Lost Highway (1997) Analysis
A Young Adult’s Film Analysis
Written by Sky Enchantress
Settings
Subjects
Composition
Color
Lighting
The Camera
Discontinuity Editing
Image On Image and Image After Image
Vocals
Music
Sound Effects and Silence
Transitions
Script and Film
Film Noir
Science Fiction / Fantasy / Horror
American Independent Film
Structure
Time
Censorship
Artistic Conventions
Expectations and Interactions
Types of Meaning
It is a strange and disturbing feeling that one gets from watching Lost Highway.
Written and directed by David Lynch, Lost Highway (which came out in 1997), is a supernatural film noir, where reality and surrealism combine as one. Lynch, who has made a name for himself in Hollywood, tingles the viewer’s imagination and uses every available cinematic technique to drive the impossible plot.
Lost Highway is broken up into two halves. The first half introduces the jazz musician Fred Madison, whose marriage to his wife, Renee, is on the rocks. Things get tense when the couple begins to receive a series of anonymous tapes that reveal more and more with each subsequent tape.
As if the tapes aren’t enough of a scare, Fred’s strange encounter with the Mystery Man only worsens the situation. The following morning, Fred discovers a third and final tape in which it depicts images of him lying next to his wife’s dastardly deeded body. He is convicted for dastardly deed and sentenced to death.
While in jail, Fred begins to experience massive headaches that get worse and worse with each passing day. One night, flashes of bluish white light begin to envelope him while the image of a young man is seen and voices are heard calling out his name, “Pete”.
The following morning, one of the guards discovers that Fred is no longer in his jail cell; instead, there sits a young man by the name of Pete Dayton. At this point, the second half of the story begins.
Pete is a 24 year-old car mechanic who has no recollection of what happened and whose parents refuse to disclose any information regarding the incident. It isn’t long before Pete begins to cheat on girlfriend (Sheila) with Alice Wakefield, a pre-recorded dirty deeds-o (P.R.D.D.O.) star and the mistress of his best customer, Mr. Eddy.
Alice begins to warn Pete that Mr. Eddy may know about their affair. She concocts a plan to steal from her friend and P.R.D.D.O. filmmaker, Andy. Unfortunately, their plan backfires and Pete accidentally dastardly deeds Andy.
They drive to the desert to meet a “fence” (a middleman for stolen goods) that Alice claims can exchange their stolen goods for money. But after they engage in dirty deedual dealings, Fred reappears. He follows Alice into the cabin only to find the Mystery Man in her place, who then informs Fred that Alice is really Renee.
Fred hunts down Mr. Eddy, takes him hostage, and gives him a “sore throat”. Mr. Eddy is then “finished off” by the Mystery Man. Fred drives back home to deliver the message, “Dick Laurent is dead”, the same message he received the day before the tapes began to arrive.
The police arrive at his house and begin to pursue Fred along the desert
highway. The film concludes with flashes of light inside of Fred’s car as Fred
screams in tormented agony.
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In Lost Highway, the mise en scène establishes the mood of alienation between the character and the outside world. People, places, and things appear familiar yet questionable; everything seems subject to investigation. The viewer is led to believe that each character has his own secret lying on the brink of exposure.
Settings
In the beginning, most of the scenes take place inside of the Madison home, primarily in their bedroom. There are only three exceptions in which the scene cuts to an outside source: the jazz gig, the party, and the jail.
Their house is furnished with modern furniture decorated in earth tones (red, orange, brown, black, yellow) and there are no portraits, pictures, or paintings hanging from the wall except a red drape. Red drapes are a recurring symbol found in Lynch’s films, which often suggest secrets are being kept hidden “behind the curtain”.
The spacing of the furniture and bare walls create an emptiness-like feeling inside the house. The orange-tinted interior strives to give life to the characters, but they are so caught up in their own desires and obsessions that they have become lifeless shadows in their own home.
Pete’s workplace, “Arnie’s Auto Repair”, becomes a significant place of social interaction in the second half of the film. Here, the rest of the main characters are introduced: Mr. Eddy and Alice Wakefield, and the tight bond between Pete and Mr. Eddy is established.
It is also here that the viewer learns that Mr. Eddy is “Dick Laurent” (as heard by one of the cops spying on Pete from across the street). The connection between Fred and Pete is also reinforced in a scene in which Fred’s saxophone music is overheard on the radio, but Pete turns it off because the music begins to give him a headache.
Finally, towards the end of the second half of the story, the desert becomes a significant place of arrival and departure. Pete and Alice must drive to the desert where the fence’s cabin is located at; the Mystery Man dastardly deeds Mr. Eddy in the desert and Fred strives to flee the flock of police cars chasing after him along the desert highway.
Also, several character transformations occur in the desert.
1. Pete -> Fred
2. The flashes of light in Fred’s car as he is being chased in the desert imply another character transformation is about to occur.
3. When Fred reappears, he follows Alice into the cabin only to find the Mystery Man standing in her place. No character transformation occurs between them, but the possibility that the Mystery Man is some form of spiritual entity is evident in that scene.
2. The flashes of light in Fred’s car as he is being chased in the desert imply another character transformation is about to occur.
3. When Fred reappears, he follows Alice into the cabin only to find the Mystery Man standing in her place. No character transformation occurs between them, but the possibility that the Mystery Man is some form of spiritual entity is evident in that scene.
All the significant characters eventually find themselves in the desert at some point, whether by choice or force. The desert essentially becomes the meeting point for all the characters. Like the characters, the desert is a barren, action-less, isolated area longing for some excitement. In essence, it is a symbol for the path in which each character has taken in their desire to create some excitement.
Subjects
All the main characters are in some form connected with each other, by means of supernatural phenomenon or dirty deedual affairs. Because Lost Highway is broken into two parts and lacks in dialogue, it is difficult for the viewer to obtain an in-depth look at each character.
Instead, the viewer is forced to rely on the character’s behavior, which eventually leads the viewer to believe that every character has his or her own secret to tell. Their interaction with one another invokes the feeling of suspicion and in the end, it’s difficult (if not almost impossible) to conclude which character was the good guy and which one was the bad guy.
In particular, the Mystery Man and Renee / Alice characters represent archetypes that are consistently used in Lynch’s films. In regards to the Mystery Man, he is that ever-allusive mystery character that Lynch is known for including in almost all of his films. His origin and motives are never made clear and the feeling that he is some form of spiritual entity persists throughout the film. One night when Fred wakes up, he glances over at Renee and sees the Mystery Man’s face on her body. When Fred turns on the light, his image disappears.
The concept of duality roles, which Lynch first used in Twin Peaks, surfaces once again in Lost Highway through Renee, the unfaithful brunette wife of Fred who neither appears remorseful or satisfied with her actions, and Alice Wakefield, the blonde, seductive P.R.D.D.O. star. Neither version of the character is flawless and both possess opposite strengths and weakness. They represent conflicting forces within the same person: good (or the lesser evil) vs. evil.
Composition
The film’s intended ratio is 2.4:1, which makes it a wide-screen (anamorphic) film. There is little interaction with the outside world in Lost Highway, and scenes are comprised with almost no background activity – all the action stays in the foreground.
Characters are frequently shown occupying opposite sides of the frame and
usually no more than two main characters are shown in one shot. Camera
movement is minimal and tends to be slow, so that the importance of visual
detail is established.
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Peter Deming’s cinematography highlights the film noir characteristics evident in Lost Highway. It supports the mood of the film and helps to emphasize the darker side of human nature.
Color
De-saturated and cool colors dominate the Lost Highway. Dirty deed scenes are subdued in orange tint, which symbolize raw dirty deedual satisfaction, devoid of any passion.
The exterior of the Madison home, the street that they live on, and the interior of Pete’s home, are colorless, but aligned with plant life. Representing apparent growth in a lifeless environment.
For the most part, color in the first half of the film is limited to earth tones, gray, and expressive use of black: Fred’s wardrobe (which consists of predominately dark colors) progresses to black by the end. His wardrobe correlates with his ambitions that are slowly progressing to a dastardly deed, and his slight resemblance to the Mystery Man represents his transition into evil.
A wider spectrum of color is used in the second half, which slowly fades away as Pete gets more caught up in his affair with Alice, that takes a turn for the worse when he accidentally dastardly deeds Andy. Pete’s wardrobe also coincides with the events he becomes involved in, and ultimately progresses to black by the end.
A slightly warmer shade of red is used several times to draw attention to the subject. Renee is often seen wearing a vivid color of red lipstick, suggesting a lustful, dirty deedually exuberant nature and a thirst for some excitement. She represents the attractive femme fatale who is able to manipulate men into giving her what she wants, when she wants it. Thus, it’s no coincidence that Renee is also the P.R.D.D.O. star Alice Wakefield, who becomes involved in the murder of Andy but miraculously escapes without conviction (from the police).
The color red is also used to foreshadow the dastardly deeds that Fred and Pete commit. After Fred’s jazz gig, we see Fred making a phone call to Renee at home, in which the scene is subdued in red tint. Later in the movie, Pete is shown wearing a bright red t-shirt.
Lighting
Lost Highway exhibits numerous film noir characteristics, notably in its use of lighting. There is minimal use of natural light throughout the film (most scenes take place indoors or outside during the night) and low-key lighting accompanies all indoor scenes. Backlighting is used a couple of times on several characters, and there is frequent use of side lighting on the characters to exemplify their darker side.
Darkened hallways and black backgrounds are also frequently used in conjunction with Fred and Pete – both are seen walking in or out of darkened hallways or standing against a black background. Night scenes are accompanied by deep shadows and very little lighting, which makes it difficult for viewers to make out distinct details – as a result, the subjects appear to blend in with the dark background.
Bright light appears in two ways: during character transformation and during Fred’s jazz gigs. In every scene in which Fred appears in place of Pete (or vice versa), a bluish white envelopes the character – thus, the bluish white light comes to symbolize that a character transformation is about to occur.
During Fred’s jazz gigs, the only form of lighting comes from the strobe lights. Fred is completely immersed in the moment, while the audience raves to his sax music. Because it is unusual to find audiences who’ll go crazy over jazzy sax music, the viewer wonders if it is possible that we’re seeing the audience’s reaction the way Fred wants or believes it to be.
Lynch’s specific style of lighting techniques is consistently used throughout his other works. It is commonly used to represent good vs. evil, or the distortion of characters. In Lost Highway, the “in the dark” characteristics of the characters represents their naiveté and slow progression to the “dark side”.
It also serves as a method to distort the appearances of a character. The glow from the cigarette butt is used as the only form of lighting on Fred in the opening shot. The glow is reflected in Fred’s black eyes; his features are bubbly, somewhat sinister, his face unrecognizable – but when the scene fades-out and fades-in again with more light, we see that Fred is a middle-aged man whose mind is preoccupied on some unknown thought
The dark, shadowy scenes emphasize the film noir characteristics of the movie, invoking feelings of suspicion, and foreshadowing crime-related activity.
The Camera
Shots of the characters are almost always done as close-ups, medium close-ups, or medium shots. Very rarely does the camera include the entire body in a frame. One exception occurs at Alice’s “job interview”, where she is instructed to undress herself. Upon removing her skirt, a long shot of Alice is seen, making her features appear seductive.
The use of close-ups, medium close-ups, and medium shots, also helps to overlap the background with the subject, thus editing out any background activity that may be present. Reaction shots are also frequently used when a character is talking to another individual, such as in the scene between Fred and the Mystery Man at the party.
However, characters also appear on opposite sides of the frame during conversation, to represent their isolation from one another, and the viewer is usually given either a profiled view, or a frontal view of the characters.
On occasion, point-of-view (P.O.V.) shots are used. They are usually accompanied with elongated camera angles, blurred sight and shaky camera movement, which Lynch often uses to depict dream-like states.
One notable scene that utilizes these techniques occurs in Pete’s room. His surroundings become blurred and distorted, and emphasis is given to the trapped flies buzzing in his lamp, as well as the spider crawling up his wall. The image of Alice is also seen circling Pete’s room.
In effect, this scene serves as a momentary break from reality for Pete –
familiar objects are distorted and unrecognizable, and small, meaningless
objects become bigger in scale. This is Pete’s perception of reality, which
becomes more distorted the deeper his involvement with Alice goes.
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The editing in Lost Highway (done by Mary Sweeney) appears to present the selected events in chronological order. However, as the story moves along, the viewer learns that the manner in which the events are presented is not entirely the order in which they happened.
Discontinuity Editing
As a whole, Lost Highway uses discontinuity editing to invoke confusion upon its viewers. Viewers are required to make their own assumptions, and use it to fill in the gaps the film leaves behind.
The most significant use of discontinuity editing in the film occurs with Renee / Alice. Viewers are led to believe that Fred murdered his wife, but are shocked to discover an exact replica (Alice) during Pete’s lifetime. Even more shocking is the fact the viewer learns, that Renee and Alice are the same person. If so, then how is it possible that Renee can be dead and Alice can be alive at the same time, if they’re both the same person? The film’s editing does not explain this miracle.
To further vex its viewers, the film opens with Fred receiving the message “Dick Laurent is dead” and concludes with Fred delivering the same message over the intercom at his home – another phenomenon with no explanation.
The only apparent use of continuity editing occurs during the second half of the film. Viewers are not required to second-guess Pete’s motives because they are explicitly shown. For example, viewers witness the events that lead to Andy’s death, and viewers are aware of the fact that Pete’s intentions were not geared towards murdering Andy.
Image On Image and Image After Image
First, a medium shot of Pete is seen superimposed on the image of his parents and girlfriend running in his direction (towards the camera). The camera zooms in to a close-up of Pete that match cuts to an extreme close-up of Fred. Then, the image of the prison bars is superimposed on the extreme close-up image of Fred. A lap dissolve then occurs from Fred’s extreme close-up to his cot, that reverts back to Fred’s extreme close-up, then finally dissolves back to his cot, where Fred is now seen screaming in agony.
This form of transition between scenes amplifies the transformation that’s taking place without having to show any graphic detail.
Reactions shots are usually used in conjunction with conversations, but they are also used during non-verbal communication. One of the more notable uses of reaction shots is demonstrated during Fred and Renee’s dirty deeds scene.
Fred appears highly aroused, while Renee is completely inert. A series of reaction shots are used to show Fred’s desperate attempt to arouse Renee and her expressionless face as he fails to do so – the more he tries, the lesser of a reaction does the viewer see from Renee. When he pleasurably explodes, Renee gives him a reassuring tap on the back, as if saying, “maybe next time”; Fred’s expression is of horrific humiliation. Careful attention is drawn to their expressions to show that the intimacy in their relationship has flown out the window.
The manner in which the pace of the editing is done corresponds with the pace
of the film; there is no fast cutting, because characters are too hesitant to
act on impulse. The slow editing adds to the slow-paced climax of events and
the mood in which the film wants to establish.
The use of sound in Lost Highway conveys the various moods of the film (low-keyed music when a character is tense or worried; hard rock, edgy music in time of shock, etc.). Scenes lacking in sound represent the world in which the characters live in.
Vocals
The minimal dialogue, lack of background sound and overlapping conversations, make the outside world appear nonexistent. Conversation scenes strictly focus on the dialogue between the foreground characters, which eliminates the viewer’s need to shift between the foreground and background.
This technique allows the conversation taking place appear all the more important. As in the party scene: there are no vocals or background conversations, other than the background music being played. And the conversations that take place between Fred and Renee, the Mystery Man and Fred, and Fred, Renee, and Andy.
The lack of background music while characters speak presents a more “real” depiction of reality, while the lack of background sound attempts to distort it. In the real world, one doesn’t generally hear sexy background music during a date, or edgy music during crime-related activity, but background sound is experienced in the form of something falling, birds chirping, people talking, etc.
The absence of background vocals in Lost Highway is used to represent the type of world the characters live in, and the life in which they lead. Their desperateness and obsession with greed, desire, seduction, and manipulation has caused them to isolate themselves from the outside world.
Music
Lost Highway features soundtrack music as well as score music (composed by Angelo Badalamenti and Barry Adamson). It opens with an edit of David Bowie’s “I’m Deranged”, a fast-paced, yet soft and upbeat song featuring dark lyrics alluding to the film’s theme: “Funny how secrets travel, / I’d start to believe if I were to bleed”.
Like in most movies, the use of music in the film conveys the mood of a scene or characters. For the most part, music is accompanied without dialogue. At times when dialogue overlaps music, the music initially begins at a low-key, so rarely is there any use of fade-outs when dialogue is introduced. Like the film’s story, the music can also be divided into two halves: silence (in the first half) vs. sound (in the second half).
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In one notable scene, the sudden absence of music is used to convey a feeling of suspension of reality. During the conversation between Fred and the Mystery Man, the background party music fades away, then resumes when they part. In this scene, the Mystery Man appears to be a part of Fred’s subconscious that’s just now becoming a part of his reality.
The second half of the film features mostly soundtrack music and almost no instrumental music. Notably is the use of hard, and edgy German music (performed by Rammstein) that becomes consistent with Pete’s sudden revelations concerning Alice.
When Pete walks into Andy’s living room and glances over at the projection screen, Rammstein’s music begins to play in the background, as Pete sees projected images of Alice engaged in dirty deedual activity. The music abruptly stops when he looks away.
In a later scene, as Pete stumbles through the hallway, the Rammstein music resumes and escalates when he opens one of the doors and sees a distorted image of Alice inside, exclaiming to him, “Did you want to talk to me? Did you want to ask me ’why’?” Again, the music stops when Pete closes the door.
Pete’s emotions are represented through the film’s use of Rammstein’s music. The sudden playing of the music represents Pete’s initial shock and sudden recognition of the evil that dwells inside of Alice. But his refusal to accept the truth is portrayed in the music’s abrupt stop.
Music in Lost Highway is vital to the film. Its versatility of composers and melody ties together any loose ends that have been left behind. Ultimately, it becomes the bridge between the character’s perception of reality and the actual truth.
Sound Effects and Silence
Because there is minimal use of vocals and background music in Lost Highway, the viewer’s awareness of sound effects is heightened. They are especially prominent in scenes involving dirty deeds and violence, where at times they appear to cut through the air like a sharp knife. The gushing sound heard as the sharp corner of a glass table punctures through Andy’s skull; the running sound of Andy’s blood on the glass table; the firing of the gun as the Mystery Man dastardly deeds Mr. Eddy.
The consistent use of silence also makes any background music, vocals, or sound effects appear significant, such as in the buzzing sound of the trapped flies in Pete’s room light (representing disorientation and un-proportionality in Pete’s world), or the swiveling sound of the bed as Pete desperately makes dirty deeds to Sheila (he’s desperate, obsessed, his animal instincts are taking control – his darker side is emerging).
Transitions
On rare occasions, a sound bridge is used between the transition of scenes, such as when Fred and Renee leave the party. The extra diegetic music from the party is bridged to the following scene inside their car, but is quickly overlapped with the screeching sound of the car’s tires.
Sound is also used as form of match cut. After Fred views the final tape, he screams out Renee’s name; the sound of thunder is then heard, which is match cut to the sound of the cop’s fist punching Fred in the face during his interrogation.
As a whole, the transition between scenes exhibiting silence, or music ->
silence creates discontinuity and abrupt change that correlates with the mood
of the film.
Script and Film
The script and film are very much alike. The scenes omitted were, for the most part, unnecessary. The film, unlike the script, provides less vocal and visual detail that only adds to the building tension.
For example, in the script, Fred and Renee receive a series of four tapes in which the third tape contains the tormented image of Fred sitting by Renee’s bedside. After the couple view the third tape, they call the police where they discuss the incidents further. In the film version, neither of these scenes is included.
The film skips to the final tape (fourth tape in the script, third in the film), in which Fred sees himself lying next to his wife’s dastardly deeded body. The film’s omission of the prior scenes that were in the script gives the whole act of dastardly deed a more bizarre twist – the tape acts as a form of higher power, showing Fred the horror which he has committed upon his unsuspecting wife. If the scenes from the script had made it to film, Fred’s course of action may not have been as shocking or surprising to the viewer.
Another significant difference between the script and film is the graphic transformation that Fred incurs. The script calls to have a visual representation of Fred’s deformation and reformation into Pete.
INT. PRISON - FRED’S CELL - NIGHT
Fred is still curled on the floor, but spasms begin to rock his body. He goes into convulsions, blood gushes from his nostrils. His head is badly swollen. Fred vomits repeatedly, and drags around in his mess. Fred turns, straining upwards as we’ve seen him do before. His face and head are hideously deformed.
Fred brings his shaking, tortured hand to his forehead. He pulls his hand down across his face squeezing it as it goes. As his hand passes over his face, Fred’s features are removed leaving a blank, white mass with eye sockets.
We move into the eye sockets and beyond. ...
INT. PRISON - FRED’S CELL - NIGHT
Fred’s blank face begins to contort and take on the appearance, feature by feature, of Pete Dayton.
Fred Madison is becoming Pete Dayton.
Fred is still curled on the floor, but spasms begin to rock his body. He goes into convulsions, blood gushes from his nostrils. His head is badly swollen. Fred vomits repeatedly, and drags around in his mess. Fred turns, straining upwards as we’ve seen him do before. His face and head are hideously deformed.
Fred brings his shaking, tortured hand to his forehead. He pulls his hand down across his face squeezing it as it goes. As his hand passes over his face, Fred’s features are removed leaving a blank, white mass with eye sockets.
We move into the eye sockets and beyond. ...
INT. PRISON - FRED’S CELL - NIGHT
Fred’s blank face begins to contort and take on the appearance, feature by feature, of Pete Dayton.
Fred Madison is becoming Pete Dayton.
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Blue light is then seen inside of Fred’s cell, and as he looks up, the light above him dims and blacks out. The following scene cuts to the P.O.V. illuminated highway and then Pete’s image (as described in the script). Smoke, blue light, and the sound of thunder is then heard, as Fred’s grips his head and screams in tormented agony.
Rarely do film versions of a script appear to be less descriptive, but such is the case with Lost Highway. In doing so, the viewer is able to actively participate in the narrative process, using his or her imagination to fill in the blanks.
Nothing can compare to the awesome powers of one’s imagination. And it is this
fact alone that makes this transformation scene (and all other scenes) appear
all the more terrifying and gruesome, more than any visual could possibly
accomplish.
Lost Highway exhibits the characteristics of an independent cinema noir film, with a touch of fantasy. The characters live in a world filled with dirty deeds and violence, and are driven by desperateness, desire, and manipulation.
Film Noir
From its lighting techniques to its perplexing characters, Lost Highway adheres to many of the thematic traits evident in present-day film noirs: dark, shadowy low-key lighting, numerous night scenes, present-day urban settings (L.A. and the desert), the main character who is doomed to fail (Fred), and the femme fatale (Renee / Alice).
Like in most film noirs, the femme fatale is attractive, smart, seductive and manipulative, and often brings ill fate to the man and / or men she becomes involved with. This is especially evident in Lost Highway: Fred, Pete, Andy, and Mr. Eddy were all dirty deedually involved with Renee / Alice.
Consequently, they dastardly deed (Fred and Pete) or are dastardly deeded (Andy and Mr. Eddy). There is also no resolution at the end of the film. The viewer never learns what becomes of Fred or Pete.
Science Fiction / Fantasy / Horror
Lost Highway exhibits characteristics of a science fiction / fantasy / horror movie primarily via Lynch’s use of character transformation between Fred and Pete, and the ominous presence of the mysterious Mystery Man.
The character transformations are never explained, and can only be assumed to be some form of supernatural phenomenon. The transformations are also forced upon the character. Fred doesn’t voluntarily tell himself it’s time to transform, it just happens.
Then there is the presence of the Mystery Man – he is unlike any other character in the movie. At times he appears horrific, ghastly, as if he were the devil himself, and at other times he seems to be all-knowing.
Perhaps it is because of the looming presence of the Mystery Man, in combination with the phenomenal transformations, that the script dubs the movie “A 21st Century Noir Horror Film”.
American Independent Film
Lost Highway also exemplifies characteristics of the American independent film. Apart from its small budget ($15 million) it also features low-profiled actors (i.e. Bill Pullman, Patricia Arquette, Balthazar Getty).
The film is distributed by “non-major companies”, October Films and Polygram
Filmed Entertainment. It also contains “loose ends” and perplexing characters
with unclear motives. The plot is also extremely thought-provoking. The course
of events is unclear, and it involves the viewer’s attentive awareness of
symbolism.
Lost Highway is a narrative film, which presents its course of events over a selected time period.
Structure
Lost Highway is broken into two halves: the span of five or six days prior to Fred’s transformation, the proceeding five or six days, and the final night, which unifies both stories.
In the first half, the viewers are introduced to Fred Madison and the two problems that are plaguing him: his concern for Renee’s continuing infidelity and the anonymous tapes they’re receiving.
He solves his marriage problem by dastardly deeding Renee, which in turn solves his tape problem (because he’s sentenced to jail). However, his drastic actions have left him with a third problem: his death sentence, which he overcomes by transforming into Pete.
However, his new life proves to be just as problematic as the first. He becomes delusional and begins to believe that Alice is in love with him. That inevitably leads to his accidental killing of Andy.
Again, character transformation is used to solve both of these problems by two means: eliminating the suspect (Pete) and seeking vengeance on the source (Mr. Eddy) that initiated his first problem (distrust in his marriage). He pursues Mr. Eddy, takes him hostage, gives him a “sore throat”, and then the Mystery Man steps in and dastardly deeds Mr. Eddy for him.
The following morning, the police arrive at his home just moments after Fred gets there. He jumps into his car and they embark on a high-speed car chase. Once again, Fred is faced with another problem: the police. Like before, he uses character transformation as a means to escape.
The beginning and ending of the film are, essentially, the same. They both feature the P.O.V. illuminated highway. The story appears to be linear, heading nowhere fast with no apparent solution to the problems the subject encounters.
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Time
The events in Lost Highway are not conveyed chronologically. In the first few minutes of the film, the message “Dick Laurent is dead” is delivered to Fred, then the viewer sees Fred delivering this message to himself at the end of the film.
Also, Fred dastardly deeds Renee / Alice, who is still alive during the duration of Pete’s existence. The real time of the film is vaguely expressed, but appears to span a little over a week (about ten days) if one counts the day-to-night-to-day scenes; both halves of the story occupy half of the total amount of the film’s reel time (135 minutes).
The manner in which the film approaches time and structure in the movie is perplexing. If divided into three parts, the events of the story transpire as follows: present -> past time is illustrated in the first and second half of the film (respectively), and the future is illustrated in the film’s final 13 minutes.
However, it’s also possible to infer that some events never happened; rather, they were fantasized by Fred. This would explain the gaps in the story and the timing of events (such as why Fred has a flashback of the dastardly deed scene, yet he can’t remember dastardly deeding his wife).
One interesting scene that questions reality and fantasy occurs after Fred and Renee do the dirty deed. He begins to describe one of his dreams to Renee, recounting how she was calling out his name but when he approached her, it wasn’t her – it was someone else (however, the viewer clearly sees it’s Renee). Suddenly, Fred jolts up panting from the nightmare he’s just had.
How is this possible, if he was just narrating his dream to Renee? The only
conclusion that can be drawn is, that Fred fantasized dirty deeding to Renee
and telling her about his dream. If this is so, then other events that appear
to happen to Fred are also figments of his imagination interlaced with actual
events.
Some movies require prior knowledge of background information in order to fully grasp the film’s meaning.
Censorship
The film is rated R for its split-second scene of gore (Renee’s bloody, dastardly deeded body), violent content (Andy’s and Mr. Eddy’s death), vulgar language, partially exposed danger zones, and dirty deedual content.
Because certain characters in the film are affiliated with the P.R.D.D.O. industry, the dirty deed scenes that relate to the P.R.D.D.O. movies tend to be more explicit in content. Since the movie plays on the theme of unfaithfulness and secret affairs, the use of dirty deeds is prominent in the film.
Artistic Conventions
Lost Highway exhibits several unconventional elements. It incorporates the use of supernatural phenomenon into an apparent film noir; the use of music is drawn from its two extremes: silence (in the first half) vs. sound (in the second half).
The film noir conventions that the film adheres by include: upper-middle to
middle-class white male protagonists, expensive cars, attractive femme fatales
(Renee and Alice), and cheap motels (the desolate “Lost Highway Hotel”).
Expectations and Interactions
The opening credits for Lost Highway read: “A film by David Lynch”. Viewers who are familiar with Lynch’s other works immediately think: “Dune, Wild at Heart, Twin Peaks (the TV series), Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, and Blue Velvet”.
At once, viewers begin to prep themselves for bizarre narratives, perplexing characters, and abundant use of symbolism (where symbols such as fire, smoke, and red drapes appear in almost all of his films). The film’s title, and the song that accompanies the opening credits, suggest that the viewer is about to get a glimpse into the lives of the travelers of the lost highway.
The opening shot of the film makes the viewer aware that visual and hearing perceptiveness is a must. The scene is pitch black, then the sound of someone taking a puff from a cigarette is heard. The glow of the cigarette butt illuminates the scene and a portion of Fred’s face is revealed. The scene fades-out then fades-in again, at first still rather dark, but the darkness dissipates as light (from an unknown source) illuminates the room and more of Fred is now visible.
There is no dialogue and no music. Suddenly, a buzz on the intercom – the viewer anticipates the message that is about to be heard: “Dick Laurent is dead”. The first minute of the film establishes the viewer’s need to completely focus on what is seen and heard in the film. Everything has some meaning and purpose behind it and it’s up to the viewer to discover what that is.
The movie makes no effort to explain anything, and Lynch fans are aware of this. Even Lynch himself admits, “It’s better not to know so much about what things mean or how they might be interpreted or you’ll be too afraid to let things keep happening” ¹.
The film does not fall short of the viewer’s expectations. The film’s ending leaves our imagination to linger on the final scene and contemplate the film’s meaning, and the course of events. The viewer discovers that all characters inevitably were travelers of the lost highway, whether by choice or by force.
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Types of Meaning
Lost Highway does everything in its power to provide absolutely no explicit explanations. It’s non-chronological events and bizarre incidents invite the viewer to actively participate in the film’s narrative. The viewer’s imagination runs wild alongside the film, creating a more satisfying movie-watching experience.
As a whole, Lost Highway loosely represents an individual’s reluctance to accept responsibility for their own actions. Rather than facing the truth, they turn and run in the opposite direction. In an effort to run from their past, they encounter newer and bigger problems. And it becomes only a matter of time before their past catches up with them, and they have to face the mess that they’ve left behind.
Fred and Pete represent two identical individuals living each other’s lives in opposite ways. They are each other’s alter egos – living the opposite life of the other, yet experiencing extremely similar emotions and situations: Fred is an upper-class jazz musician living in L.A. whose wife has presumably been unfaithful to him; Pete is a middle-class auto mechanic living in the suburbs who cheats on his girlfriend (Sheila).
Both Fred and Pete experience memory lapses. Fred can’t remember meeting the Mystery Man nor dastardly deeding his wife (yet he has a colored flashback of the dastardly deed scene); Pete has no recollection of the incident nor does he remember meeting the Mystery Man, either. However, Pete also has a colored flashback of the dastardly deed scene.
Both Fred and Pete feel alienated from their surroundings. Fred’s wife appears unfamiliar to him; Pete’s parents and girlfriend appear unfamiliar to him. Both men commit dastardly deeds: Fred dastardly deeds Renee and Pete dastardly deeds Andy. A woman also dirty deeduces both men: neither one of them leaves her, even after they’ve been (or felt) betrayed.
Another symbol worth mentioning are the videotapes Fred and Renee receive – together they symbolize exposure of the truth. In the first tape, we are given a panned view of the exterior of the Madison house (which is very plain), but by the third tape, we are inside the Madison household and watching Fred lying next to his wife’s dastardly deeded body.
Rule of thumb: things are not what they appear to be from the outside, and the Madison home is no exception. The Madison home almost appears to be a metaphor for the entire film. Its colorless and very plain exterior divert people’s attention from the betrayal, lies, deceit, and murder that lies within. Likewise, the film showcases individuals who appear to be leading regular lives. However, the further one delves into their life, the more dirt one rakes up.
Of all the characters, the Mystery Man is the most perplexing and significant. It is never known whether or not his intentions were to help or hinder a situation. But what cannot be ignored are the multiple symbols that the Mystery Man represents.
To Fred, he symbolizes his past that is slowly catching up to him, and his loss of identity that has resulted from his refusal to face the facts. After the Mystery Man informs Fred that Alice is Renee, he pulls out a camcorder and asks him, “Your name... what the f*** is your name?” and then proceeds to chase him to his car.
The Mystery Man also represents justice. He dastardly deeds Mr. Eddy, who is not only the head of an underground dirty deed ring, but also Alice’s lover. Two conclusions can be drawn here: (1) the Mystery Man got rid of one of the many filths that corrupt society, and / or (2) he was seeking vengeance on the man who caused Fred’s marriage to dissipate.
Finally, the Mystery Man can also be seen as a godlike being – he seems to know more about the characters than the characters know about themselves. After all, it is through the Mystery Man that the viewer learns that Renee and Alice are the same person.
The P.O.V. illuminated highway is another recurring symbol throughout the film. The movie begins and ends on the highway, and it’s used three times during the movie, specifically when either Fred or Pete is driving on the desert road. The field of view is extremely limited. Only the yellow lines painted on the road are visible; we cannot see what is beside us or ahead of us.
It is very symbolic of the characters. Their ambitions have limited their sight; they’ve lost their grip on reality. We can’t see what’s ahead on the road because the character’s destination is unknown; they themselves don’t know where they’re going anymore. We never stop, because the characters never stop to face their past – they just keep on running.
Cinematic techniques such as distorted images, odd angles, and strobe lights, present an obscure and dream-like reality. It invites the viewer to see life through the eyes of the characters, and question its validity – are what we’re seeing the truth, or are we hitching a ride inside the character’s subconscious, where the truth is half exaggerated and never what it appears to be?
After all, Fred once remarked “I like to remember things my own way.... Not
necessarily the way they happened”.
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Like Lynch’s other works, Lost Highway exemplifies all the techniques Lynch has become famous for. In fact, using the auteurist approach when analyzing Lost Highway is imperative. As in all of Lynch’s films, Lost Highway adheres to the abstract world Lynch strives to achieve. He presents a surrealistic world without it ever becoming too unnatural.
Many may point out that the film is a candidate for psychoanalytic criticism – the Id (the unconscious) vs. the Ego (the conscious mind), where the Mystery Man is Fred’s Id and Fred is his own Ego. This would explain Fred’s slow transition to something evil – the Id begins to emerge but the Ego attempts to repress it, however, the Id is much too powerful and outweighs the Ego’s futile attempts. Fred’s encounter with the Mystery Man represents the Id’s power to disassociate itself from the subconscious and appear as part of Fred’s reality.
Those who approach Lost Highway through feminist criticism would point out that the film adheres to the typical film noir portrayal of the femme fatale: attractive, cunning, and dangerous. They may also point out that Renee / Alice is the antagonist of the film: all males dirty deedually involved with Renee / Alice are ultimately doomed – in exchange for a few hours of pleasure, they receive a lifetime supply of misfortunes.
A Marxist critic could argue that the film represents corruptness in a capitalistic society, and that your friends are often your enemies – they will lie, cheat, and steal at all costs.
There are numerous ways in approaching a film. David Lynch (as well as various other directors) leaves the final interpretation of the film up to the viewer.
Their films are their gift to us; our analysis is our gift to them.
SOURCES
Lost Highway. Screenplay by David Lynch. Dir. David Lynch. October Films, 1997.
Internet Movie Database (IMDb): < https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116922/ >
¹David Lynch Quotes on IMDb: < https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000186/bio/ >
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