La vie rêvée de David L

Now it kind of makes sense. Reading the only other review on here that says the David L in question was, in fact, David Lynch. Possibly.

This is a reasonably normal film at first glance, of competing artists all vying for the chance at an exhibition. There are the nice students and the nasty. The backstabbers and the plotters. And then there are the teachers with their favourites and scapegoats.

There are some strange themes along the way, the relationship with the disabled girl, the possible incestuous relationship between teacher and daughter, bribery, violence, blackmail and messages delivered by bizarre persons.. Not great but worth a look if you are a David L completist.

A French film based on David Lynch's student years. I don't know if it is taken from an auto/biography or completely fabricated, but it covers a period at art college after leaving law school.

The location is a mixture of spacious and airy stone buildings, with some winding, narrow corridors and stone staircases, with a beautiful sweeping oval staircase of several stories in the main building.

This setting allows for some Lynchian tropes: vintage iron radiators, moisture dripping into puddles, a wheelchair user, a character who only appears to make short gnomic comments before receding into the shadows, and a final coda to please fans.

Lynch is portrayed as a prodigiously talented artist but a slightly scuzzy human being, almost parasitic in his relationships, and a terrible timekeeper. Although the script involves people scheming against him, his own trajectory is self-destructive without help.

While not without flaws, the pacing is good and the characters a fair mix of narcissists, schemers and saints. Enjoyable, but I cannot comment on its accuracy.