The film world received sad news on Thursday, January 16, when it was announced that David Lynch, the four-time Oscar-nominated filmmaker, had passed away at the age of 78.
In a Facebook post, Lynch’s family announced his passing, saying that “There’s a big hole in the world now that he’s no longer with us. But, as he would say, ‘Keep your eye on the donut and not the hole.'” A cause of death was not shared in the post, but in 2024 Lynch announced that he had been diagnosed with emphysema.
Lynch was a master of the surreal, with his projects often equally enrapturing as the were confounding. Prime examples of this were his debut 1977 feature Eraserhead, as well as many of his most well known projects, including Blue Velvet, Twin Peaks, Mulholland Drive and more. Lynch also would appear as an actor from time to time, both in his own movies and in the projects of others, including Steven Spielberg’s The Fabelmans, where he played another iconic director, John Ford.
I was always fascinated by Lynch’s work, even if at the end I often had to take a minute to try and to figure out what it was I just watched (and sometimes still couldn't put all the pieces together). Yet there was one project of his that I’ll always think of when I think of David Lynch — his 2017 short film What Did Jack Do? that is streaming on Netflix. I won’t try to claim that this is one of the best works of Lynch’s career, but it is definitely one of my favorites of his and one that I think can be used as an introduction into Lynch’s filmography.
What Did Jack Do? was written, directed and stars Lynch as a homicide detective that interrogates a suspect in a train station diner, a talking monkey named Jack (voiced by Jack Cruz). If that’s not weird enough for you, the first question that Lynch’s detective asks his suspect is “Do you know anything about birds?” It doesn’t get any less weird from there. Yet part of what makes it so great is that Lynch plays this like it was a classic film noir, shot in grainy black and white, with Lynch delivering his lines (that continue on the weird arc of questions) with such intensity and earnestness.
Lynch rarely compromised his unique perspective to make it more accessible for his work. Even a more traditional period drama like The Elephant Man still has moments that wholly Lynchian. While nothing can truly prepare you for watching something like Blue Velvet or particularly Mulholland Drive, What Did Jack Do? can be something of a welcome to world of David Lynch, giving you a baseline from which to explore his other work.
And should his passing inspire you to do just that, there are a number of his movies that are readily available, be it through digital on-demand platforms or streaming services. Here’s a quick rundown:
- Eraserhead streaming on Max in the US; not available in the UK
- Dune (1984) streaming on Max in the US; streaming on MGM Plus in the UK
- Blue Velvet streaming on Max in the US; available via digital on-demand in the UK
- Twin Peaks streaming on Paramount Plus in the US and UK
- Lost Highway available via digital on-demand in the US; not available in the UK
- Mullholland Drive available via digital on-demand in the US; streaming on StudioCanal in the UK
- Inland Empire streaming on Max in the US; streaming on StudioCanal in the UK
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