David Lynch - Ranked and Rated

David Lynch

Short Biography:

David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, painter, visual artist, actor, musician, writer, and philanthropist. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director and the César Award for Best Foreign Film twice, as well as the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival[6] and a Golden Lion award for lifetime achievement at the Venice Film Festival. In 2007, a panel of critics convened by The Guardian announced that “after all the discussion, no one could fault the conclusion that David Lynch is the most important filmmaker of the current era”, while AllMovie called him “the Renaissance man of modern American filmmaking”.

Here is a rundown of his movies, with the score based on the average from IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes (public votes only) and Letterboxd, from lowest ranked to highest:

NUMBER OF MOVIES:

CAREER AVERAGE SCORE:

TOTAL WORLDWIDE BOX OFFICE:

TOTAL BUDGETS COMBINED:

TOTAL PROFIT OR LOSS:

CAREER PROFIT RETURN ON INVESTMENT

7.80

$ 119,151,471

$ 113,500,000

$ 5,651,471

$ 1.35

10 – Dune (1984)

A world beyond your experience, beyond your imagination.

6.11 /10

Action | Science Fiction | Adventure

Directed by: David Lynch

Top Billed Cast:

SYNOPSIS:

In the year 10,191, the world is at war for control of the desert planet Arrakis—the only place where the space-travel substance Melange ‘Spice’ can be found. But when one leader gives up control, it’s only so he can stage a coup with some unsavory characters.

Critics response: Slightly Negative

73 Critic reviews: 31 positive (42.5%); 42 negative (57.5%)

(Source: Rotten Tomatoes)

FINANCIAL DATA:

WORLDWIDE BOX OFFICE GROSS:

$ 30,979,816

PRODUCTION BUDGET:

$ 40,000,000

PROFIT OR (LOSS):

$ (9,020,184)

PROFIT RETURN (OR LOSS IF FIGURE IS UNDER 1):

$ 0.77

9 – Inland Empire (2006)

A woman in trouble.

7.29 /10

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Fantasy

Directed by: David Lynch

Top Billed Cast:

SYNOPSIS:

A blonde actress is preparing for her biggest role yet, but when she finds herself falling for her co-star, she realizes that her life is beginning to mimic the fictional film that they’re shooting. Adding to her confusion is the revelation that the film is a remake of a doomed Polish production, “47,” which was never finished due to an unspeakable tragedy. And, that’s only the beginning. Soon, a seemingly endless onslaught of indescribably bizarre situations flashes across the screen: a sitcom featuring humans in bunny suits, a parallel story set in a wintry Poland, a houseful of dancing streetwalkers, screwdrivers in stomachs, menacing Polish carnies, and much, much more.

Critics response: Mostly Positive

112 Critic reviews: 38 positive (71.4%); 32 negative (28.6%)

(Source: Rotten Tomatoes)

FINANCIAL DATA:

WORLDWIDE BOX OFFICE GROSS:

$ 4,299,667

PRODUCTION BUDGET:

$ 3,000,000

PROFIT OR (LOSS):

$ 1,299,667

PROFIT RETURN (OR LOSS IF FIGURE IS UNDER 1):

$ 1.43

8 – Wild at Heart (1990)

A wild crazy love story.

7.61 /10

Comedy | Crime | Thriller

Directed by: David Lynch

Top Billed Cast:

SYNOPSIS:

After serving prison time for a self-defense killing, Sailor Ripley reunites with girlfriend Lula Fortune. Lula’s mother, Marietta, desperate to keep them apart, hires a hitman to kill Sailor. But he finds a whole new set of troubles when he and Bobby Peru, an old buddy who’s also out to get Sailor, try to rob a store. When Sailor lands in jail yet again, the young lovers appear further than ever from the shared life they covet.

Critics response: Mostly Positive

52 Critic reviews: 35 positive (67.3%); 17 negative (32.7%)

(Source: Rotten Tomatoes)

FINANCIAL DATA:

WORLDWIDE BOX OFFICE GROSS:

$ 14,600,000

PRODUCTION BUDGET:

$ 9,500,000

PROFIT OR (LOSS):

$ 5,100,000

PROFIT RETURN (OR LOSS IF FIGURE IS UNDER 1):

$ 1.54

7 – Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992)

Meet Laura Palmer… In a town where nothing is as it seems… And everyone has something to hide.

7.70 /10

Drama | Mystery | Horror

Directed by: David Lynch

Top Billed Cast:

SYNOPSIS:

In the questionable town of Deer Meadow, Washington, FBI Agent Desmond inexplicably disappears while hunting for the man who murdered a teen girl. The killer is never apprehended, and, after experiencing dark visions and supernatural encounters, Agent Dale Cooper chillingly predicts that the culprit will claim another life. Meanwhile, in the more cozy town of Twin Peaks, hedonistic beauty Laura Palmer hangs with lowlifes and seems destined for a grisly fate.

Critics response: Slightly Positive

75 Critic reviews: 48 positive (64%); 27 negative (36%)

(Source: Rotten Tomatoes)

FINANCIAL DATA:

WORLDWIDE BOX OFFICE GROSS:

$ 4,184,990

PRODUCTION BUDGET:

$ 10,000,000

PROFIT OR (LOSS):

$ (5,815,010)

PROFIT RETURN (OR LOSS IF FIGURE IS UNDER 1):

$ 0.42

6 – Eraserhead (1977)

Where your nightmares end…

7.76 /10

Fantasy | Horror

Directed by: David Lynch

Top Billed Cast:

SYNOPSIS:

Henry (John Nance) resides alone in a bleak apartment surrounded by industrial gloom. When he discovers that an earlier fling with Mary X (Charlotte Stewart) left her pregnant, he marries the expectant mother and has her move in with him. Things take a decidedly strange turn when the couple’s baby turns out to be a bizarre lizard-like creature that won’t stop wailing. Other characters, including a disfigured lady who lives inside a radiator, inhabit the building and add to Henry’s troubles.

Critics response: Extremely Positive

63 Critic reviews: 57 positive (90.5%); 6 negative (9.5%)

(Source: Rotten Tomatoes)

FINANCIAL DATA:

WORLDWIDE BOX OFFICE GROSS:

NOT ENOUGH DATA

PRODUCTION BUDGET:

PROFIT OR (LOSS):

PROFIT RETURN (OR LOSS IF FIGURE IS UNDER 1):

5 – Lost Highway (1997)

We’ve met before, haven’t we…

8.07 /10

Drama | Thriller | Mystery

Directed by: David Lynch

Top Billed Cast:

Natasha Gregson Wagner

Richard Pryor

SYNOPSIS:

From this inventory of imagery, Lynch fashions two separate but intersecting stories, one about a jazz musician (Bill Pullman), tortured by the notion that his wife is having an affair, who suddenly finds himself accused of her murder. The other is a young mechanic (Balthazar Getty) drawn into a web of deceit by a temptress who is cheating on her gangster boyfriend. These two tales are linked by the fact that the women in both are played by the same actress (Patricia Arquette).

Critics response: Mostly Positive

52 Critic reviews: 35 positive (67.3%); 17 negative (32.7%)

(Source: Rotten Tomatoes)

FINANCIAL DATA:

WORLDWIDE BOX OFFICE GROSS:

$ 3,755,139

PRODUCTION BUDGET:

$ 15,000,000

PROFIT OR (LOSS):

$ (11,244,861)

PROFIT RETURN (OR LOSS IF FIGURE IS UNDER 1):

$ 0.25

4 – Blue Velvet (1986)

It’s a strange world.

8.21 /10

Drama | Crime | Mystery | Thriller

Directed by: David Lynch

Top Billed Cast:

SYNOPSIS:

College student Jeffrey Beaumont (Kyle MacLachlan) returns home after his father has a stroke. When he discovers a severed ear in an abandoned field, Beaumont teams up with detective’s daughter Sandy Williams (Laura Dern) to solve the mystery. They believe beautiful lounge singer Dorothy Vallens (Isabella Rossellini) may be connected with the case, and Beaumont finds himself becoming drawn into her dark, twisted world, where he encounters sexually depraved psychopath Frank Booth (Dennis Hopper).

Critics response: Universal Praise

80 Critic reviews: 76 positive (95%); 4 negative (5%)

(Source: Rotten Tomatoes)

FINANCIAL DATA:

WORLDWIDE BOX OFFICE GROSS:

$ 8,618,766

PRODUCTION BUDGET:

$ 6,000,000

PROFIT OR (LOSS):

$ 2,618,766

PROFIT RETURN (OR LOSS IF FIGURE IS UNDER 1):

$ 1.44

3 – Mulholland Drive (2001)

An actress longing to be a star. A woman searching for herself. Both worlds will collide… on Mulholland Drive.

8.33 /10

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Directed by: David Lynch

Top Billed Cast:

SYNOPSIS:

Blonde Betty Elms has only just arrived in Hollywood to become a movie star when she meets an enigmatic brunette with amnesia. Meanwhile, as the two set off to solve the second woman’s identity, filmmaker Adam Kesher runs into ominous trouble while casting his latest project.

Critics response: Highly Positive

186 Critic reviews: 158 positive (84.9%); 28 negative (15.1%)

(Source: Rotten Tomatoes)

FINANCIAL DATA:

WORLDWIDE BOX OFFICE GROSS:

$ 20,271,905

PRODUCTION BUDGET:

$ 15,000,000

PROFIT OR (LOSS):

$ 5,271,905

PROFIT RETURN (OR LOSS IF FIGURE IS UNDER 1):

$ 1.35

2 – The Straight Story (1999)

A true story that proves a little determination goes a very, very long way.

8.37 /10

Drama

Directed by: David Lynch

Top Billed Cast:

SYNOPSIS:

A retired farmer and widower in his 70s, Alvin Straight learns one day that his distant brother Lyle has suffered a stroke and may not recover. Alvin is determined to make things right with Lyle while he still can, but his brother lives in Wisconsin, while Alvin is stuck in Iowa with no car and no driver’s license. Then he hits on the idea of making the trip on his old lawnmower, thus beginning a picturesque and at times deeply spiritual odyssey.

Critics response: Universal Praise

105 Critic reviews: 100 positive (95.2%); 5 negative (4.8%)

(Source: Rotten Tomatoes)

FINANCIAL DATA:

WORLDWIDE BOX OFFICE GROSS:

$ 6,416,569

PRODUCTION BUDGET:

$ 10,000,000

PROFIT OR (LOSS):

$ (3,583,431)

PROFIT RETURN (OR LOSS IF FIGURE IS UNDER 1):

$ 0.64

1 – The Elephant Man (1980)

I am not an animal! I am a human being! I … am … a man!

8.58 /10

Drama | History

Directed by: David Lynch

Top Billed Cast:

SYNOPSIS:

A Victorian surgeon rescues a heavily disfigured man being mistreated by his “owner” as a side-show freak. Behind his monstrous façade, there is revealed a person of great intelligence and sensitivity. Based on the true story of Joseph Merrick (called John Merrick in the film), a severely deformed man in 19th century London.

Critics response: Overwhelmingly Positive

56 Critic reviews: 51 positive (91.1%); 5 negative (8.9%)

(Source: Rotten Tomatoes)

FINANCIAL DATA:

WORLDWIDE BOX OFFICE GROSS:

$ 26,024,619

PRODUCTION BUDGET:

$ 5,000,000

PROFIT OR (LOSS):

$ 21,024,619

PROFIT RETURN (OR LOSS IF FIGURE IS UNDER 1):

$ 5.20

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