|
Eraserhead (1977)
Starring Jack Nance, Charlotte Stewart, Jeanne Bates, and Allen Joseph. Cinematography by Herbert Cardwell and Frederick Elmes. Edited, Produced, Written, and Directed by David Lynch.
After a short trip through the cosmos, Henry Spencer traverses a dreary industrial landscape towards the home of Mary X, his girlfriend. Upon reaching the X household, Henry is introduced to Mary’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. X, and her grandmother, Grandma X. During a dinner of man-made chicken, Henry is informed that he has impregnated Mary and she has already given birth to the child. Upon returning home he finds Mary and their highly mutated baby waiting for him. Henry tries his best to cope with his newfound fatherhood, but his sanity is wearing thin. His only solace in the world is the Lady in the Radiator and her heavenly song.
In the late 1960’s David Lynch applied for a grant from the American Film Institute to help finance the production of his short film titled “The Grandmother”. To his surprise he was awarded the funding and “The Grandmother” went on to win a handful of awards at various film festivals. The AFI was pleased with their young director and encouraged him to apply for a spot at the Center for Advanced Film Studies in Hollywood. Lynch was eventually accepted by the AFI sponsored facility and quickly began pre-production on Gardenback, which was to become his first feature length project. But after a year of fruitless development, Lynch found that he had lost his passion for the project and needed to move on to something new. It was during this time that he dreamed up Eraserhead. With a twenty one page script, and ten thousand dollars of the AFI’s money, Lynch began to assemble a cast and crew for Eraserhead, never realizing how much they would eventually sacrifice to make his disturbing vision a reality.
Photography on Eraserhead was originally scheduled to last less than two months. But the modest budget dried up quickly and production stopped. The AFI agreed to continue lending Lynch the equipment he needed but money would have to be found elsewhere. Refusing to let his project die, Lynch worked odd jobs, delivered newspapers, and borrowed money from friends and family, putting every dollar he could afford into his film. By the end of the shoot Lynch was actually living in the makeshift set built in the AFI stable. By the time Eraserhead finally wrapped, it had been in production for over four years. But the hard work eventually paid off in spades. With endorsements from cult filmmakers like John Waters and Stanley Kubrick, Eraserhead soon became a favorite of “midnight movie” audiences. As word continued to spread, Lynch’s film began screening in various film festivals. Years later it was even awarded a spot on the registry of the National Film Preservation Board. It’s not hard to see why Eraserhead has resonated so deeply with its audience. It is more than just a dreamlike movie; with its disturbing subliminal imagery, dark monochrome picture, and incoherent plot, it is almost completely detached from reality… almost as if it literally were a dream. Eraserhead is an amazing piece of cinema and a fitting introduction into world of David Lynch.
Budget: $20,000
Total US Gross: $7,000,000
Genre: Fantasy
Runtime: 89 Minutes
US Release Date: 3/17/77
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Awards: none
Tagline: A Dream Of Dark And Troubling Things.
Quote: “In heaven, everything is fine… in heaven, everything is fine… you've got your good things, and I've got mine.”
|
