A better title for this would be David Lynch: The Art Lie. The 71-year-old director and film-maker Jon Nguyen seem to think that being an Artist with a capital A involves unadulterated freedom and absolute control.
We see Lynch looking radiantly serene with his latest sprog (the equal and opposite of Lynch’s first born, Jennifer (49), two-year-old Lula is the perfect accessory). Lots of punters will buy into this romantic vision. They’ll love listening to Lynch burble on about his childhood, adolescence and early twenties, love watching him go to work on his canvases and puffing, meditatively, on one fag after another.
I didn’t find the anecdotes especially revealing and was unimpressed by much of the art. As for the chain-smoking, it drove me nuts — I’d rather watch paint dry, though not Lynch’s.
A documentary, like any story, needs to offer curveballs. Yet every frame here strives to make the same point: this dude is deep. His films actually are. If you want to understand why, just go and watch them.
Cert 15, 86 mins
