# Wild At Heart- Does this movie suck or what??! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 13, 2005, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387 "2005-09-13T03:35:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/1 "2005-09-13T03:35:19Z")
I just watched the first thirty minutes, and I couldn’t take it any more. The bad acting, the horrible script, oh sweet Jesus, it burns! Did you like it? Should I give it another chance in the hopes that it will redeem itself as it goes? ---
**Author:** ![Go\_Blue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ce73a5/32.png) [@Go\_Blue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Go_Blue)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/2 "2005-09-13T03:37:13Z")
No it sucks. Bad Idea + Bad Execution = Suck ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/3 "2005-09-13T03:41:09Z")
I figured since it was a “cult classic” I’d be missing out if I didn’t watch it. Maybe not. ---
**Author:** ![Go\_Blue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ce73a5/32.png) [@Go\_Blue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Go_Blue)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/4 "2005-09-13T03:44:50Z")
It is part of that period of Lynch’s career where his work didn’t really have anything to say, but people assumed it did and would struggle to one of the people who got it - when there was nothing to get. See: _Lost Highway_ ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/5 "2005-09-13T03:48:14Z")
And **Go Blue** gets it in one. I love David Lynch, and I can’t stand either WAH or LH. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/6 "2005-09-13T04:35:02Z")
Wild At Heart- Does this movie suck or what??! Tom Clancy… Is it me, or does he suck? ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/7 "2005-09-13T04:51:39Z")
I think it’s pretty subjective. _Wild at Heart_ is one of my favourite David Lynch movies – and maybe even one of my favourite movies. _Lost Highway_ kicks three kinds of ass. Of course, they’re both just plain weird, and if that’s off-putting to you, you’re not going to like either of them. Beyond that, _Wild At Heart_ has a certain amount of intertextuality with _Twin Peaks_, so unless you’re up on _Twin Peaks_, there’ll be a lot of stuff in there that either makes no impression or at all, or leaves you wondering what the hell it was about, anyway – where nerdy and obsessive David Lynch fans’ reaction would be “Cool!” ---
**Author:** ![Giant\_Spongess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/94ad74/32.png) [@Giant\_Spongess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giant_Spongess)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/8 "2005-09-13T04:54:19Z")
_Lost Highway_ is a goth wet dream. _Mulholland Drive_ is a hipster wet dream. I have seen any other David Lynch movies, but I’d guess the rest of them are wet dreams too. ---
**Author:** ![SolGrundy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbce88/32.png) [@SolGrundy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SolGrundy)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/9 "2005-09-13T05:06:03Z")
_Wild at Heart_ is one of my favorite movies ever. Easily in the top 20, maybe higher. I love it. So in answer to the OP: “or what.” ---
**Author:** ![Interrobang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/interrobang/32/17463_2.png) [@Interrobang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Interrobang)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/10 "2005-09-13T05:13:31Z")
Or what. It’s weak David Lynch, but weak David Lynch remains utterly fascinating. And it’s not as good as _Lost Highway_, which is sort of similar in tone but works a lot better – and includes the exceptionally creepy pale bald guy played by Robert Blake. “Call me.” (shudder) Of course, I love _Mulholland Drive_, so maybe I’m just a hipster with some wet, wet dreams. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/11 "2005-09-13T05:18:32Z")
> [@Walloon](#): > > Wild At Heart- Does this movie suck or what??! > > Tom Clancy… Is it me, or does he suck? Memo to self: When David Lynch does Tom Clancy, stay home and read Elmore Leonard. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 9:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/12 "2005-09-13T09:25:47Z")
> [@Larry Mudd](#): > > _Wild at Heart_ is one of my favourite David Lynch movies – and maybe even one of my favourite movies. _Lost Highway_ kicks three kinds of ass. > > Of course, they’re both just plain weird, and if that’s off-putting to you, you’re not going to like either of them. Bingo. I love Wild at Heart. I like lots of weird movies. If you don’t, you’re not going to like it. But your taste is not an objective measure. And neither is mine. ---
**Author:** ![Rainbowthief](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4bbf92/32.png) [@Rainbowthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rainbowthief)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 9:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/13 "2005-09-13T09:45:08Z")
I love Lynch, though I’m not a blind Lynch-worshipping fanboy (I know that **Dune** and **Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me** are crap), and I love **Wild at Heart** and **Lost Highway** is my favorite Lynch movie, even above **Eraserhead** and **Blue Velvet**. ---
**Author:** ![threeorange](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@threeorange](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/threeorange)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 9:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/14 "2005-09-13T09:47:02Z")
FWIW, **Wild at Heart** is the only film I ever paid to watch in a theatre and walked out on (and it only took 25 minutes). Does anyone know how to contact Lynch so I can demand my money back? ---
**Author:** ![cbawlmer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71e660/32.png) [@cbawlmer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cbawlmer)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/15 "2005-09-13T15:15:55Z")
I’m another “or what”. It’s not my favorite by Lynch, but I like it. I can totally see where other people wouldn’t like it though. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/16 "2005-09-13T15:19:36Z")
I’ve never managed to make it past the previews. One of the cable movie channels was running it last month, and the previews were absolutely sucktastic. So much so, that even though I was aware of its cult classic status, that I mentally filed it under “don’t bother.” ---
**Author:** ![mrunlucky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7993a0/32.png) [@mrunlucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mrunlucky)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/17 "2005-09-13T16:48:47Z")
This came out when Lynch was very popular, because of “Twin Peaks”. It’s also very accessable to the public at large. He followed _Wild At Heart_ with _Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me_, which was not accessable, much more true to the spirit of his movies, and generally disliked by the public at large. My impression is that because Lynch was riding on a huge wave of popularity with “Twin Peaks”, everyone wanted to at least _say_ they liked this movie. And for many who were unfamiliar with Lynch until “Twin Peaks”, but liked the TV series, there were millions of new converts eager to embrace anything new of his. So, _Wild At Heart_ thus has a “cult” status because it was one of his most popular movies. This “cult” status is different than the status given to the rest of Lynch’s body of work. It also won the US Palme d’Or at Cannes, which people feel gives it a sort of “importance” (though I still think that importance was based on Lynch’s growing popularity more than anything.) It’s also a very violent movie, and very over the top and campy, which can be off-putting for its own reasons. I love Lynch movies but I’m in the camp of fans dislike this movie. However I’m in the small camp of fans who likes _Fire Walk With Me_. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/18 "2005-09-13T16:49:06Z")
_WAH_ is hard to take for a lot of people because it’s unapologetically Bigger Than Life. There are plenty of movies people will praise despite being hammy w/scenery-chewing acting, but it’s all in the pretense of being “realistic”. _WAH_ isn’t any different except that it abandons these transparent pretenses. It’s absurdism of the highest order, which means some of it really doesn’t work, and some of it does even though it shouldn’t, and some of it is genuinely brilliant (to the point that you wished these parts were in a more tonally consistent movie). To take a page from Giant\_Spongess, _WAH_ is a wet dream for kinky _Wizard of Oz_ fans. I can’t say I’m the biggest advocate, but it’s a long time since I’ve seen it and it’s definitely the type of movie that you can hate one viewing and then completely fall for it years later. ---
**Author:** ![vibrotronica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/a9a28c/32.png) [@vibrotronica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vibrotronica)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/19 "2005-09-13T17:04:32Z")
I liked _WAH_ when I saw it in the theater, but then about a month ago I saw it on cable and was really unimpressed by it. It just doesn’t hang together with the kind of thematic unity that Lynch usually pulls off. And by that I mean that Lynch at his best operates by a kind of dream logic, but it’s internally consistent dream logic. OK, so there’s a midget that talks backwards. That doesn’t make sense in the “real world”, but somehow it fits in with _this_ world. But WAH seems all over the place, and not in a good way. Plus, I hate Laura Dern. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387/20 "2005-09-13T17:35:49Z")
I think most movies, and especially David Lynch movies work better in a theatre. A Lynch movie is something that you have to imerse yourself in to get the full expierence. I like Wild at Heart, really like Blue Velvet and I love The Elephant Man. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wild-at-heart-does-this-movie-suck-or-what/321387.md?page=2)