Act Out: Mulholland Drive

BY: Claire Connors

David Lynch’s film noir, Mulholland Drive (2001) is often thought of as his best—he won Best Director at Cannes and the film was nominated for an Oscar. That’s saying a lot considering the director helmed such greats as Elephant Man and Blue Velvet.

The psychological thriller about broken dreams in La La Land focuses on the relationships between two sets of women, Betty (Naomi Watts) and Rita (Laura Elena Harring) and Diane (Watts) and Camilla (Harring). Yes, it’s confusing and surreal but to Lynch, that doesn’t really matter. Sit back and enjoy the madness of it all.

In the scene below, Betty is auditioning for a part in a film and things get a little, um, carried away.

INT. EXECUTIVE BUILDING – SECOND FLOOR – DAY

Betty is about to do her first audition for a role in a film. Inside an office sits various observers, the director, Bob and Jimmy Katz, with whom she’ll be doing her scene.

Betty pushes Jimmy back.

BETTY
I can call them… I can call my dad.

JIMMY
But you won’t.

He grabs Betty by the wrist again and pulls her in to him. He puts his hand on her waist and it accidentally slips and keeps going down her hips. He jerks his hand back. Betty looks down and sees Jimmy’s hand hovering above her thigh. Betty takes her hand and gently presses down on Jimmy’s hand. She slowly looks up with the most seductive smile. Jimmy lets his hand rest more firmly on her thigh, and squeezes her thigh as he sees her smile. With his other hand Jimmy gently pulls her closer. Something has started coming over Betty and she catches the drift of this scene in a different way. She’s surprising herself.   

BETTY
(almost a hot whisper)               
You’re playing a dangerous game here. if
you’re trying to blackmail me… it’s not
going to work.

Jimmy now surprises himself. He becomes almost tender and genuinely worked up from the heat coming off Betty.

JIMMY
You know what I want…it’s not that
difficult.

Where the scene should turn to anger from Betty it can’t now and Betty plays it as she feels it. She stays in very close to Jimmy – looking him right in the eyes.

BETTY
(whispering desperately – slowly)
Get out… Get out before I call my dad.
He trusts you… you’re his best friend.
(her arms go around him)
This will be the end of everything.

Jimmy gets lost. He doesn’t know where he is anymore. He can only see Betty’s eyes.

JIMMY
What about you? What will your dad think
about you?

Betty still playing it in a dreamy whisper… lost in heat.

BETTY
Stop… just stop! That’s what you said
from the beginning. If I tell what
happened… they’ll arrest you and put
you in jail, so get out of here before…

JIMMY
(caught by her transfixing, sultry eyes, and almost breathless … he finds himself taking an extra long pause)
Before what?

As scripted Betty pretends to pull the knife from behind her back, but wraps the knife around behind Jimmy and pulls him into a kiss.

BETTY
(as she kisses him – whispers)
Before I kill you.

Jimmy panics and pushes Betty away with his hands on her shoulders as if forcing himself to come out of a trance. He finally is able to say his line.

JIMMY
Then they’d put you in jail.

As scripted Betty is supposed to cry now and it is very easy for her to do this because she’s ashamed at how the sex of the scene took her over. Tears begin running down her cheeks. She backs away.

BETTY
I hate you… I hate us both!

She pretends to drop the knife. The scene ends.