I mostly did book and film reviews and I'm still proud of a couple of them. Let's take a look:
Lynch on Lynch - David Lynch Discusses Himself
Chris Rodley's collection of interviews with acclaimed director David Lynch is a fascinating peek inside the mind one of cinema's most important filmmakers.
There
is no filmmaker working today quite as distinctive as David Lynch. He has
created some of the strangest, scariest and most beautiful movies in modern
cinema, resulting in a legion of fans dedicated to understanding his work.
Analyzing Lynch is no small task, so the best idea is to let him do it himself.
Lynch on Lynch, edited by Chris Rodley, is a book-length interview with Lynch
that covers the filmmaker's entire career in a candid and sincere fashion.
Rodley
structures the book chronologically, following the path of Lynch’s filmography.
After two short introductions (one by Rodley for the book’s original printing,
another one for this revised edition), the book begins with a section covering
Lynch's childhood. From there each subsequent chapter revolves around a film
from his career. The book ends with an index listing Lynch's films, shorts, and
commercials, along with credits and technical information. Rodley's format for
each chapter is a short introduction, followed by a question and answer session
focusing on the chapter’s film. For example, the chapter on "Eraserhead" talks
about Lynch’s life prior to "Eraserhead," the film’s production, and ending with
its release and reaction. Lynch is very open and willing to talk about
everything regarding his life and films.
But
What Does It Mean?
Well,
almost everything. Lynch has always been cagey about deeply analyzing the
themes and meanings of his movies, and those looking for interpretations will
be very disappointed. Rodley offers some thoughts on the films, but his
attempts to probe Lynch into going beneath the films’ surfaces prove fruitless.
Lynch usually offers a small, “I don’t want to influence anyone’s opinion,”
response, but every once in a while he will completely clam up. When Rodley
asks Lynch how he created the hideous baby prop in "Eraserhead," Lynch
steadfastly refuses to answer. There’s nothing whimsical or funny about his
refusal, as he genuinely seems to believe that revealing how he created the
baby will ruin people’s belief in movie.
But
even this caginess is fascinating, and the lack of interpretation should not be
a problem for most people, as what Lynch does say is informative and
enlightening. Throughout the book Lynch reveals his thoughts on growing up,
philosophies on life and art, and copious amounts of production information. Lynch’s
interpretation of life is one of optimism and wonder, as he really does see the
world far differently than the rest of us. In fact, reading Lynch’s own beliefs
does in a roundabout way help readers better understand his movies. His belief
in the power of dreams in particular will undoubtedly assist readers in further
analyzing "Mulholland Drive" and "Eraserhead."
Lynch
Unfiltered
The
best section of the book is on "Twin Peaks," Lynch’s genre-defying and deeply
influential TV show. Reading Lynch’s thoughts on television and the production
process are fascinating, and the reader can feel his sadness as the show
evolves from a huge TV sensation to a hated feature-film adaptation. Indeed,
Lynch’s discussion of the "Twin Peaks" movie, "Fire Walk With Me," is some of the
best as he’s so forthright on what he tried to do on an emotional level. His
disappointment with the film’s negative reaction is heartbreaking.
Especially
amusing throughout the book is the back and forth between Rodley and Lynch.
Rodley tries his best to draw out as much possible information from Lynch, but
Lynch is a crafty one. He has fun dodging Rodley’s more probing queries into
the films’ meanings, and seems to delight in surprising Rodley with his real
thoughts and beliefs. Those expecting Lynch’s love of coffee, pie, and
Americana to be ironic posing will be surprised to see he’s completely sincere
in his appreciation. Mel Brooks describes Lynch in the book as “Jimmy Stewart
from Mars,” and a more apt comparison is hard to find.
A
book like this is hard to critique in some ways as it’s simply a collection of
interviews. Thankfully, Chris Rodley has made this critic’s job much easier by
producing a volume of fascinating insights from David Lynch. The sheer amount
of information revealed is astonishing, and Lynch’s beliefs on a whole range of
subjects are illuminating and helpful to any Lynch scholar. While David Lynch
may never reveal all of his secrets, this book is the best look into his mind
anyone could ever want. His world is both frightening and wonderful and no book
on him has done a better job examining it.
