Lost Highway

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Lost Highway

R

Released Feb 21, 1997

2h 15m

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

69%

Tomatometer

59 Reviews

87%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

From this inventory of imagery, Lynch fashions two separate but intersecting stories, one about a jazz musician (Bill Pullman), tortured by the notion that his wife is having an affair, who suddenly finds himself accused of her murder. The other is a young mechanic (Balthazar Getty) drawn into a web of deceit by a temptress who is cheating on her gangster boyfriend. These two tales are linked by the fact that the women in both are played by the same actress (Patricia Arquette).

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Critics Consensus

Marking a further escalation in David Lynch's surrealist style, Lost Highway is a foreboding mystery that arguably leads to a dead end, although it is signposted throughout with some of the director's most haunting images yet.

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Richard Brody

New Yorker

Lynch brings the movie’s febrile and violent artifice to life in visual compositions of a poised, painterly authority and interrupts them with quick bursts of hallucinatory frenzy.

Jul 5, 2022

Full Review

Owen Gleiberman

Entertainment Weekly

Rated: B-

Sep 7, 2011

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Jeremiah Kipp

Slant Magazine

It's pensive male anxiety, and for some cultural reason it's easier for audiences to accept female hysteria than the insecurities of men.

Rated: 3.5/4

Apr 1, 2008

Full Review

Joe Lipsett

Anatomy of a Scream Podcast Network

Lynch's surreal masterpiece is infused with film noir conventions and characters, real world ties to true crime, and a fantastic dual performance by Patricia Arquette. Rarely has inky blackness ever looked so simultaneously romantic and terrifying.

Rated: 4.5/5

May 30, 2024

Full Review

Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

It’s a metaphysical mystery that defies literal explanation yet has a weird and haunting emotional and thematic logic to it, like a dream or a nightmare.

May 6, 2023

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Brian Susbielles

InSession Film

Lynch, always in style, pushes the boundaries of what is unexpected and what really is down the road. Patricia Arquette, Robert Blake, and Balthazar Getty also star in this postmodern noir.

Feb 14, 2023

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Oscar J

Deeper and less "grand publique" version of Mulholland Drive

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

10/01/24

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Justin T

Eraserhead (1977) - didn’t understand, didn't expect to, never expect to. Dune (1984) - understood, don’t want to again. Blue Velvet (1986) - understood, wanted to. Lost Highway (1997) - didn’t understand, wanted to. This is a good film very much in the vein of David Lynch’s other films that I have seen. It is strange and full of metaphors that aren’t meant to be understood but sometimes are. This one is better than Dune but worse than Eraserhead and Blue Velvet. It is sadly let down by the story making no sense and not being as psychologically scary as the ones I prefer. Worth watching as the first hour is very creepy and good but after that it slowly falls down. Needs a lot of thought but probably won’t help with any understanding. I should add that the story ultimately isn’t that important as the atmosphere is excellent.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

09/28/24

Full Review

Mason M

A beautiful yet disturbing exploration of guilt, desire and the human mind. Lynch's most beautifully photographed film and probably his best concept. I had no idea what was going on when I first saw it but it is so well done, that I still could enjoy it. It's not Lynch's best but it is still a masterpiece. This and Mulholland Drive explore the idea of desire and wanting something you can't have in a way no other film I've seen has done.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/07/24

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Audience Member

A fever dream of the human psyche.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/17/24

Full Review

Dani G

The first time I watched it, I started (by accident) in the end of the movie, the last few minutes, and I was wondering "WTF is goin' on?", when the credits started to roll, and I said: "Oh, ok, that's why I didn't understood anything".... Then I watched it from the beginning... and the thing didn't got much better for me. LOL! But now I know a lot more of Lynch's films. Not that I understand it, but at least I know what to expect

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

06/25/24

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Madeline N

Probably an unpopular opinion, but I honestly don't know how people find this movie harder to understand than Mulholland Drive.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

06/03/24

Full Review

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David Lynch

Director

Bill Pullman

Fred Madison

Patricia Arquette

Renee Madison

Balthazar Getty

Pete Dayton

Robert Blake

Mystery Man

Natasha Gregson Wagner

Sheila

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Synopsis

From this inventory of imagery, Lynch fashions two separate but intersecting stories, one about a jazz musician (Bill Pullman), tortured by the notion that his wife is having an affair, who suddenly finds himself accused of her murder. The other is a young mechanic (Balthazar Getty) drawn into a web of deceit by a temptress who is cheating on her gangster boyfriend. These two tales are linked by the fact that the women in both are played by the same actress (Patricia Arquette).

Director: David Lynch
Producer: Deepak Nayar, Tom Sternberg, Mary Sweeney
Screenwriter: David Lynch, Barry Gifford
Distributor: October Films
Production Co: October Films, Lost Highway Productions, Asymmetrical Productions
Rating: R (Strong Language|Sexual Content|Violence)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 21, 1997, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 13, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $18.0K
Runtime: 2h 15m
Sound Mix: Dolby Stereo, Dolby Digital, Dolby A, Surround, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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