Eraserhead

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Harry S Apr 26, 2019 Eraserhead is an uncanny nightmare, almost unexplainable. The protagonist Henry finds he's recently become a father and is forced to marry the mother of his child. The pressure that comes with the responsibilities of being a parent and the sudden change of lifestyle become too much for Henry to handle and he begins contemplating suicide after he realizes he's unable to properly care for his child. See more

Abraham R Feb 21, 2019 22/02/2019

Theodore S Feb 9, 2019 Mind numbing body horror and anxiety inducing suspense. Eraserhead (1977) is like a curious dream that devolves into an absolute nightmare. David Lynch's direction is peerless with a slow burn that creeps into your mind with the horror of what this man is witnessing. To say that Eraserhead is about one man's fear of fatherhood and marriage is an understatement. Eraserhead depicts a socially awkward man suddenly married to a woman he thought he loved and thrust into parenting a deformed monstrous child. It is a gripping horror feast that feeds upon our imagination of what is happening and the details therein our minds. I have to mention Jack Nance's acting performance as Henry Spencer. His massive haircut, awkward saunter, nervous voice, and timid persona all make Henry film's outsider extraordinaire. Eraserhead would not be the same without Nance's incredible leading performance to engage us with the paranormal exotic dream stuff that makes up the majority of Eraserhead. Nance's sincerity gives the viewer a sense that this strange man could very well be real. Lynch's direction is so fascinating as he focuses in on the little details and odd structure of Eraserhead. His imagery is unforgettable as is his windy cold sound design. Lynch's writing is quite realistic and grounded in moments, then jumps into the absurd to shock you. He'll get to the immediate heart of why the lead is afraid of becoming a father, then throw the world at you with unearthly visuals to convey his pain, uncertainty, and horror. The entire score is unsettling organ music played by Fats Waller and scored by Lynch himself. Frederick Elmes and Herbert Cardwell's cinematography is captivating smoothness and long panning shots from David Lynch to suck you into this nightmare world. The camera movements and photography are so beautiful that you are wrapped into a dreamy trance despite the atrocity you are about to witness throughout Eraserhead. Eraserhead is certainly the most ambitious debut film from any director that I can think of as Lynch takes the classic black and white aesthetic and grounds it in a factory town, only to upend our expectations with surreal effects and visuals. The lighting is Eraserhead is immaculate. Lynch has faces illuminated in the darkest rooms, while other times the silhouettes and shadows on the walls are all we get. Lynch's shadowplay style of direction in Eraserhead is stunning to look at and always interesting. Lynch's puppetry, makeup, and special effects are a cinematic wonder. The puppets move so lifelike that you can imagine its agony at existing. The painful movements, gasping breaths, infantile crying, realistic movements, and oily appearance all make the puppetry in Eraserhead phenomenal to behold. The makeup looks so eerie as characters look like ghosts of Adams family members out in society. The special effects all appear practical camera lens tricks and innovative uses of clever editing and sudden framing to hide any of Lynch's effects. All these technical aspects culminate in Eraserhead's hideous baby abortion and spatial dream sequences. Overall, Eraserhead is a totally unique cinematic experience. It's like you are stuck watching the annihilation of the human psyche as Lynch breaks down our comfort levels and focuses in on the inhuman. All to depict the horrors of fatherhood. Eraserhead is an innovative film as well as a thoughtfully resonant one. See more

Abraham W Jan 16, 2019 One of the great surreal horrors, Eraserhead provides disturbing visuals and sound design to create a true industrial fueled nightmare. See more

Hagrid R Dec 24, 2018 Great surrealism all the way from the start to the end. Still thinking about the behind meanings of the film.

Hermione R Oct 18, 2018 David Lynch's first feature-length mind game established the expected mindset with a surrealist look at a realistic theme, which is anxiety for parenthood, that doesn't quite match in elaboration on picture besides the knack of disturbances and the first stretched pacing creates boredom. (B) (Full review TBD) See more

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