Pretty as a Picture: The Art of David Lynch (1997)

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Absolutely the worst movie.

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

Toby Keeler, with his unlimited access to David Lynch- behind the scenes during his films, with friends and family and collaborators, and in his painting process- has a documentary that's essential to get at least a glimpse into a man and his work like this. Lynch's films are abstractions, nightmarish landscapes and what is just around the corner in the seemingly brightest sides of small-town American life, and his art is a reflection not just of his own interpretations of people and places that are usually conventional, but that this interpretation springs out so many ideas that would not be there otherwise without the specific framework he's chosen. One of the most fascinating examples of this method of Lynch's in being a true master of mood is with Eraserhead; he worked five years on the film, and Keeler shows us Lynch and old friends walking around where the original sets were, and with this revealing how after two years of painstakingly filming a movie (a shot a night, nevermind a scene, depending on the lighting), a rhythm developed that was unmistakable. If one of the primary goals of an artist is to transport people to another place that is unconventional, but still grounded in recognizable emotional connections, Lynch is such an artist, as revealed here fully.Of course, as collaborator Barry Gifford explains at one point, Lynch is very complex. On the outside he's an "all-American" type of guy, affable, well-mannered, coffee drinking and cigarette smoking, into building lots of things aside from his methods of making painting (what could be considered two sides to a coin of enjoying making 'things', we see Lynch using bugs to actually assist in making a painting, and Lynch himself creating many of the furniture pieces used in Lost Highway). But beneath this exterior image is someone who is so in touch with the dark side of human nature that it almost has to come out in the way it does in his films. From looking at clips shown in Pretty as a Picture, be they clips from his early short films like the Grandmother or the Alphabet, or even just little scenes from Lost Highway, one might think that Lynch is loony as a tune (that's how I thought of him early on, just on perceptions from Eraserhead and Blue Velvet). It's something of an assuring, if a little over-stated in adulation, to hear that he's consummate as an artist and professional director, with the one surprisingly the most saying this is the producer of Lost Highway.For fans, to be sure, there's lots to soak in here, like seeing the little details in the process of scoring the film with Badalamenti (each note carefully considered), or in hearing the Frank DaSilva story regarding his appearance in the Twin Peaks pilot (or, speaking of TP, the soap in the coffee filter story). Seeing him in action filming is fascinating in that, in a way, there's nothing much out of the ordinary how he works, and if anything he almost seems passive, however always in control of every detail (i.e. the death-row set). But Keeler also is wise to make this documentary appealing to people who aren't very aware of Lynch's paintings and the process with them. It might be easy, as spotting someone into surrealism like Lynch, to peg him as such simply for the obsession with the bugs. Yet there's more than just that aspect for Lynch, as there's a sense captured about Lynch of taking everything seriously- especially mistakes- for what it can be worth emotionally not just with the end product but in putting all of it together. And, in a way, looking at a Lynch painting or photo (which one person describes as Lynch trying to get a painting to "move" as it were), one gets a sense of how an artist in general tries to achieve something of merit, if only on a personal level that might not even reach most people.Pretty as a Picture is at least worthwhile for anyone who's ever been all too long in the world of Lynch- the X family's house, the black lodge, Winkies, the apartment in Blue Velvet- but it's also made to be appealing (as far as Keeler can make it, as he isn't usually a documentary filmmaker) for non-fans as well, to get both a general and a specific sense of what the man can do with the materials he wants to work with. Quite frankly, if he wanted to film a fax machine I'd want to watch it; it's probably not without reason he would film it too, depending on the idea of the moment.

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.

If you are a fan of Mr Lynch like me this is essential viewing. It includes interviews with Lynch's friends, family and associates like Jack Fisk, Barry Gifford, Mel Brooks among others, and examines his life as an artist in films, paintings and photography. It was mainly filmed during the making of Lost Highway and most of the features are set around that film, but there is also some other scenes like the reunion of Eraserhead, where Lynch along with some of the cast and crew return to the Stables location where it was filmed and reminisce over the trials of the making of the film. Also featured is Lynch's trip to Prague along with the composer on most of his films, Angelo Badalamenti, and his love of the sound and music which is so important in his films. His paintings and photography are shown, too, and his fascination with ants and animals in his art. There is a rare look at his early short films, Six Men Getting Sick, The Alphabet and The Grandmother, and his former wife Peggy's views on them. This is a fascinating and interesting behind the scenes look at this distinctive filmmaker, artist and photographer's work.