A giant of the 7th art disappears. David Lynch died this Thursday, January 16, 2025, his family announced in a press release. At 78 years old, the American director had a influence immense by signing several works with a unique, mysterious style, in one word: “Lynchian”. In 2024, he revealed that he had been diagnosed with pulmonary emphysema, which prevented him from leaving his house in recent months.
“It is with deep regret that we, his family, announce the death of the man and the artist David Lynch,” his family wrote on their Facebook page to more than a million subscribers. “There is a great void in the world now that he is no longer with us. But, as he said, ‘Keep your eyes on the donut and not the hole’“.
The inimitable David Lynch has made a place for himself in the hearts of cinema lovers thanks to his surreal, dark and strange vision of the world. Unique vision that can be found in the following films, selected by the RTL editorial staff.
1. “Elephant Man” (1980)
In this film shot in black and white, David Lynch chose to adapt the memoirs of Frederick Treves, The Elephant Manpublished in 1923. The story takes place in London, at the end of the 14th century, we follow the meeting of the surgeon Frederick Treves, played by Anthony Hopkins, with a totally deformed man, John Merrick (John Hurt), suffering from a rare and incurable genetic disease, neurofibromatosis.
Used as a beast, the surgeon then makes the decision to redeem John Merrick and take him under his wing before realizing that, behind his disfigured face, hides a sensitive and intelligent man.
2. “Blue Velvet” (1986)
A vast conspiracy in a small North Carolina town. In Blue VelvetDavid Lynch immerses us in the life of a young student, Jeffrey Beaumont (Kyle MacLachlan), in a modest town making a living from logging. Returning from the hospital where he went to visit his father, he falls with a severed ear in a vacant lot. This will lead him to other revelations and to form a problematic relationship with the daughter of a police inspector.
This feature film, which the filmmaker considers to be the most personal of his career, is in some ways a draft of Twin Peaks, another Lynch masterpiece. The film and the cult series share many points in common.
3. “Twin Peaks” (cult series from 1990 and film from 1992)
In 1990, the world discovered the small (fictional) town of Twin Peaks whose calm recalls that of Blue Velvet. The plot begins when Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee), a high school student, is found dead on the edge of a lake. FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) leads the investigation. The mysterious death of this teenager is at the origin of a legendary series which revolutionized the genre and transformed millions of viewers into detectives haunted by the mysteries it unraveled over two seasons until 1991.
A prequel in the form of a feature film will be broadcast in 1992 which will shed light on the last seven days of Laura Palmer. In 2017, a little over 25 years after the second season, a third season will air on Showtime.
4. “Lost Highway” (1997)
Before Christopher Nolan, David Lynch knew how to make his spectators think to the point of making them watch a film several times to understand it. With Lost Highwaythe director immerses us in the life of Fred Madison (Bill Pullman), a depressed saxophonist who begins to entertain him and his wife in their home. Secondly, Lynch makes us follow Pete Dayton (Balthazar Getty), a mechanic whose past gradually resurfaces.
Despite some criticism of the coherence of its story, this psychological thriller has become cult, with its share of tortured characters, femme fatales and cigarettes. Lost Highway is the first of three David Lynch films set in Los Angeles.
5. “Mulholland Drive” (2001)
Considered by many to be David Lynch’s most accomplished work, Mulholland Drive traces the story of Betty Elms (Naomi Watts), an actress in search of fame, and her meeting with Rita (Laura Harring), a young woman who became amnesiac after a road accident which saved her from her pursuers. The film presents other stories, which at first seem completely foreign to the rest of the story, before gradually everything begins to connect.
In 2002, David Lynch won the César for best foreign film for Mullholland Drive.
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