There were three things I liked about this movie: Francis McDormand, Natasha McElhonne, and the music (which even at times was in the contrived hipster-vein). I've always argued that Christian Bale, while he chooses interesting projects and, on the whole, good movies, is not a very versatile actor. When you replace Willem Dafoe, Micheal Ironside, Emma Watson, and Micheal Caine with Kate Bekinsale, this shortcoming is apparent. Kate Bekinsale is ridiculous in this movie. I rarely see acting this awkward. The two of them combine to make the least interesting pair I've ever seen. Bekinsale's side story revolves around some ridiculous research of Drosophila. The unrealism comes in when the audience is supposed to believe that someone is writing their Ivy League thesis about the fruit fly. People do this type of thing in undergrad at LSU. A friend of mine told me that I simply don't understand the movie or the lifestyle it portrays because I'm not from LA. I can't buy into this because Mulholland Drive is easily my favorite movie. Lynch is able to convey to his audience the California-way with much more intelligence, and that's barely even a story.