it a foregone conclusion that attempt to make sense of a david lynch film doth not time well spent make . lynch be one of modern cinema great provocateur and a love him or hate him cinematic savant who manage to achieve with film what most only dare to attempt with paint or poetry . with this in mind and it should come a no surprise to learn that lynch late mind bender and inland empire and be a frighteningly surreal descent into paranoid perplexity that exhilarate every bit as much a it bewilder . inland empire ostensibly concern actress nikki grace ( the marvelous laura dern ) involvement with a career make new film project . but and lynch be lynch and this be never go to be that simple . we later learn the project be the remake of a cursed film that never wrap production a it two star be brutally murder . and here where narrative coherence take a fly leap and and we should ready ourselves for what to come . at first and lynch decision to shoot on cheap digital video seem to prove distracting and a if the comparative nastiness of the image quality will detract from our ability to invest in the story . but and a the film progress and it settle into a look all it own and and the grainy and hand hold camera work actually seem more real and immediate and draw u ever closer to the edge of our seat a the narrative twist and contorts . in inland empire and character cross over the threshold define the limit of reality and fiction and co exist with their other world counterpart in one fluctuate existential plane and change wholly and completely from one scene to another and lynch all the while serve up the kind of hallucinatory hell that cinema goer have come to demand of him . just a you think youre figure it out and lynch throw in a dance sequence set to the locomotion and cut to a sitcom comprise of giant rabbit people and or offer a glimpse at what appear to be footage straight from the original doomed film . a time perpetually fold back in on itself and the film visual motif begin to pile up and it become clear that this be lynch most daring and bizarre film yet . this be video art a feature film and with a serpentine narrative that defy comprehension drive u onward to oblivion with lynch at the wheel . it most obvious point of comparison be lynch own lose highway and mulholland drive and but even they seem like child play when compare to empire and which offer tantalise clue to unlock it mystery and with the audience forever ten stride behind . this be lynch down the rabbit hole and through the look glass and a psychotropic epic that remain fascinate throughout and despite it three hour duration and the intentionally confounding nature of it plot . if you appreciate lynch previous exercise in dream logic and nightmare vision and and can handle the extended running time and inland empire be essential view . it a terrifying and uncompromised journey to the depth of the subconscious and and one of the bold cinematic statement of the year . http represent or or celluloidtongue . blogspot . com .