Sadly Over-hyped

Lack of good storyline.

Dreadfully Boring

There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.

This documentary is one aimed pretty firmly at fans of David Lynch. It isn't probably going to do too much for those who are ambivalent about the director. It was made during the making of Lost Highway and features a fair bit of behind the scenes material from that film. This is a little unusual for Lynch seeing as he is usually loath to elaborate on his movies or describe the making-of process. He once said that he would never tell what it was that was used to create the baby from Eraserhead as that would render it an effect and strip it of some of its potency, which sounds reasonable enough to me. But whatever the case, it is quite interesting to see the great man in action behind the cameras here and to see some of his working practices. We also witness an on-location reunion of the Eraserhead crew, where they reminisce about the shoot.As the title of the doc indicates, we also look at Lynch's other artistic endeavours, such as his paintings, photographs, models and furniture. It's very interesting to see this kind of stuff, and it really shows the wide range of Lynch's interests and skills. You really get to understand why his movies have a consistent look and feel, as his attention to detail is huge. The furniture he made for Lost Highway being a case in point. Similarly, his work with Angelo Badalamenti on the music is key. He has always had a specific ear for the scores in his movies and also the sound design generally. He really seems to immerse himself in this side of things it seems. Among all of this are interesting interviews with family members as well as people he has worked with on his movies. These provide an interesting view on the man.In fairness, this is not a faultless documentary in many ways. It often feels more like a DVD extra that a true standalone piece. There isn't really a narrative to it as such and we don't even cover all of Lynch's movies up to that point. It would have been better if it had more focus on this. It's also a bit messily constructed and similar points are covered more than once. For example we have two extended parts at the beginning and near the end where we see Lynch work on the soundtrack to Lost Highway. It would probably have been better to have had just the one, as they cover very similar ground. So don't expect a definitive documentary on the great man, as this isn't it. But it is a very worthwhile one for fans and it does have some interesting bits and pieces that will stick in the mind.

Spoilers herein.I'm always amazed at TeeVee productions about art and artists. It is, I contend, impossible for anything cinematic to exist on TeeVee; the technology is such that you have to focus on faces and work with simpler visual situations. The finances demand (for broadcast) that all be episodic and for all TeeVee that celebrity be the focus. There are more limitations -- I address them in other comments. But the point is that intelligent filmmakers, as artists, live through their art. The films themselves are what speaks, and often they are far more articulate than anything the filmmaker could say. But bolstered by the economics of TeeVee and the blockbuster mentality, many of us live in a celebrity society. So it seems to someone to make sense to have a TeeVee film about David Lynch.I've recently seen similar projects about Scorsese, Kurosawa, Welles, Eisenstein. They all move from ideas to gossip: here we have Mel Brooks tell us why he liked Lynch. Who cares? Here we have friends talk about dessicating birds and moving about. Does this illuminate?I admit that one such documentary about Julian Schnabel did shed some light on his vacuous approach to film by showing his paintings and what he said about them. And here we have a few of Lynch's painting's and a very few words about them, mostly fondly remembered anecdotes. A final insult is that the photographic and production values were horrendous.But, there is one thing on the DVD that saves the day. It seems that Lynch and Jack Fisk were buddies in their french fry days. Here we have Fisk reminiscing, and that was welcomed by this viewer. Fisk is an art director/production designer and is one of the most intelligent and effective in the business. Check out the very few films he has done. Some of those are the most visually arresting in history. Artists like this tend to get lost in the crowd, so it was nice at least seeing how he carries and expresses himself, even if the subject was Lynch.Ted's Evaluation -- 2 of 4: Has some interesting elements.

Using mostly interview and set footage culled from the production of Lost Highway, this documentary takes a look at Lynch so broad and unfocused that it will provide few revelations for the die-hard fan (like myself) who is obviously the target audience. Sure, it's moderately amusing to see Lynch and company (including the late Jack Nance) revisit the Eraserhead set years later, and neat to watch him work on his paintings (one containing the corpses of a rat and a bird, as well as a large slab of meat being devoured by ants), but the overall feel is of leftover footage cobbled together, which never inspires or disturbs anywhere near the degree achieved by his actual works.Why this has been released on DVD before Eraserhead and Lost Highway is a mystery to me. The book Lynch on Lynch covers everything this does and in much greater detail.

Comprised mostly of footage and interviews shot during the making of "Lost Highway," this excellent documentary provides a fascinating peek inside the world of the master filmmaker and his entourage of collaborators. Besides some amusing anecdotes from David himself, there's chats with his ex-wife Peggy, his children (including budding director Jennifer Lynch), his friend Jack Fisk, editor Mary Sweeney, producer Mel Brooks, writer Barry Gifford, actor Dean Stockwell, and "Eraserhead"/"Twin Peaks" almuni Jack Nance and Catherine Coulson. We also hear from the cast members of "Lost Highway," as well as learn the stories behind some of Lynch's characters (Bob, The Log Lady, Frank Booth, Mr. Eddy). Some of the more illuminating moments come when the focus shifts to his non-film projects, including some great footage of him working with composer Angelo Badalamenti and singer/violinist Jocelyn Montgomery (billed as Jocelyn West) on the unreleased track "And Still." His bizarre multimedia paintings are discussed, and there's a visit to a gallery show of his photography. He also created all of the furniture used in "Lost Highway." and we see a showcase of the odd tables and shelves he's made. The DVD edition outshines the shorter VHS version, with additional footage (with some Twin Peaks coverage) plus nice menu screens featuring clips from "Eraserhead,""Lost Highway," and his two early short films "The Grandmother" and "The Alphabet." All in all, any fan of the man's movies will want to check this one out. It's an interesting and inspiring portrait of a real American iconoclast.