A documentary covering the early years of David Lynch, from his childhood to the making of Eraserhead, as well as his artwork, past and present.
My cinematic holy trinity consists of Luis Buñuel, David Lynch, and Akira Kurosawa, in that order. Besides his amazing films, Lynch is also the co-creator of Twin Peaks, in this reviewer's opinion the greatest television series of all time, in either incarnation. Lynch's films are bizarre and show the dark underbelly of everyday life. Having seen much of it in this film, I can testify that so is his artwork. The man is a true Artist, no matter what his medium, and learning more about his life and his craft was a valuable experience for me. There are plenty of interesting factoids - did you know Lynch was once the roommate of future J. Geils Band lead vocalist Peter Wolf? Lynch himself narrates, both onscreen and in voiceover, in that distinctive voice we fans know so well. Clips are shown from his (awesome) early short films, such as The Grandmother and The Alphabet. Lynch is shown in the present day at work on his art, sometimes with the help of his toddler daughter Lula. Having seen this following Twin Peaks: The Return (which I adored, haters be damned), some of Lynch's drawings from his own life have been revealed to me. His mentor in art, Bushnell Keeler, is surely the source of Dougie Jones' boss Bushnell Mullins' first name. A drawing by Lynch of a man with black smoke where his head must be clearly presages the portrayal of Tulpas in The Return. Lynch's childhood as described by himself was much like his films: mundane suburbia with something darker and more surreal under the surface. Judging by the pictures we see, the elder Lynch was a dead ringer for the adult David, albeit with somewhat less unique a hairstyle. If I have one complaint about this film, it's that I would've been interested in hearing some of the folks Lynch knew in those early days' take on them and the auteur himself. However, as a fan, I nevertheless learned a lot about one of my creative heroes and his non-film work, and fans of the arts in general and Lynch in particular should check it out. Besides being available for Streaming on Amazon Prime, it's also for sale from the fine folks at the Criterion Collection. So quit worryin' and start scurryin' (to quote Shelly Johnson) to check it out!
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