Abstract (eng)
David Lynch's 'Eraserhead' (1977) and 'Mulholland Drive' (2001) comprise sequences, that tell about a dream and refer to a trauma-related subject. This does not only concern the way of storytelling and filming but also the conclusions through the audience's reception. Before an interaction of dream and trauma characteristics is ascertainable, it needs to be clarified how Lynch screens those mental conditions.
A dream sequence is consisting and based on a central theme or wish. Mostly David Lynch introduces the central theme within the first 15 minutes of screen duration. The opening scene of 'Eraserhead' tells about the importance of the character who's mentioned in the credits as "Man in the Planet". He is in control of the dream narrative without instructing the main character (Henry Spencer) about his ruling position. The "Man in the Planet" serves as a speaker for the audience and Henry's subconscious. Through his role, the audience is motivated to consider that the dream content of this movie is not selected and managed consciously by the main character himself. The story needs to be decoded as a dream narrative by the audience. The central theme of 'Eraserhead' is a worm-like creature and its dominating role in Henry's dream.
Sleep and dreams are used as negations and repressions of trauma and reality. Dream sequences in 'Eraserhead' are accomponied by incoherent scene logics and orders. Tableaus and direct dream references by the characters are additional components of the dream sequences in this movie. Unlike 'Mulholland Drive', 'Eraserhead' is not divided into two story parts.
'Mulholland Drive's' first part (approx. 120 minutes) tells about a dream without using the conventions of the dream film genre, while the last third of the movie follows a dream-like logic, through its fragmentary storytelling. The wish fulfillment in the first part would be Betty Elms' intercourse with Rita, a woman who's suffering from amnesia. In the second part of the movie, the devastating relationship history of B-actress Diane Selwyn (formerly Betty Elms) and film star Camilla Rhodes (formerly Rita), a femme-fatale figure, is told. Dream and trauma sequences are mainly divided into two parts in this movie, the interaction draws the lines. Despite the dream, the first filmic part refers to Diane's waking life and the film's deathly ending. The viewer is forced to a consistent discussion and re-organization of dreams and "realistic elements".
Even though 'Eraserhead' and 'Mulholland Drive' show differential stylistic interactions of dream and trauma sequences, the viewer is involved in both film's narrative as a dreamer and psychotherapist through re-remembering screened scenes and picturing future scenes. The audience is left to solve a puzzle with its own intuition.
As a main principle, dream sequences in both films render traumatizing elements in the main character's mind and dream environment. The conclusion of this film discussion is that Lynch's protagonists inevitably fail at fleeing from their traumas through the action of dreaming. Trauma motifs are unconsciously reproduced and replayed in dreams. As soon as trauma images appear and disillusion sets in, the narrative is shifted, either to a dream-within-a-dream-scenario or the dream's ending.
This thesis contains screenshots of the following DVD film material:
Eraserhead (1977). Lynch, David (Regie). Original version, DVD, 2005, 86', USA: Absurda.
Mulholland Drive (2001). Lynch, David (Regie). Original version, DVD, 2002, 145', USA: Universal.