Inland Empire
Director: David Lynch
Rated: TBA
Now Screening


'Inland Empire' is David Lynch's latest offering to the world's arto-masochistic film-watchers, and proves a valuable and original addition to his rich canon. The plot ostensibly concerns the production of a new film called 'On High In Blue Tomorrows', a drama involving a love affair, with the lovers played by rising Hollywood stars Nikki Grace (Laura Dern) and Devon Berk (Justin Theroux). They are soon informed by director Kingsley Stewart (Jeremy Irons) that their film is not an original like they thought, but a remake of an old, failed Polish production in which the two leads were murdered, apparently a symptom of that film having been 'cursed'.

This revelation, and its possible implications for the present production, initiates Nikki's descent into scene after scene of seemingly unconnected activity and conversation, name and personality changes in characters, and schizophrenically shifting moods, in a fashion typical of Lynch's post-90s work. As to what is actually going on, it may be that the original curse is literally derailing the lives of the production and those involved, and we are simply observing the carnage, or alternately the playing out of the story in the new production has triggered the re-emergence of lapsed memory in Nikki, and we are witnessing it's fragmented return. Themes of desire and guilt remain constant in all this, continuing Lynch's convention of dual theming.

In any case, the literal goings-on of the plot are less interesting than other factors, particularly Lynch's evocation and use of physical space in regards to the scene progression. Though the sequencing, as abovementioned, appears random at first, the scenes overlap and actually appear to connect causally after a while, that is, each seems to invoke or spawn the next. This effect is achieved through Lynch's trademark evocation of interior space and atmosphere (almost all the story takes place indoors). Going further than usual, he imparts a sort of controlling consciousness on these spaces - they continually dictate what scene and space Nikki will have to move into next, and hence control the progression of scenes, and they even control her (and others') actions and fates within scenes. The interior physical spaces - the walls and the air within - are the film's real subjects or characters, and Nikki and the others are simply objects whose fortunes are contingent upon these creepy and nasty oppressors' dictation.

Lynch is undoubtedly among the world's best working filmmakers. But with this spatial effect especially, 'Inland Empire' proves he is genuinely moving forward with his style, in contrast most other auteurs of his stature. As such it's essential viewing for his fans and those interested film technique generally, as well as anyone just looking to be thoroughly creeped-out.

William McGinley