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Monkeys say the darndest things
To celebrate his 74th birthday on Monday, filmmaker David Lynch decided to gift the world with another of his wild cinematic adventures -- a surprise short film he dropped on Netflix. Titled WHAT DID JACK DO?, the 17-minute, black-and-white film features Lynch interrogating a monkey who may or may not be a murderer. Annnnd, yep, that's about it.
Despite the abbreviated runtime and tiny scope of its plot, there's still a whole lot happening in WHAT DID JACK DO? There's the purposefully grainy nature of the film, which might remind audiences of Lynch's first feature, Eraserhead. (For the uninitiated, the short even could serve as a primer for Lynch's style of filmography -- it's a taste of how he likes to operate when he's working on his own terms.) Then there's the drab one-room setting in a locked-down train station, which is sure to induce a bit of secondhand discomfort: an appropriate feeling, given the inquisition taking place. There's also a delightfully bad human mouth overlay on the monkey that is impossible to look away from. Add in the intensely bizarre dialogue between the two characters, and the film is already following in the grand Lynchian tradition of creating eternal internet memes.
To honor this unexpected welcome to the new week, here's a sampling of some of Twitter's best reactions to WHAT DID JACK DO? This mini-movie -- and especially its potty-mouthed primate -- definitely earned its internet moment.
WHAT DID JACK DO? captures my four moods perfectly pic.twitter.com/mKDCGNnH6J
— Sam Herbst (@mrsamherbst) January 20, 2020
Me telling you to watch What did Jack Do #WhatDidJackDo #DavidLynch pic.twitter.com/BMKfAhqiL2
— Mathew MacMillan (@matmacm) January 20, 2020
The Monkey and The G.O.A.T#DavidLynch pic.twitter.com/ymXlU42rYW
— Phil Drinkwater (@PhillyDinkers) January 21, 2020
You: Adam Driver singing in Marriage Story
— The Heart Broke (@TheHeartBroke) January 20, 2020
Me: Jack the Monkey singing in David Lynch's short "What Did Jack Do?" pic.twitter.com/ZVRBuu8z3A
Naturally, the conversation would not be complete without a couple of solid Twin Peaks references.
Strange what love does 🎶 and Jack Cruz could tell you a thing or 2 about that!! #davidlynch pic.twitter.com/Zy8CD5DEdm
— Amy (@AJoyceN) January 20, 2020
Me scouring "What Did Jack Do?" for any hint of a tie to Twin Peaks pic.twitter.com/Oz7YVPUPWo
— jasef doesn't want to vote for joe biden (@JasefWisener) January 20, 2020
WHAT DID JACK DO? is now available on Netflix.
WHAT DID JACK DO?
Netflix