Film

Mulholland Falls

Name: Mulholland Falls
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller, Crime
Released: 1996
Cast: Nick Nolte, Melanie Griffith, Chazz Palminteri, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn

A stylish 1950s noir about an elite LAPD crime squad investigating a murder that leads them into the city's most dangerous corners. It's all slicked-back hair, moral compromise, and the creeping realization that the cops might be as corrupt as the criminals. Gorgeous to watch, unevenly told, and built for anyone who loves their crime stories set in vintage Los Angeles.

TMDb rating

3.0

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like noir-tinged crime stories where the mood of postwar Los Angeles, its paranoia and its moral fog, matters as much as the case itself, and you don't mind a slow burn with an ensemble of hard-edged men.

Skip it if you want brisk plotting and a tidy solve; the investigation wanders, the film leans on atmosphere and character more than momentum, and the R-rated violence arrives without much warning.

What it asks of you: Settle in for just under two hours of patient, shadowy storytelling that rewards close attention, with long stretches of talk and brooding before the pieces start to click together.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

L.A. Confidential1997

A masterclass in 1950s LA noir that nails everything Mulholland Falls reaches for. Complex detectives, institutional corruption, period detail so rich you can taste it, and a story that actually lands its punches.

But It came out right after and overshadowed it completely. If you want originality, this is the thing people remember instead.

Chinatown1974

The definitive LA noir: a detective spiralling into a conspiracy that gets darker the deeper he digs. Polanski's direction is absolute control, and the ending refuses to comfort you.

But It's deliberately bleak and the plot can feel labyrinthine. If you want clarity and catharsis, this isn't offering either.

The Big Sleep1946

Bogart and Bacall in the original: a private detective tangled in blackmail and murder amid the LA underworld. The chemistry is electric and the dialogue sparkles even when the plot doesn't quite make sense.

But It's a 1940s studio film, so the pacing and some attitudes feel very much of that era. The plot genuinely becomes hard to follow.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Mulholland Falls

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Miller's Crossing1990

Both are about police/crime systems where honor and corruption are impossible to separate; both are stylistically baroque and obsessed with 1950s/Prohibition-era aesthetics; both feature ensemble casts where everyone is complicit in the moral failure around them.

A Prohibition-era crime film told with Shakespearean formality and the Coens' arch sensibility. It's about loyalty, betrayal, and the cost of walking between worlds—the moral geometry of Mulholland Falls but more textured and stranger.

But The style is so mannered it can feel airless. Every scene is arranged like a chess problem, and if you prefer naturalism, you'll feel the artifice constantly.

Brick2006

High-school noir told in hard-boiled detective language. It shouldn't work but it does, and the commitment to the style while updating the setting is genuinely clever and satisfying.

But The affectation wears differently on everyone. Some find it brilliant, others find it exhausting after twenty minutes.

Mystic River2003

Three men bound by childhood trauma become entangled in a murder investigation that destroys them. Clint Eastwood's direction is restrained and devastating; the ensemble acting is immaculate.

But It's a three-hour commitment about grief and rage. There are no easy answers and the ending is tragic. This is heavy viewing.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang2005

A crime caper set in 1950s Hollywood with an ex-con, a private detective, and a screenplay that crackles with wit. Robert Downey Jr. is effortlessly charming and the dialogue is endlessly quotable.

But The tone is irreverent and sometimes the jokes come at moments that undercut the stakes. If you want unbroken tension, you won't find it here.

Hollywoodland2006

An investigation into the unsolved death of George Reeves (the 1950s Superman) that explores the undersides of Hollywood ambition. It's got a great ensemble and a genuine mystery at its core.

But It's slow-burn and somewhat underrated for a reason. The pacing can feel slack and the conclusion, while thoughtful, isn't as satisfying as you'd hope.

Blood Simple1985

The Coen Brothers' debut: a Texas noir where a bartender, a cheating wife, and a hitman collide in escalating violence. Technically inventive, morally murky, and endlessly rewatchable.

But It's deliberately opaque—the Coens don't explain every motive. Some people find that brilliant; others find it frustrating.

In a Lonely Place1950

Humphrey Bogart as a volatile Hollywood screenwriter suspected of murder, gradually revealing whether he's innocent or just good at seeming so. Ray's direction suggests dread under every scene.

But The pacing is patient almost to the point of listlessness. This isn't plot-driven; it's about mood and deterioration.

Kiss Me Deadly1955

Both are about detectives bumping against power they can't control or predict; both locate American corruption in the body of the city itself; both suggest that solving the crime doesn't solve anything because the corruption is foundational.

Robert Aldrich's atomic-age noir: a private detective's case spirals into something apocalyptic and genuinely unsettling. Shot in brutal black and white, it's violent, sexual, and genuinely menacing in ways that still jar.

But It's a Mike Hammer film, which means misogyny is embedded into the DNA. The treatment of women is appalling by any standard. And the ending is genuinely bleak in a way that some find unfulfilling.