(Alexandre O. Philippe, 2022, United States, 110 minutes)

Using the immense hold of The Wizard of Oz on the films of David Lynch as a jumping off point, Alexandre O. Philippe’s new film essay Lynch/Oz eventually looks at The Wizard of Oz’s impact on virtually all films that came after it, David Lynch’s similarly widespread artistic sway in recent decades, and the network of influence that ties all movies together. As for the starting point, everyone who has seen Wild at Heart especially knows Lynch’s love of The Wizard of Oz, but Lynch/Oz ably finds its presence as early as Lynch’s early short films and as late as 2017’s Twin Peaks: The Return. Broken into six chapters with a different host for each, in Lynch/Oz we are treated to commentary from New York Times film critic Amy Nicholson; Philippe’s contemporary Rodney Ascher, director of Room 237; Lynch’s contemporary John Waters, director of Pink Flamingos; filmmaker (and St. Louis native) Karyn Kusama, most recently known as a directing executive producer on Showtime’s Yellowjackets; the directing team of Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, helmers of 2017’s The Spring; and filmmaker David Lowery, director of A Ghost Story.