Here are three undeniable facts – firstly, none of us were expecting to wake up this morning to find a new David Lynch film having secretly been released, especially when the story involves Lynch interrogating a monkey, who is yearning for his long-lost love, Toototabon, a beautiful chicken, and who may or may not be a cold-blooded murderer. Secondly, there was absolutely no chance that I wasn’t going to jump at the opportunity to bask in the glorious artistic anarchy Lynch perpetually incites in every viewer of his brilliant work. What Did Jack Do? is one truly incredible way of kickstarting the new decade, and while anything Lynch made would be subjected to instant adoration, the fact that he released something that proves to be everything we’d expect from the director at this point, and then even more, is truly astounding, and a potent reminder as to why he’s one of the greatest film directors to ever work in the medium. Despite being a mere 17 minutes in length, What Did Jack Do? is a nightmarish picture of a society that could only be conceived with the precise blend of demented creativity and outright audacity that Lynch has peddled throughout his career, and put to enormously effective use in this film, which descends into complete absurdity, without feeling anything less than what we’d expect when entering into what we know will certainly be a memorable, if not outright harrowing, experience.

Words certainly are extremely cheap, especially when it comes to the work of David Lynch, but as evident by this short but impactful work of pure artistic anarchy, the director has continued to prove himself a true renaissance man of cinema, with the longevity to deliver an unconventional masterpiece for the sixth decade running, which is an achievement for any director, especially one like Lynch, whose consistent reinventions of the form make him a steadfast proponent of pure artistic liberty. I’ve often remarked that in an artistic landscape where surrealism has continued to grow as a medium, we’ve seen many filmmakers attempt to pay homage to Lynch – however, what became increasingly clear with inarguably his magnum opus, Twin Peaks: The Return (which some may contend could be a candidate for the greatest film of the decade, a controversial opinion, but one that has lent itself to some fascinating discussion), is that no one can imitate Lynch quite like he can. At first, What Did Jack Do? feels like something made by a young filmmaker trying to capture the deranged spirit of the surrealism that Lynch set the foundations for. However, we learn very soon that no one can ever be capable of the kind of demented brilliance Lynch relishes in demonstrating – who else can honestly say that they made a film about a detective interrogating a foul-mouthed monkey with a penchant for singing about his lost love, a particularly alluring hen who unfortunately flew the coop (I’m allowed to make that joke because Lynch himself did in the century-defining role of Gordon Cole in Twin Peaks), which lead him to a train station where he likely murders someone – and still make it far better than mosts straightforward detective films made in the last decade?

There’s a sincerity in this film that makes it so worthwhile, as it’s clear Lynch wasn’t motivated by anything other than the artistic process in the making of this bizarre but alluring piece of short visual fiction. One of the qualities that makes What Did Jack Do? so enduring is that appears to be something that sees Lynch working in two different creative headspaces – he’s trying something new, both in terms of the themes and the way he executes it, but is also returning to the earlier roots of his career, where his animated shorts, and films like Eraserhead, allowed him to express himself creatively. This is Lynch at his most experimental since his earlier days, challenging the very notion of narratives through his method of not deconstruction conventions, but rather warping them into something so familiar, yet so unsettling, we never know whether to be repulsed or seduced, which as often been one of the most incredibly compelling elements of the director’s work, which is demonstrated with the kind of absurd generosity Lynch frequently infuses his work with, even when it’s not particularly clear due to the more arid material. The hollow hallways, the claustrophobic spaces and the cacophony of industrial sounds forming a unique visual and auditory soundtrack to the film all add to the experience of seeing Lynch take a leap into territory he may have dominated for over half a century by this point, which he approaches with the same apprehension as he did when he was a young filmmaker, which lends the film a gravitas very few directors this late in this career can attest to having evoked. He’s enamoured with the craft, which is made so clear in how dedicated he is to complete artistic mayhem.

It’s this dedication to making something that leaves an impression that makes What Did Jack Do? more than just an amusing novelty, and more of a major work that can be analysed (to absolutely no avail, as there’s a complete lack of hidden meaning to this film, but that won’t stop anyone from looking below the surface for more clues) and scrutinized for eternity without a single answer being solved, but a dozen more questions arising after each viewing. Lynch has always appeared to be someone who enjoys confusing the audience, but in a way that doesn’t facilitate surface-level problem-solving, but rather deeper existential issues that may not harbour any real-world relevance (they’re about as logical as the dialogue composed of nothing but non-sequiturs) but exist as imperative factors in the puzzling world of Lynch’s mind. Even writing this, I’m not entirely sure if what I saw was real or just the result of a lucid dream that manifested as something tangible – it certainly wouldn’t be surprising if this entire film was derived from the nightmares of someone with the vivid imagination to concoct such an elaborate tale that is constantly in motion without going anywhere. There’s an underlying absurdity to What Did Jack Do? that just could not ever be thought up by anyone other than Lynch himself, whose dedication to every facet of his craft (as evident in his innumerable credits in the making of this film) is only countered by his incessant tendency to never satiate the cravings of those who wished to see him make something more conventional – of everything Lynch could’ve made (especially in a partnership with Netflix), he opted for a bizarre black-and-white dialogue between a monkey and the chain-smoking detective sent to investigate a murder he’s implicated in, which is in itself an act of staunch defiance against artistic protocol.

If all these concepts don’t show absolute dedication to his work as an artist (rather than strictly a film director), then nothing else will – and the fact that we were able to be witness to Lynch sitting across from a monkey is enough to re-evoke the spirit of surrealism, allow alternative filmmakers to make the bizarre films they have been reluctant to commit to screen, and perhaps even shift the artistic and cinematic discourse towards a place where metanarratives are dismissed in favour of deconstructionist texts that challenge the very fabric of our various societies. What Did Jack Do? doesn’t always make much sense (but when does Lynch ever strive for logic?), but it’s in this reckless disregard for narrative coherency that allows the film to flourish and become such an incredibly offbeat experience. There is something that is universally true for the majority of Lynch’s work that continues here – it’s strange, it’s confusing and its often extremely unsettling, but more than anything else, it’s good work, and confirms him as being someone whose attitude towards filmmaking has always been one of a sneering adoration – he never intended to become someone who revolutionized cinema, endeavouring to just be the scrappy young art student making some experimental short films, so for his career to consist of so many great works that never required him to surrender doing what he loved, meant he didn’t only redefine cinema in his own way but did so through his own terms, which is not something every filmmaker can say.

What Did Jack Do? is a great example of why David Lynch is such an enduring cinematic figure who has collected legions of dedicated disciples over the years, loved by multitudes of people across the world. This film is a great testament to the fact that when you have someone who attuned to his artistic instincts, he can deliver a solid 17 minutes of complete unhinged absurdity, and it wouldn’t feel inauthentic for a moment – highly quotable and hilarious in the perverse way Lynch normally tends to infuse his films with (there are few auteurs who understand the might of blue humour quite as much as him, which is always a great surprise because it grounds the films and gives it a very profound sense of gravitas. It may be more of a novelty than a fully-formed work, but its no less impressive an achievement, and a clear exemplification as to why Lynch has endured for all these decades without ever once abandoning his artistic vision. To reach the point where his latest work sees him conversing with a monkey (who he also provides the voice for) seems like poetic justice for a filmmaker whose entire career started from not only challenging well-regarded artistic laws, but rewriting them in his own manic way to realize his absurd vision – and where would we be if it wasn’t for David Lynch breaking every rule he came into contact with? If nothing else, What Did Jack Do? just once again reminds us of what a true visionary he is – and that’s the third undeniable fact.