David Lynch: Collection of Short Films – Part 3

We observe Lynch in his embryonic phase – still unrefined, yet already laced with fear and obsessed with form. Six Men Getting Sick is a kinetic stain – a painterly horror spilling across the screen like wet paint. The Alphabet feels like a child’s nightmare trapped in animation, where learning letters turns into a psychedelic torture. The Grandmother is a dark fairytale about loneliness and an escape into surreal visions, already foreshadowing the world of Eraserhead. Then comes The Amputee – static, yet brimming with unease. In contrast, The Cowboy and the Frenchman feels almost like a lighthearted anecdote – a Western pastiche filtered through Lynch’s surreal lens, where cultural stereotypes collapse into a grotesque dance of miscommunication.

Mikołaj Mizak

David Lynch (1946 – 2025) – an American director, screenwriter, producer and visual artist, born in Missoula, Montana. He studied painting in Philadelphia, before moving to Los Angeles to make films. He began production on his feature-length debut, Eraserhead, while still a student at the American Film Institute’s Centre for Advanced Film and Television Studies, which initially provided funding for the project. Lynch was one of the most original and influential cinema visionaries. His signature mix of surrealism, genre tropes and experimental narration found favour with a wide audience. Lynch’s films relied heavily on striking visual and soundtrack elements, which always function as integral parts of the complex structure of his works. In addition to directing, he has practised painting, photography, meditation and experimented with new media. A three-time Oscar nominee, Lynch was awarded the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival for Wild at Heart (1990).