Air conditioned discomfort

Like any good colonialists, the F-word and I complain about shitty winter weather but as soon as it very hot we flee towards the air-conditioning, in yesterday's circumstances meaning the Cinéma Arenberg (in the Royal Passages close to the Grand Place, which are full of amazingly useful stuff for a tourist centre feature, like Haagen Das - not the best ice cream but they make milkshakes - book and music stores, and the Taverne du Passage, where the food is both reasonably priced and delicious).

And we fled there because it was playing Inland Empire, the newish David Lynch, and holy shit. I loved it like I haven't loved a movie in years and years. It really appealed to me as a sort of savage fairy tale with all the attendant surreality, with magic, enchantment and cursing all playing roles as though they were people - but for the first time I'd ever seen, done on film perfectly. Not like a film that tries to copy a surreal fairytale book or narrative, but a film that films a fairy tale, letting narrative slide a little since there's only so much you can do in two or three hours, and picking up on the images and the linking. I had never seen that before. Unless you count The Princess and the Warrior, but next to Inland Empire, I don't.

Laura Dern is fantastic as the hero; she made me suspend my disbelief when I didn't even know what I was believing. Great supporting actors. As for the rest I don't really know what to say. David Lynch has a talent for throwing in the most visually disturbing images, and he threw a lot in here. Lots of beautiful ones too. I guess that's what made the three hour progress not really countable or long. There was a lot to fill the eyes.