The world has lost David Lynch. The outpouring of love on social media was immediate and overwhelming. Rightfully so. It seemed like everyone had a story about the moment Lynch inspired them most. Here’s mine.
Mulholland Drive.
This movie’s profound effect on me was twofold. The first being that I understood it. At least, what I perceived as a very clear understanding of what I THOUGHT the movie was about.
If art is subjective then David Lynch is hyper specifically wildly subjective.
I’d bet that every person who watches Mulholland Drive walks away with a different theory on what the movie is about. But I... well, I’m confident I know what the story is about. Not just the themes. However, the second part of my profound life changing connection to Mullholland Drive was in fact its theme. Which is summed up in one of the most abstract scenes in the movie: "No Hay Banda." There is no band. "It’s all an illusion."
This moment is the lynchpin of the film (yes, I had to). It’s where the veil lifts, and we see Mulholland Drive for what it truly is: Hollywood without the illusion. Not the dream, but the nightmare.
The "No Hay Banda" scene is the turning point in the story. Lynch gave us the first half of the story with carefully crafted rose colored glasses. In this theater, when the performer screams: "No hay banda! It's all an illusion", Lynch whispers to us: here, let me take those off for you… Then, he shows us what Hollywood is really like: dark, desperate, ugly, macabre… deadly.
Man that affected me. So much so, that whenever I become dazzled, enamored by something shiny being placed in front of me, I whisper to myself: “No hay Banda.” And I remember, most of the entertainment business is make believe. The only thing that's real is the work.
Thank you, David Lynch for providing me with the mantra that keeps me grounded every day of my life.
Imagine creating something so powerful, so specific that someone thinks about it every single day of their life? That’s art. That’s legacy.
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