What does the terrifying diner scene in ‘Mulholland Drive’ mean?
Since its release in 2001, Mulholland Drive has perplexed many viewers. David Lynch’s surreal masterpiece is one of the highlights of his career, yet its’ non-linear narrative, bizarre characters, doppelgangers and seemingly unrelated sequences make it hard to follow, even for the most seasoned Lynch fan. However, this is what makes the film so brilliant. Over repeated viewings, audiences can glean new interpretations and piece the puzzling fragments together.
Put simply, Mulholland Drive is a film about the intersection between dreams and reality, reflecting the futility of the American Dream – one of the director’s favourite topics. In Mulholland Drive, we meet a blonde, naively ambitious aspiring actor, Betty (Naomi Watts), who arrives in Hollywood, taking up residence in her aunt’s vacant property. Yet, her space is quickly invaded by an amnesia-ridden dark-haired femme-fatale type, Rita (Laura Harring) – the very opposite of Betty. The pair work to uncover who Rita really is, while Betty also auditions for roles and attempts to work her way into Hollywood. However, all is not what it seems in Mulholland Drive.
Later in the film, a transformation happens, and we learn that so far, the film has been a dream world. Now, in reality, Betty is actually Diane, and Rita is Camilla, her ex-lover. Unfortunately for Betty, Camilla is engaged to a director, Adam, flaunting their seemingly perfect relationship for all to see. To enact her revenge, Betty hires a hitman to kill Camilla. Thus, the dream section of the film allows Betty to live out a fantasy with Rita, one that she cannot have in real life. However, Diane’s guilt continuously creeps into her dream world, which is reflected in her eventual hallucination-induced suicide in the real world at the end of the film.
There are lots of indicators that Betty and Rita are living in a dream world. From the clumsy hitman (Betty secretly hoping he’ll fail his mission) to the Club Silencio scene (singing continues despite the performer collapsing), Mulholland Drive features plenty of bizarre, ambiguous sequences that allude to Diane’s guilt and the flimsiness of dreaming. However, the most iconic yet simultaneously confusing is the diner scene, featuring a horrifying jumpscare. The scene takes place just ten minutes into the film, following Rita’s confused arrival at Betty’s place. As she lays down to sleep, we are introduced to two unnamed men (the internet claims they are called Dan and Herb) who are eating at Winkie’s diner.
Dan tells Herb about a recurring dream he’s been having, which is set in that same Winkie’s, at neither day nor night – some kind of liminal space. He tells him that by coming to the place of his dream, he hopes to rid himself of the “god-awful feeling” that has been tormenting him. As he recounts the dream, which features Herb walking to the counter before encountering a terrifying creature around the back, tension slowly builds through ominous music and Dan’s viscerally concerned facial expressions. Yet, when Herb gets up to pay, he stands in the same place Dan described in his dream, suggesting that his nightmare is slowly becoming a reality.
The pair walk outside to see if the monstrous creature is there. Lynch employs POV shots to add anticipation, slowly creeping towards the building. Sure enough, the creature – a genderless, dirty figure – is lurking behind the wall, gliding out into the camera’s face, causing Dan to collapse into Herb’s arms. The scene doesn’t fit into the narrative we’ve been fed so far, and we never return to this storyline besides briefly seeing images of Dan and the creature later on.
This scene demonstrates the convergence of dreams and the real world, instructing audiences to question the events they see in the rest of the film, which will similarly blur the lines between fantasy and reality. As part of Diane’s dream world, this scene represents her guilt through a clever metaphor that we won’t come to understand until the end of the movie. If we see Dan as Diane, and the hideous creature as truth and fear, then this scene suggests that Diane can’t handle being faced with the reality of her actions. Just as Dan sees the monster and passes out/potentially dies, Diane, racked with guilt, shoots herself at the end of the movie, horrified by the interweaving of her nightmare with reality.
This is further emphasised by a scene between Diane and the hitman that takes place at the same diner, where they arrange the murder. When Diane dies, and the strange creature’s face is emblazoned on the screen, one last manifestation of Diane’s insecurity and fears come true.
Thus, Lynch cleverly foreshadows the film’s ending, establishes key themes about dreams, sets up the film’s confusing trajectory and creates an ominous atmosphere, all in one sequence. Scenes like this one are the reason Mulholland Drive is such an outstanding film.
