David Lynch death updates: Tributes pour in as Twin Peaks and Mulholland Drive director dies aged 78
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The ‘Eraserhead’ and ‘Elephant Man’ director was described as ‘the first populist surrealist’. David Lynch, the celebrated director of avant-garde films such as Eraserhead, Mulholland Drive and Elephant Man and the much loved TV show Twin Peaks, has died at the age of 78.
Lynch developed a singular style known for unsettling visuals, stream-of-consciousness storytelling style, and kitsch soundtracks. As a director he walked a tightrope between his artistic sensibilities and his inexplicable popular appeal among the more conventional moviegoing public, with New Yorker film critic Pauline Kael labelling him “the first populist surrealist”.
In his frequent collaborations with Hollywood luminaries such as Laura Dern, Kyle MacLachlan, Sheryl Lee, Naomi Watts, Jack Nance and Harry Dean Stanton, the director leaves behind an oeuvre which rivals the medium’s most accomplished auteurs. Comedian and actor Patton Oswalt jokes about Lynch’s surreal style in his tribute, writing: “David Lynch, RIP. At least that’s what the horse wearing a fez just told me* in a dream. (*Backwards and in Swedish)”.
