Lost Highway

Before I ever really knew who David Lynch was and before I ever really committed to exploring more films, I visited a vintage market where I stumbled upon the CD of this film's soundtrack and bought it because I thought the cover looked intriguing. Months later, Lynch is my favorite director and I am making my way to Barnes & Noble to purchase the Criterion of this film. Every time I take the time to sit down and watch one of Lynch's films feels like an event because I know for a FACT that I am about to watch something mind-blowing and Lynch is going to absolutely deliver with the atmosphere. This time was no different. Lost Highway is probably the most confusing film of Lynch's that I have seen yet (as if most of them aren't confusing). One aspect I love so much about his works is that he incorporates the dream realm a lot and really gets the audience to start thinking about whether or not a part of the film is set in reality or in dream. You can definitely see the similarities between Lost Highway and Mulholland Drive as both include an actress playing two separate characters but at least in Mulholland Drive, we get a clear moment where we can see the dream realm switch to reality. As usual, after most of Lynch's films, I directly headed to look for interviews of him describing the film to get a better understanding which is where I learned that it is based around "dissociative fugue" which is the state in which a person develops a new identity after suffering intense trauma. I won't go into detail about this aspect due to spoilers but I love that Lynch finds such complex ideas and turns them into these insane films with such shocking visuals. Robert Blake as the mystery man is another one of Lynch's amazing unsettling characters. The scene where he appears at the party has got to be one of his best. I can not explain the feeling I had when the music just suddenly faded out of the scene, but I could tell I was witnessing greatness. A complete contrast Robert Blakes creepy appearance in this film is Patricia Arquette. Holy shit she looked stunning every second she was on the screen. Now, back to the CD I bought. THIS SOUNDTRACK IS FUCKING AWESOME!!!! Having Trent Reznor help produce it gave it that sick industrial rock sound and it still also got an original score by Angelo Badalamenti. I am now one step closer to finishing Lynch's filmography and he has not missed yet. Another masterpiece.