UNDER THE SILVER LAKE: A Mesmerizing Mixed Bag

If there’s anything that can be said about director David Robert Mitchell, it’s that he likes to envision his characters in a world of clandestine beauty. His storytelling skills seem inspired by a mix of Hollywood classics and dreamy worlds like those in Donnie Darko or The Virgin Suicides. With his debut feature It Follows, Mitchell created a wholly unique horror production, one that utilized scares effectively but never felt too bonkers, even with the fact of the film’s noteworthy “monster” of sorts.

His follow-up, Under the Silver Lake, follows Sam (Andrew Garfield), a 33-year-old who wanders aimlessly through life, avoiding daily responsibilities and spending time spying on neighbors from his balcony. When a mysterious woman named Sarah (Riley Keough) arrives at his apartment complex, he strikes up conversation one evening but is shocked to discover the next day that she has mysteriously vanished overnight, along with all of her belongings. Determined to uncover the mystery of her disappearance, Sam embarks on a journey across L.A. to find her, encountering and uncovering underlying mysteries as a result.

Considering Under the Silver Lake is produced by the now-renowned independent studio A24, things couldn’t look better for Mitchell and co., especially considering said studio’s track record as of late. To put it simply, the film mostly manages to live up to its monumental hype, and might just be better than It Follows. While not without its issues (and there’s certainly an abundance), Mitchell has given filmgoers another excellent creation that will surely become a cult classic in subsequent years.

Visible Inspiration

As mentioned earlier, Mitchell clearly likes to take a trip down memory lane for his inspiration, which couldn’t be clearer here. From the camera’s first venture inside Sam’s apartment, his love for films of the ’50s and ’60s is shown in spades through posters on his wall for classic Hitchc*ck movies like Psycho and Rear Window. As is the case with the former, Mitchell fully takes hold of the narrative craft that films like that embodied, with the mystery of Sarah’s disappearance leading to some increasingly insane confrontations later on in the story.

Some other references that Mitchell throws in for the viewer’s pleasure include that of the original Universal monster movies like The Wolf Man and Creature from the Black Lagoon. There’s a recurring plot point that pops up throughout this film’s runtime, focusing on a zine with the same title as the film that features outlandish characters such as a serial dog killer and an owl woman who seduces men and murders them.

What’s great about these homages is that they’re always delivered in stability, never once coming off as lackluster additions to a movie already thick with plot elements nor feeling so forcibly inserted that they’re jarring in scope and scale. Even more importantly, however, they fit thematically within the story, blending into the surreal surroundings while standing out at the same time. This is a feat very few directors manage to accomplish with their films, and somehow it works here.

Beautiful and Distinct Visuals

Something that the viewer will immediately notice about Under the Silver Lake is just how stunning it is in terms of its visual flair. It wouldn’t be a surprise if, by the end of 2019, this turns out to remain one of the most mesmerizing films of the year. The luscious colors stand out as some of the finest expression this film has to offer, allowing a dreamlike version of the City of Angels to shine through. Rooftop parties and intricate gardens are examples, but even the murky and shadier side of this film’s world still manages to look incredible.

It’s not just what the viewer sees with their eyes that’s superb; so is the enchanting score by Richard Vreeland, aka Disasterpiece. He also did the score for It Follows, but his compositions for this film can be described as superior in many ways, acting as more than a simple backdrop and helping contribute to the hazy surroundings embodied by the stellar production design and Mike Gioulakis‘ outstanding cinematography.

Andrew Garfield delivers a performance that feels heavily inspired by the disenchanted protagonists of Hollywood’s Golden Age. It can feel a bit underutilized in terms of emotional weight; viewers may find it hard to care for Sam or even like him at all. That being said, he does carry the film and helps to create a heavily interesting narrative that will keep viewers guessing with each new clue that’s unveiled. However, the narrative does have some issues of its own, highly indisputable ones, in fact.

Juggling the Plot

Despite the film’s (successful) efforts at crafting an illustrious landscape of enigmatic conspiracies, it’s quite evident that the script can’t measure up to the intrigue set by the first act. It’s clear that Mitchell‘s intentions are there, and they’re distinct among the movie’s neo-noir-fueled visuals. With that in mind, though, they can’t quite distract the viewer long enough from the uneven narrative.

With Under the Silver Lake, it seems as if Mitchell thinks that he’ll never direct a film or write a script for one ever again. As a result of this, it feels like he may have bitten off more than he could chew in regards to the way the different story arcs and characters are handled. A plethora of ideas about pop culture and society are tackled, and there’s little to no breathing room left for the viewer, causing the mishandling and creation of an almost claustrophobic story that feels so meshed together, even with the 139-minute runtime.

Now, that’s not to say that the story itself isn’t psychically engaging, because it wholeheartedly is. Weirdly enough, the bizarre narrative is so complex that the film itself feels like it’s over too soon. Despite the overall fumbling of the plot’s construction, Mitchell manages to bring it all together in the end with a phenomenal ending that ties together all of the puzzles given to viewers in prior scenes. It’s stunning in its execution and lifts this film up past its undeniable shortcomings.

How Does Under the Silver Lake Stack Up?

While a bit rough around the edges, Under the Silver Lake is one of those films that you’ll be lucky to experience even in light of its flaws, and stands as an astounding sophomore effort. David Robert Mitchell‘s latest is an incredible vision brought to life with vivid expression. It’s packed to the brim with ideas about our society and feels a bit self-indulgent as a result of them, but still serves up deliciously lush sensory overloads and spellbinding story arcs made doubly as engaging by quality performances and a finale that will leave you reeling.

It may not achieve everything it sets out to do, but the movie is certainly innovative, and entertaining at the very least.

What is your favorite Golden Age film? What about your favorite classic director? Let us know in the comments below!

Under the Silver Lake will be released in the United States on April 19, 2019.