David Lynch: The Art Life (The Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray]

If after seeing any of Lynch's films or TV you didn't feel you should start being more careful who you should call an "artist", this quiet, creeping interview-doc should make you reconsider. We too often use "artist" as a compliment or to suggest some superiority in quality or authenticity. To insist that Lynch is one of the few Hollywood directors to warrant the label isn't intended to do that, but merely to make the term's definition more clear and focused. Lynch isn't a filmmaker at his core -- he is an artist. We suspect that from seeing his films; this one makes it plain.

For anyone interested in David Lynch, this is a great doc. It's not about his films, so if you're looking for behind the scenes or "the making of" type information about Twin Peaks, Mulholland Drive, or any of his other movies this isn't what this is. The Art Life is about both his life story and his journey as an artist, mostly as a painter. You get some glimpses of his early film school work towards the end, but this is exclusively about his creative process and his life. That being said, it's fascinating and provides some great insight into one of Hollywood's most interesting people.

There are some glimpses into David Lynch's mind and work process here. Especially telling is the poignant scene in which he talks about his childhood and the last day his family spent in their neighborhood before moving away. It is one of the very rare glimpses into his past and how it shaped him. I enjoyed seeing inside his home art studio and how he creates things. I just hope he never loses his balance getting up there!

I'll watch this again. This 'Art Life' piece is very fine, I recommend it to any artist, art student, or fan of David Lynch. I am updating this review. I can't stop watching it. It's so subtle in the details. Every time I watch it, I see or hear something I hadn't really understood before. I'd give it more than 5 stars if possible.

Great documentary about a great artist & storyteller. Lynch is fairly guarded about some elements of his private life as most celebrities are. This documentary gives you a look at the man himself, in his own words, & his work. He tells stories about his life from childhood up to his early films all the while, we get to see him paint & interact with his youngest child. This is a man that takes joy in the simple pleasures of life. When all is said and done he remains somewhat of a mystery much like his films. That isn't a bad thing either.

I was a contributor to the Kickstarter campaign that helped finance this documentary, which is a very personal and revealing exploration of David Lynch, his persona and his work. I had waited for several years, hoping to be able to see the finished project. I finally located a Spanish copy on Amazon, which is a Region 2 DVD. I do have a Pioneer multi-region DVD player and was thereby able to view the disc. I found it to be very well-done and also quite enlightening. David Lynch is one of my favorite directors. I have collected and followed his work since I saw Eraserhead at the theater back in my college days. It was quite an event, as I recall, with sell-out audiences in the few independent "art" theaters where it was shown. I recently heard from the lynchthreeproject folks who produced the documentary and understand that copies of the DVD will soon be sent to the Kickstarter contributors. I assume the DVDs will be Region 1 or Region-free. I also assume that such discs will be available for sale on Amazon to U.S residents hoping to see the program. At any rate, I highly recommend this documentary to anyone who is a David Lynch fan and wants to see him at home and in a very relaxed and personal view.

this is just what i wanted from a movie called, David Lynch: The Art Life. if you want a documentary with David talking about his films this is not that movie. This is documentary about David. which just like his art and films, he is a very interesting man.

Documentary about the life of David Lynch from his upbringing to his development as an artist and how he got involved in filmmaking. The film culminates to the work he did on his breakthrough indie feature film, Eraserhead. The film is narrated entirely by Lynch and the visuals are comprised of contemporary footage of him working in his studio as well as home videos and film footage, stock photography and clips from his work. This is an excellent piece for the artist who is on their journey of self-discovery and might want some perspective and of course a must-see for the average David Lynch fan. Never give up and be yourself! There's no room for imitation!

"The Art Life" ist eine persönliche Reise zu den künstlerischen Wurzeln und prägenden Phasen des jungen David Lynch- eine Reise durch die idyllische Kindheitsheitsjahre auf 8mm Stummfilmen in einer amerikanischen Kleinstadt und in die düsteren Straßen von Philadelphia. Er selbst spricht meist nur aus dem "Off" in Englisch mit deutscher Synchronisation und sitzt oft rauchend in seinem Atelier oder mit seiner Tochter Lula auf seinem Hausgrundstück, das sind die Szenen in denen er direkt spricht und dies dokumentiert wird.Die Reise beschreibt einzelne Stationen seines Lebens, die maßgeblich zu seiner Entwicklung zu einem der rätselhaften Regisseure des zeitgenössischen Kinos beigetagen haben.Manchmal passt die Story für meinen Geschmack einfach "zu gut" zu den düsteren Filminhalten selbst in Kleinigkeiten,dies konstruiert einen zuätzlichen Mythos um seine Person, die in einem anderem Film "David wants to fly" detlich zerstört worden wird.Hoch oben in den Hollywood Hills gewährt er einen passenden Einblick in seine Residenz, sein Ateleir und die ausgewählten Geschichten der Vergangenheit. Rätselhafte Gestalten tauchen auf, verschwinden wieder und werden Teil seiner künstlerischen Arbeit. Oft handelt es sich um Assemblagen, die mit unterschiedlichen Materialien erweiterten Gemälde wirken durchweg bedrohlich und düster. Lynch spricht "offen" und gut platziert über Ängste, Missverständnisse, Kämpfe, etwa mit dem Vater, die er durchlebt hat und überwunden hat, über Dämonen seiner Kindheit sowie die zahlreichen Menschen, die ich geprägt haben, beispielsweise "Bushnell" der Maler und Vater eines seiner Freunde.Schon sehr früh sieht Lynch die Welt mit anderen Augen und z.B.lebt mit "Peter Wolf" von der "J. Geils Band" in einer WG.Er sucht die Schatten und schafft daraus eine fast schon pathologische traumähnliche Verworrenheit, mit der er den geneigten Zuschauer fesselt und in seinem rätselhaften Bann ziehen kann.Der Film ist seiner jüngsten Tochter Lula gewidmet, die auch mehrfach im Film auftaucht und eine Art Gegenpol zu den Zerrissenheit seiner eignen Kindheit darstellt. Der Sondtrack zum Film stammt teilweise von seiner zweiten Cd "Crazy Clown Time" aus dem Jahre 2011 mit sogenanntem "Modern Blues".Mit 85 Minuten Laufzeit widmet sich der Film hauptsächlich seinen bildnerischen Kunstwerken, den frühen Experimentalfilmen und seiner Arbeit an dem Spielfilmdebüt "Eraserhead" von 1977 und dessen Kulissen.(Q: Text auf der Vorder- und Rückseite der DVD Hülle)

Could have been much, much longer.Considering this was long in the making, and the related Kickstarter turned out to be a fraud (I was part of the 1,397 backers who didn't get satisfactory communications or the promised rewards after waiting for 5 years).Very minimalist special features, yet the doc is very good. It just could have been much more than this, had the filmmakers been more respectful of the backers and made sure to answer and give people their due.

Sehr gute Dokumentation über seine frühen Jahre. Als Lynch Fan kommt man hier keinesfalls vorbei. Hatte das große Glück seine Ausstellung in Torun zu sehen.

Wer David Lynch mag, muss sich diese DVD kaufen. Eine unaufgeregte Doku über den genialen Mann. Man bekommt Einblicke sein Innerstes und wir fanden das mega interessant, da man diesen Hintergrund bei seinen Serien oder Filmen nicht vermutet. Diese menschliche Seite und diese Offenheit ist einfach gut rüber gebracht worden. Jeder der seine Filme / Serien liebt, muss sich diese DVD anschauen.

An amazing look into the mind of David Lynch, one of the strangest and most enigmatic directors out there. It focuses on his painting and on his early life leading up to Eraserhead, so it is definitely not a film about filmmaking, but rather the influences and the experiences of a particular human being.