Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2966 in DVD
• Released on: 2007-08-20
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, PAL
• Original language: English, Polish
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 172 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Though Inland Empire's three hours of befuddling abstraction could try the patience of the most devoted David Lynch fan, its aim to reinvigorate the Lynch-ian symbolic order is ambitious, not to mention visually arresting. The director's archetypes recognizable from previous movies once again construct the film's inherent logic, but with a new twist. Sets vibrate between the contemporary and a 1950s alternate universe crammed with dim lamps, long hallways, mysterious doors, sparsely furnished rooms and, this time, a vortex/apartment/sitcom set where rabbit-masked humans dwell, and a Polish town where women are abused and killed. Instead of speaking backwards, mystic soothsayers and criminals speak Polish. Filmed on video, the film's look has the sinister, frightening feel of a Mark Savage film or a bootlegged snuff movie. Constant close-ups, both in and out of focus, make Inland Empire feel as if a stalker covertly filmed it.

A straightforward, hokey plot unravels during the first third of Inland Empire to ground the viewer before a dive off the deep end. Actor Nikki Grace (Laura Dern) is cast as Susan Blue, an adulterous white trash Southerner, in a film that mimics too closely her actual life with an overbearingly jealous and dangerous husband. When Nikki and co-star Devon (Justin Theroux) learn that the cursed film project was earlier abandoned when its stars were murdered, the pair lose their grasp of reality. Nikki suffers a schizophrenic identity switch to Sue that lasts until nearly the film's end. Suspense builds as Nikki's alter ego sleuths her way through surreal situations to discover her killer, culminating in Sue's gnarly death on set. Sue's actions drag on because any sign of a narrative thread disappears due to idiosyncratic editing. Non-sensical scenes still captivate, however, such as when Sue stumbles onto the soundstage where she finds Nikki (herself) rehearsing for Sue's part. In this meta-film about identity slippage, Dern's multiple characters remind one of how a victim can become the hunter in their fight for survival. Lynch's portrayal of Nikki/Sue's increasing paranoia is, in its own confusion, utterly realistic. Laura Dern has created her own Lady Macbeth, undone by her guilt over infidelity. Even though Inland Empire is too long and too random, Laura Dern's performance coupled with Lynch's video experiments make it magical. --Trinie Dalton

Synopsis
With INLAND EMPIRE, David Lynch--creator of such mind-bending works as ERASERHEAD and LOST HIGHWAY--delivers his most avant-garde, abstract, and impenetrable vision yet. A three-hour fever nightmare of a film, INLAND EMPIRE takes the basic structure of Lynch's 2001 masterpiece, MULHOLLAND DRIVE, and spins it even further out of control. A blonde actress (Laura Dern) is preparing for her biggest role yet, but when she finds herself falling for her co-star (Justin Theroux), she realizes that her life is beginning to mimic the fictional film that they're shooting. Adding to her confusion is the revelation that the current film is a remake of a doomed Polish production, 47, which was never finished due to an unspeakable tragedy. And that's the only the beginning. Soon, a seemingly endless onslaught of indescribably bizarre situations flash across the screen: a sitcom featuring humans in bunny suits, a parallel story set in a wintry Poland, a houseful of dancing hookers, screwdrivers in stomachs and much, much more. By the time the film's electrifying closing-credit sequence arrives, even diehard Lynch fans will be gasping for air. Laura Dern's multi-fractured performance is downright heroic. She gives the film the human grounding that it so desperately needs. Not for the fragile or timid, INLAND EMPIRE is a full-blown assault to the senses.

Customer Reviews

Probably not a film for everyone
I have a few problems with this film, but they are minor when compared with the good points about INLAND EMPIRE. The acting is flawless throughout - particularly from Laura Dern, without whom this film probably wouldn't hold up so well. It is shot beautifully, and Lynch's eye for strange and captivating images is reason enough to watch. And it is has people in rabbit suits. And any film with people in rabbit suits in a sit-com buys you time with me. And now for the problems... It's 3 hours long, and even going by how great this film his, it's still too long, and could have done with some cutting here and there, mainly in the middle section. It's also quite dark in places - not really making it atmospheric, but making it annoying you can't see what's going on. Apart from this, I think INLAND EMPIRE is very good, if a little draining to watch. I'm sure it does make sense if you think about it enough, but I'm happy to have just watched and enjoyed it for what it is.

Unique, not universal
I loved this film when I caught it at the cinema, and appreciated it more when watching on DVD. The reviewers who understandably didn't like it can hopefully respect that David Lynch is still doing his own thing though - unable to get funding in the US, his films are funded by French backers who allow him to do his own thing. Yep, I can see why people think Lynch is just indulging himself and being wilfully mysterious / incomprehensible, but I think Inland Empire is his best looking film yet and an incredible piece of work.

For those who bother to stay til the end, the final scene - various young starlets dancing away to 'Sinnerman' - easily stands comparison with the jazzed up music vids of today, while Laura Dern gives the best performance ever seen in a Lynch film (yes, better than John Hurt, Naomi Watts etc etc). I certainly didn't see a better female performance in 2007.

For what it's worth, I took the film to be a critique on Hollywood's attitude to actresses of a certain age - around Laura Dern's age actually. Lynch seems to be highly critical of the lack of quality roles available to the plus 40 actress, of the emphasis on vacuous lookers, of the pressure put on them by agents and producers etc.

But that's just what I thought. Clearly I'd recommend the film to anyone, but I suspect a flick over the reviews here would let you know if you'd like it or not.

boring boring boring
this is the first Lynch film I had to give up watching after a very painful hour. It feels like a bad nightmare and coming from a pretentious would-be- nouvelle vague director, with too much money on his budget and 50 years later. Fake and unsubstantial, perhaps it is time to retire!Don't bother