Lost Highway

I just had to rewatch this masterpiece!  My last review of this I just briefly talked about some stand out moments of the film but this time I want to share my thoughts and interpretation on this film… something I haven’t done before! Because I’m autistic I want to split this into 7 sections slowly going through the story….  Let us begin: 1. The basic story of the film The film basically follows 2 identities of the film. Fred Madison (A jazz saxophonist married to Renee Madison) and Pete Dayton (A young mechanic) Fred is convicted of murdering his wife (Renee). While on death row he strangely transforms into Pete, who is later released because the police can not explain who he is and why he is there. Pete later begins a relationship with Alice Wakefield (who looks exactly like Renee) Eventually Pete’s life collapses, and turns back into Fred. Fred later kills a gangster named Mr. Eddy (Dick Laurent). Here you have a basic understanding of the film but like all Lynch films where is the fun if it is this easygoing!  **2. Key ideas  **First off Lynch said in an interview that the movie is about a person escaping reality through fantasy. “ You can say that a lot of Lost Highway is internal," says Lynch. "It's Fred's story. It's not a dream: It's realistic, though according to Fred's logic”Fred can’t face the fact that he murdered his wife, so he creates a new identity in his mind: - Fred = the real person  - Pete = the fantasy version of himself Pete is everything Fred wishes he was:   -younger  -sexually confident  -desired by women This is considered a fugue state what is something people go into to escape into a new identity to avoid trauma. (Thank you year 13 psychology)  3. What really happened 1. Fred suspects Renee is cheating. 2. His jealousy grows. 3. He murders her. 4. He is arrested and sentenced to death. 5. On death row, his mind creates the Pete Dayton fantasy to escape guilt. So basically everting in the Pete storyline is a distorted fantasy that is playing inside Fred’s mind. 4. Why does Alice look like Renee  Alice is Fred’s sexual fantasy of a version of Renee. Renee is distant, mysterious and possibly unfaithful in Fred’s mind while Alice is seductive, passionate and attracted to Pete.  But later on the fantasy eventually starts to break down… Alice tells Pete: “You’ll never have me.”This moment to me signals that Fred can’t escape the truth and the illusion falls apart.  5. THE MYSTERY MAN!!!! The Mystery Man is one of the strangest characters I’ve ever seen in a film.  I like to see him almost as a representation of Fred’s guilt or almost a supernatural manipulator… But he is such a strange character and is so hard to interpret!  6. The time loop ends…… At the very beginning of Lost Highway, Fred hears someone say: “Dick Laurent is dead.”And at the very end of the film Fred himself is the one who says this into the intercom. What makes the time loop close. The loop/highway represents Fred’s guilt, complete denial and unable to escape what he did!  7. Themes Lynch Is Exploring The film explores Identity, how people can reinvent themselves. Jealously, Fred’s paranoia destroys him. Sexual insecurity, Fred feels like he is lacking compared to other men. Memories versus reality, Fred literally rewrites his reality to avoid the truth!!!!  Fred: "I like to remember things my own way"> Cop: "What does that mean?"> Fred: "How i remember them, not necessarily how they happened"**FINALLY **In the end, Lost Highway isn’t a “normal” film it doesn’t give you a clear answer! And that is exactly why this film is so POWERFUL!!! David Friggin Lynch creates a powerful world where reality bds around emotions and guilt. Lynch never tells a straightforward story he makes us experience the chaos mind of someone who can’t face the truth!  1000/1000 Part of the Criterion Challenge 26