History Film / InlandEmpire

* ArmorPiercingQuestion: "Were you, in fact, seeing another man?"

* TheQuietOne: The bespectacled interviewer, who spends most of his scenes mutely staring at Nikki/Sue. He speaks exactly once during the entire film.

---> '''Neighbor''': Is there a...murder...in your film? \\

--->'''Nikki''': Are you enjoying yourself, Freddie?\\

* ShrugOfGod: David Lynch doesn't like to talk about his movies, and when asked about ''Inland Empire'', he replied that "it's about a woman in trouble and it's a mystery and that's all I want to say about it."

* WritingByTheSeatOfYourPants: The film was written on a scene-by-scene basis, making for a rather surreal "story." The interview segments were apparently filmed first, with the rest of the film revolving loosely around them.

-->'' ''[=AXXoN=] N.'', the longest running radio play in history. Tonight, continuing in the Baltic Region, a gray winter day in an old hotel...''

* GainaxEnding: TheOtherWiki's description of the ending: "The concluding scene of the film takes place in Nikki's house, where she sits with many other people, among them LauraElenaHarring, Nastassja Kinski and Ben Harper. A one-legged woman who was mentioned in Sue's monologue looks around and says, 'Sweet!' Niko, the Japanese girl with a blonde wig and a monkey, is also present. The end credits roll over a group of women dancing and lip-synching to Nina Simone's ''Sinnerman'' while a lumberjack saws a log to the beat." So...yeah.

** The ending has some towards ''Series/TwinPeaks'' and ''Film/MulhollandDrive''.

** DavidLynch wrote it as he went, without knowing where he was going with it to see what would happen. As in, [[AwesomeButPractical he pretty much let his subconscious direct a movie.]] Naturally, the result is probably the closest a movie will ever come to emulating a dream.

* BilingualDialogue: some dialogue is in Polish

** The conversation between the homeless black woman and the Asian girl is a reference to Lynch's short film ''Darkened Room''

* {{Chiaroscuro}}: Used very effectively

* DreamSequence: it's possible the nearly entire thing is inside Nikki's head.
** DavidLynch wrote it as he went, without knowing where he was going with it to see what would happen. As in, [[AwesomeYetPractical he pretty much let his subconscious direct a movie.]] Naturally, the result is probably the closest a movie will ever come to emulating a dream.
* DroneOfDread: A majority of the movies score, with the exception of some [[SoundtrackDissonance weird]] choices, and in one case a ScareChord manages to hang around through half of Music/{{Beck}}'s ''Black Tambourine''.

* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters:A very strange example, considering that it's practically impossible to tell which of those characters are real and which are not, and several actors play visually identical, yet separate characters.
* LostInCharacter: Happens to Nikki at several ocasions, it's hard to tell which scenes are real and which are parts of the film within a film.

* ManlyTears: the wealthy Polish character played by the same actor as The Phantom has these in one scene. It's implied that [[spoiler:he's just killed his wife's lover (Nikki and Sue's husbands in the American segments).]]

* NightmareFace: Ripe with UncannyValley.([[spoiler:Immediately followed by another one that looks like a fetus bleeding from the mouth.]]) The rest of the film does this to several characters with lighting tricks.

* SelfParody: Many have suggested that this film has elements of SelfParody to it. Given that the film is completely [[TrueArtIsIncomprehensible messed up]] it would be hard to seperate parodying elements from others, but some moments do seem ''ridiculously'' Lynchian, such as the ''Locomotion'' scene. This of course doesn't diminish the film being terrifying [[NothingIsScarier beyond]] [[MindScrew all reason.]]
** The Barbecue scene....just....what

* ShoutOut: to ''Film/SunsetBoulevard'', one of Lynch's favorite films.
* ShowWithinAShow: the three rabbits sitcom [[spoiler: Susan's story is zig zagged like a motherfucker.]]

* SpiritualSuccessor: to ''Film/MulhollandDrive'', and ''Film/{{Eraserhead}}''

** [[spoiler: The second twisted face that shows up in the climax is reminiscent of [[{{Eraserhead}} Henry's baby.]]]]

* MindScrew: ''And '''HOW!''''' It's ''[[SerialEscalation above and beyond Eraserhead]]''

* SpiritualSuccessor: to ''MulhollandDrive'', and ''{{Eraserhead}}''

* DroneOfDread: A majority of the movies score, with the exception of some [[SoundtrackDissonance weird]] choices, and in one case a ScareChord manages to hang around through half of {{Beck}}'s ''Black Tambourine''.

* SurrealHumor: See SelfParody

* ShoutOut: to ''Sunset Boulevard'', one of Lynch's favorite films

* PrecisionFStrike: BRUTAL FAUGHKING MURDER

** Though there isn't a coherent script, whether there [[spoiler: isn't a plot]] is questionable and not as relevant as one would expect. It's inarguable that there's several recurring motifs and characters, though.See WritingByTheSeatOfYourPants

* NoPlotNoProblem: This movie was produced without a script. Very frequently Lynch would just show up on the set and gave people their lines, clearly having written them no more than a few hours before. When people would ask him what the film was supposed to be about he would respond with a cryptic poem. The general consensus is that [[spoiler: there is no plot]]

** Though there isn't a (coherent script, whether there [[spoiler: isn't a plot]] is questionable and not as relevant as one would expect. It's inarguable that there's several recurring motifs and characters, though.See WritingByTheSeatOfYourPants

** The ending has some towards Twin Peaks and Mulholland Drive.

* NightmareFace: [[http://api.ning.com/files/-jTS6W3nJqm58uuppaYSG0nyNTVVOTjcc1HUbl4TWuI_/InlandEmpireScream2.jpg Here is is]], ripe with UncannyValley.([[spoiler:Immediately followed by another one that looks like a fetus bleeding from the mouth.]]) The rest of the film does this to several characters with lighting tricks.

* AxCrazy: Nikki's husband [[strike:possibly]]

* DreamSequence: it's possible the entire thing is inside Nikki's head

* DroneOfDread: A majority of the movies score, with the exception of some [[SoundtrackDissonance weird]] choices.

* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters:A very strange example, considering that it'ss practically impossible to tell which of those characters are real and which are not, and several actors play visually identical, yet separate characters.

* MindScrew: ''And '''HOW!''''' It's [[strike:up there with ''Eraserhead''.]] ''[[SerialEscalation above and beyond Eraserhead]]''
* NightmareFace: [[http://api.ning.com/files/-jTS6W3nJqm58uuppaYSG0nyNTVVOTjcc1HUbl4TWuI_/InlandEmpireScream2.jpg Here is is]], ripe with UncannyValley. The rest of the film does this to several characters with lighting tricks.

* SpiritualSuccessor: to ''MulhollandDrive''

* TheVoiceless: The bespectacled interviewer, who spends most of his scenes mutely staring at Nikki/Sue.

* [[spoiler:NoPlotNoProblem]]: This movie was produced without a script. Very frequently Lynch would just show up on the set and gave people their lines, clearly having written them no more than a few hours before. When people would ask him what the film was supposed to be about he would respond with a cryptic poem. The general consensus is that [[spoiler: there is no plot]]

-->''You're listening to'' [=AXXoN=] N.'', the longest radio play in history, continuing in the Baltic Region, a gray winter day in an old hotel...''