Comments on David Lynch's Magical Ocean

Thanks for the report Sean, Emeritus. I cannot wait to see this movie.

Here comes the ocean
And the waves down by the shore
Here comes the ocean
And the waves down by the sea
Earth is a hollow hair bought of a bigger head
It nearly drives me crazy
I am a lazy son
I never get things down
...(unknown)

What I found freaky about the Q&A was how the audience would applaud every answer he gave. That's bad enough, and true to Seattle's slutty audience tradition. But what was really freaky was how the volume and enthusiasm of the applause varied depending on the question. It was like the crowd was judging how good a question it was, a collective thumbs-up or thumbs-down, like some bastardized version of American Idol.

Oh, and Michael Atkinson is incorrect on a minor technical note: the Sony PD150 is not an HD camera. It's just a good old miniDV camcorder. The fact that it looked so good blown up is a tribute to whatever lab did the conversion.

i am a lazy son/i never get things done/it's known to drive men crazy

maybe? i can't remember. that's still the best song ever.

It was like the crowd was judging how good a question it was

What's so weird about that? The worst part about a Q&A is having to endure dunderheaded questions like "Will you sign my DVD?" or gushing praise. What a waste of time for both the audience and the speaker.

There were some truly beautiful chunks and scary-as-hell bits. But there is always a balance with every surreal endeavor, of length and pattern. A shorter work can have a less recognizable patter and a longer one needs a bit more or it becomes dull. This was certainly 1.5 hours to long.
When the thing is pushing 3 hours it’s just cruel to have three false endings.
I skipped the q&a because it would of ruined the 1.5 hours that I did enjoy.

Artists enjoying having their work praised and appreciated by others -- even by "nerdlings." And Lynch's response of "bless your heart" was sincere and not eye-rolling at all.

I thought the Q and A last night was great. Just the right mix of fandom "color" and serious inquiries.

People need to get over their too-cool attitude and judgemental stance and relax and then go and make some art themselves. Oh, right, they can't -- they're too busy putting down other people.

Dude, read it again.

I guess Lynch hung out at Dahlia Lounge right after? I was walking by on 4th and he was outside smoking with a bunch of folks

the film was a piece of crap. i cannot stand the people who like someone just to say they do. the movie was horrible. the Q @ A was painful. lynch's time was over with "blue velvet" folks. realize it.

At the moment, I still like Mulholland Dr. better, but that may have a lot to do with the fact that I'm still formulating theories about Inland Empire's meaning. One thing is for certain, however: Laura Dern is AMAZING.

gesamkunstwerk? Sean, you need to work on your German. You forgot the t in Gesamtkunstwerk.

I didn't mean your slog entry Sean, I was addressing previous comment posters.

And btw I'm loving your new art. My copy of your 33 1/3 homage to Court and Spark arrived yesterday and it's fabulous. Thank you for taking a straight ahead approach to exploring the album and not going all stream-of-consciousness on our asses. It's a beaut.

Sean, I don't know how you managed to post that slog already. I am still totally speechless over the film. Shocked and awed, but in no way disappointed. Looking forward to seeing it again. And again.

The Q part of the Q&A was cringe-inducing, as expected. Lynch's responses were sincere and generous.

I like that you quoted the guy who said Lynch would go down as "one of the greatest living film makers of all time". Good on ya!

We were sitting in the third row and it felt like Matrix Reloaded at IMAX, with lots of huge faces with huge pores and icky wrinkles around the mouths (at least Lawrence Fishburn wasn't in it).

Did you notice the window behind the screen showing through to the projected image? There are so many dark shadowy sequences in the film, and that window pane kept showing through from behind the Cinerama's screen. I don't get it. Why can't they at least nail a piece of plywood over that window? Never noticed it before.

oh, man. good call on the missing "t." mein bad.

I liked David Lynch’s response to the women who asked what the film is about, he said something like: It tells you on the movie poster. The movie poster has one caption: “A Woman in Trouble”. That’s perfect.

Crazy, not freaky. Since when have I used the word "freaky"? Thanks for the post, though. Delectable.

You often use it on the dance floor, or so the whisper goes.

The movie was great but 3 hours is too long to endure. Mostly because the seats at the Cinerama are crap, especially the ones near the ends of the isles. Maybe if I had the physique of Paul Allen they would be comfortable.

Thanks for the write-up. I've been collecting reviews and theories about the film here: http://worldfilm.about.com/od/inlandempire/INLAND_EMPIRE.htm

The film was brilliant (all 3 hours of it) but I agree that some of the questions that followed...and the applause that followed them...were unfortunate wastes of time. I can't help but wonder if it's really worth making a complete ass of yourself in front of 800 strangers (and the man you greatly admire) just to get a fucking autograph. Was that you "David K?"

BTW Sean...the Paul Rucker link takes me nowhere. His performance was a first for me but it certainly won't be the last.

I fixed the Paul Rucker link. Thanks for the heads up.

Sean, I would have to agree that David Lynch has the coolest hair ever. Amazing hair. I got a close up look at it at Scarecrow, and it's truly a work of art.

Inland Empire was incredible, and I was blown away by Laura Dern. David Lynch was right when he said she can play anything. She can be glamorous, super trashy, totally everyday normal...and screaming flipping her lid fucking psycho. Fun to watch.

I gotta honestly say that though I loved the movie, I thought the digital transfer was hard on eyes, like my glasses had the wrong prescription or something.....but interesting nonetheless.

The Q and A was pretty uncomfortable agreed.