a reasonable length and compelling visuals, which are replaced here with abhorrent digital graininess. Inland Empire is a deluge of half-baked material that would look better on a DVD together with a collection of the director’s eccentric shorts. Or am I just too spoiled by his other movies? (04.09.2007)

Lynch's surrealist games appeal to me, and in the case of Mulholland Drive or Lost Highway, I did not hesitate to give those films the highest rating. But this time David unpleasantly surprised me. A film should entertain, make you laugh, cry, or provoke, but it should never bore, and no director has given me such a full plate of boredom for a long time. Lynch's traditional puzzles and games completely got out of hand this time, resulting in something unwatchable with an unnecessarily extended runtime. Inland Empire is one of those films that are remarkable primarily for their ratings and comments. The vast majority of reviewers complain about the film, only to then give it at least three stars. Perhaps it's also about conformism... If it wasn't a cult director, but someone unknown and starting out, the film's rating might have hit rock bottom. Overall impression: 20% for the cast and a few, but really only a few, scenes where you can clearly feel the director's touch from better times. (20.09.2010)

And here I thought David Lynch couldn't surprise me with anything anymore. I've long kept Inland Empire as the last of his films I had to watch, and waiting for the opportunity to see it on the big screen was definitely worth it. Even though someone kept leaving the theater and the constant opening of doors was a bit distracting, I had a literally transcendent experience. I can't recommend it to anyone, but with the right frame of mind you really are in for a "full David Lynch experience". (04.08.2024)

Watching David Lynch films in sequence is hell. When I watched Inland Empire again after some time and saw the image from that ugly digital camera, I thought that I just didn’t understand what is so admired about this film. Is it the atmosphere? It’s great, but his previous films are much better. The acting? That is essentially expected. The lack of plot and its fragmentation into scenes that seemingly and eventually really have no connection? Oh, come on, it's Lynch's trademark. What about turning inward? In that case, the title is almost self-explanatory. Unfortunately, it seems to me that Lynch, intoxicated by his ego and his unique worldview, created something that no longer makes sense to understand. I love his movies, but not the ones he made in the new millennium. What I appreciate about the film is the manipulation of sound, which is simply fantastic, but that's a hallmark of every Lynch film. (24.03.2014)

The film certainly cannot be denied having an atmosphere of apprehension and fear of what is to come. That is the hallmark of almost all David Lynch films. Musically, as usual, there is nothing to fault and Laura Dern's performance is great. It's just that the story is so hard to grasp that I get absolutely lost in it and I don't know if I want to wade through it again to get more into the essence of the idea the director wanted to convey. Even though the ending intrigued me, who knows, maybe sometime in the future, under a more suitable alignment of stars, I'll be able to better understand what has remained forbidden to me so far. (26.07.2020)