David Lynch "may never make another film" due to the profit business.

[Axel]

To me, independant cinema doesn't mean films that compete with the latest blockbusters (as the popcorn selling spectacles are inapprpriately called). Or that they are shown in cinemas at all.

I doubt, however, that the internet is a good forum for anything that strifes to be a cinematic experience. For tablets and smartphones because they are too small, and principally because our patience has been ruined by the possibilty to skip and switch. If anything, cinema is synonymous with 'larger than life' and something that demands exclusive attention.

[Andrew Reid]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKiIroiCvZ0

 

"Playing the movie on a telephone" :)

 

It's the viewer's experience that suffers with the internet rather than so much the filmmaker's chances of getting it seen.

[andy lee]

yep he doesn't like telephones! - but the world is moving on and this is now becoming the way people are watching films on the move

I have started to do this myself just his past few months alot!!

Netflix is a useful resource to tap into!! I use it alot to look at films for ideas

[mtheory]

Most people in their 20's and 30's who grew up with computers/internet in 90s simply don't share his distaste for watching movies on pc/laptops/tablet/phone. If it's streamed/downloaded properly and you got your headphones and you're watching it without interruption, it's just about as immersive as cinema. Personally, the only times the phones take me out of the cinema experience is when they ring..IN THE CINEMA.

[Bioskop.Inc]

I think what Lynch is really highlighting is the fact that the impact of the viewing experience will be different & so, in some cases, will undermine the original vision of the filmmaker (who probably was thinking about what his film would look like on a big screen). But, times change & if you're happy watching a film on a tiny screen then that's fine.

 

On another point, i've read an increasing amount of articles that have pointed out that TV is the new ground for innovative story telling & ironically Lynch's name always pops up in relation to how Twin Peaks changed everything.

Another trend that is an interesting concept is the live streaming of an event at the cinema, be it a play, a concert etc...

What this quite clearly demonstrates is that cinemas are starting to see that they do have to offer something different, because some people aren't necessarily going on mass anymore - the people with the real money i.e. not the 16-25yr olds that Hollywood has always been after/pandered to.

However, i really see the rise of the small indie cinemas as being crucial to tapping back into a grouping that isn't being pandered too - the only problem is convincing them that its worth going back to the cinema...

[Axel]

Most people in their 20's and 30's who grew up with computers/internet in 90s simply don't shares his distaste for watching movies on pc/laptops/tablet/phone. If it's streamed/downloaded properly and you got your headphones and you're watching it without interruption, it's just about as immersive as cinema. Personally, the only times the phones take me out of the cinema experience is when they ring..IN THE CINEMA.

 

It's not a matter of getting used to a habit or of overcoming a distaste. There have been studies in the 90ies about the correlation of the film image's size (relative to the viewer's field of vision) and how many details of the plot could be reported afterwards. There is a clear proof that size matters, and the advantages lie in the two-digit percent-range. Is this so hard to imagine? What about Blue Velvet, with all it's very dark scenes? What about Lawrence of Arabia, with it's grand panoramas? What about 2001, with it's dominating blackness that represents immeasurable distances and works as a wormhole for our 'doors of perception'? But even an easy-to-digest movie like Transformers will never have the same impact on a phone, retina display or not.

 

If small screens were the future, why then discussions about 4k? You can do without higher resolution (see Lynch's Inland Empire), but for a cinematic experience you must blow it up!

 

Today, giant tv sets and high quality beamers have made home cinema installations easy and affordable. With the right attitude (isolation of your screening room from the rest of the mundane world, dimming the lights, raising the volume, becoming unavailable for calls or other messages), you needn't go to the cinema, only if you want to see a new film.

 

What is more, people in their 20's suffer from a form of deprivation, for which their smartphones are as well the cause and a kind if remedy. I am in several facebook and whatsapp groups (I have to, if I want to keep in touch with people of that age). I assure you, it's not just a silly game like when we used to send us silly or obscene letters under the desks. It's stultifying. The road to disaster.

 

However, as the very interesting 'Lincoln'-thread suggests, cinema is experiencing a crisis. Maybe two hours are either too long to transport an audiovisual idea or way too short. Films should either run 3 minutes or develop interactively as a television/internet series with open end. If the form can change - the size, the length, the narrational structures, what have you - the content will allow for new ventures as well. An example: Erdogan might learn from a short clip that he no longer represents his people and is disempowered effectively, making the future development a mere formality. 'Film' could become an instrument of communication in the best sense. 

[Chrad]

On another point, i've read an increasing amount of articles that have pointed out that TV is the new ground for innovative story telling & ironically Lynch's name always pops up in relation to how Twin Peaks changed everything.

I suspect Lynch turned his back on TV after his Mulholland Drive pilot was never picked up and he had to take funding from the French and turn it into a feature in order to get it seen.

American TV is not a good medium for auteurs like Lynch who want total creative control. Perhaps it will be in 5 years, but not yet.

[andy lee]

can you imagine kids today sitting through 'Lawrence Of Arabia' or 'Dr Zhivargo'..... 3 hrs long....

 

two of my favourite all time films ever,  David Lean and Freddie Young at their best ..

long takes ,stunning cinematography , no MTV quick edits , no CGI explosions and a story with a plot and grown up dialogue......etc etc

 

Films are now made for a gerenation with ADHD and 40 minute attention spans and sound bite one liner scripts.

 

So roll on the Indie arthouse digital revolutuion , if it makes more new directors make intersting films then thats a good thing in my book!!

[eoslover]

First of all, I must say I am a big fan of Lynch's films

 

However, Hollywood producers are really really tired of David Lynch this type of arrogant directors.

In fact, there are a lot of reasons to dislike him, he's arrogant, non-marketable with freaky personality. What's worse, his projects flopped way too often.

 

If you are so full of yourself and think your movies are greater than most hollywood directors. Just take your shots at those blockbuster scripts and make a fortune of yourself first. 

 

Do you actually think Christopher Nolan likes to direct Batmans that much instead of working for his own written pieces? 

The reality is, you need money to run your art forms, sir.

 

"In this world, you gotta make the money first

when you got the money, you got the power 

then when you got the power, you got whatever films made"

[HurtinMinorKey]

Do you actually think Christopher Nolan likes to direct Batmans that much instead of working for his own written pieces? 

The reality is, you need money to run your art forms, sir.

 

 

I totally agree.  The truth is, making high quality, avante-garde stuff has never been cheaper. Lynch just wants to make a bunch of money off vanity projects. That's not how the world works now or in the past.  There is nothing stopping him from making great movies, other than he is getting lazy, and doesn't want to work for it.

 

As an aside, he'll be directing the new Nine Inch Nails video that should appear before the end of the week. Looks like he shot it with a 5D3.

https://twitter.com/nineinchnails/status/349701143867305984/photo/1

[JohnBarlow]

If you are so full of yourself and think your movies are greater than most hollywood directors. Just take your shots at those blockbuster scripts and make a fortune of yourself first. 

 

 

To be fair Lynchie has already done that and got his ass kicked.

 

I refer of course to Dune. A magnificent movie until the money ran out.

 

The first ten minutes blew me away and still does every time I watch it.

 

"I am not here, I didnt say this"

[Bioskop.Inc]

In a recent interview (one of the sat/sun papers) he actually said that he hasn't made a film for a while because he hasn't come up with an idea that he likes - no real mention of cash problems.

In return, he's had a photography exhibition (he was a photographer first), does Painting & has an Album of music coming out soon (not his first - if you never heard his collaboration with Sparklehorse, then its a must).

He also does music videos (NIN etc...), did a live Duran Duran concert (yep that's for the cash!) & numerous TV ads - the latest being for Chanel.

 

He'll do something again, i've no doubt about it...& it will be amazing as always!

[jgharding]

To be fair Lynchie has already done that and got his ass kicked.

 

I refer of course to Dune. A magnificent movie until the money ran out.

 

The first ten minutes blew me away and still does every time I watch it.

 

"I am not here, I didnt say this"

 

I was watching this yesterday. Just insanely ambitious, if you haven't read the book it makes no sense! Everything is voice over...

 

It looks beautiful though...

 

Amazing art direction sets and costumes. Beautiful colours

[JohnBarlow]

Of course it set the scenes for later Star Wars and Chronicles of Riddick rip offs, just that Dino should have thrown more money.

 

The first part of the movie is pure class

 

Princess Irulan: A beginning is a very delicate time. Know then, that is is the year 10191. The known universe is ruled by the Padishah Emperor Shaddam the Fourth, my father. In this time, the most precious substance in the universe is the spice Melange. The spice extends life. The spice expands consciousness. A product of the Spive, the red Sapho juice, stains the lips of the Mentats but allows them to be human computers, as thinking machines have been outlawed. The spice is vital to space travel. The Spacing Guild and its navigators, who the spice has mutated over 4000 years, use the orange spice gas, which gives them the ability to fold space. That is, travel to any part of the universe without moving. Because the Guild controls all interplanetary travel, they are the highest power in the Universe. The Spice also plays a very secret role in the Bene Gesserit sisterhood, of which I am a part. The sisterhood has been interfering with the marriages, and the children thereof, of the great Houses of the Universe, cleverly intermixing one bloodline with another to form the Kwisatz Haderach, a super being. They plan to control this super being and use his powers for their own selfish purposes. The breeding plan has been carried out in a strict manner for 90 generations. The goal of the super being is in sight. But now, so close to the prize, a Bene Gesserit woman, Jessica, the bound concubine of Duke Leto Atreides, who has been ordered to bear only daughters, has given birth to a son. Oh, yes. I forgot to tell you. The spice exists on only one planet in the entire universe. A desolate, dry planet with vast deserts. Hidden away within the rocks of these deserts are a people known as the Fremen, who have long held a prophecy that a man would come, a messiah, who would lead them to true freedom. The planet is Arrakis, also known as Dune.

[Chrad]

In fact, there are a lot of reasons to dislike him, he's arrogant, non-marketable with freaky personality.

 

 

First of all, I must say I am a big fan of Lynch's films

You sure?

 

You can direct Spider-Man movies all your life, but Hollywood will never, ever fund your movies if they are as boundary-pushing as Lynch's later work.

 

Disgusting post. You were basically saying that one of the greatest directors of all time and one of the true American film artists should compromise his principals and waste his time with culture kiilling garbage.

[eoslover]

 

You sure?

 

You can direct Spider-Man movies all your life, but Hollywood will never, ever fund your movies if they are as boundary-pushing as Lynch's later work.

 

Disgusting post. You were basically saying that one of the greatest directors of all time and one of the true American film artists should compromise his principals and waste his time with culture kiilling garbage.

 

 

So, are The Dark Knight trilogy and Pixar films absolute garbage?

 

There are a lot of reasons for mainstream films to dominate the market. It's not only about marketing tbh, the genre, the theme and also happy endings make audience feel good about watching them.

 

Working for disney/comics/heroes projects generally break-even most of the time, if not a very high ROI. Lynch should at least have some sense about money and business.

[Chrad]

So, are The Dark Knight trilogy and Pixar films absolute garbage?

 

There are a lot of reasons for mainstream films to dominate the market. It's not only about marketing tbh, the genre, the theme and also happy endings make audience feel good about watching them.

 

Working for disney/comics/heroes projects generally break-even most of the time, if not a very high ROI. Lynch should at least have some sense about money and business.

Lynch has plenty of sense about money and business, he just doesn't care. He's fully aware that the nature of his work limits his audience, and he's okay with that. He just wants to create the things that he truly wants to create.

 

Your entire notion that Lynch could get whatever he wanted made by playing to the system is absurd given that Spielberg almost couldn't get Lincoln made as a theatrical film. Spielberg, who has changed the shape of Hollywood, and given it many of its biggest ever hits. Lincoln. Lynch's work is a million times less palatable to a mass audience, and a million times less likely to get major Hollywood funding.

 

All Lynch would have accomplished with your scenario was waste years of his life pumping out work he's not passionate about. Instead, he's given us beautiful and unique work. Blue Velvet, Lost Highway, The Straight Story, Mulholland Drive, Inland Empire...

 

The world is a better place because there are still romantic types like Lynch out there who are willing to go down with the ship for their art, and not just hacks ready to compromise themselves to get a better foothold in the cutthroat world of financing.

[HurtinMinorKey]

 

The world is a better place because there are still romantic types like Lynch out there who are willing to go down with the ship for their art, and not just hacks ready to compromise themselves to get a better foothold in the cutthroat world of financing.

Go down with the ship? Let not romanticize him too much. It's not like he is going broke by financing his own visions.  At this point he's just a lazy rich guy who wants other people to finance his vanity projects.

 

And Lost Highway was an absolute abortion of a movie...

[Chrad]

I think the reality is that Lynch doesn't have a good enough idea for a film right now and wanted to go on a tangent rant about what he thinks of the film industry. He has done the self-financing thing and he could do it again, and he was working on a screenplay recently, but it seemingly just hasn't grabbed him. He'd rather make music right now. Fair enough.

[jebbyderinger]

It's been a while since I've seen a movie MADE for the big screen. When I finally got around to watching the original Planet of the Apes a decade ago I was impressed by the first few scenes. Seeing them as little dots walking through the desert made me realize how little used wide shots are today. Of course Lawrence of Arabia also has scenes like that and it too is one of my favourite movies ever made. I can understand the younger generation not appreciating slow pacing, it took me until my 20s to appreciate Blade Runner but having movies as one giant explosion is a bit too far in the opposite direction.

 

I like David Lynch, even his failures are interesting and engage the viewer. He's still creating art even if you can't classify it as a good film. Dune was amazing as a child, I still have a soft spot for it despite the flaws. It wasn't just the lack of money but also the editing that killed some of the original vision. He most definitely could still be making films but I think like a lot of directors of the era (Spielberg included) if it's not on the big screen it's a bit below them. I know if I were Spielberg I'd be pretty pissed if I had to change my delivery method while terrible directors were getting produced.