Mulholland Falls

with Nick Nolte, Melanie Griffith, Jennifer Connelly
Written by Peter Dexter
Directed by Lee Tahmori (MGM/UA)
by Mark Phinney

When Hollywood makes a pulpy gangster-type film with the attendant twists and turns, it sometimes forgets where it is or where it is trying to go. We do, however, get our hopes up when a promising new director is at the helm. Hey, this could be great – so-and-so is directing! Quite often, though, you get your hopes dashed and your heart broken. Such is the case with the new forties detective-yarn wannabe Mullholland Falls. Lee Tahmori, whose Once Were Warriors was one of the best films of last year, was brought in on this, and I hope to God he wasn’t happy with the results. Tahmori is a hard-hitting, in-your-face auteur, and trying to do it too much this time makes for a mess of a film. You’ve seen it all before – six coat-and-hat hardnoses on the trail of a murder that looks a bit too much like Chinatown, a femme fatale (played in a whirlwind of bore by Melanie “I have no talent” Griffith), and an innocent patsy who seems like the one who did it. The plot is basically formula, which, in the right hands, is something to go on, but if you’re going to throw in surreal elements, comments, and actions, please make them coherent. The gangster/detective thing should be done with a certain finesse, so here’s a message to Hollywood: Next time you attempt this, avoid ruining a good director, and take it slow. Okay, guys?