The news of a film directed by the daughter of David Lynch would've piqued the curiosity of more than a few cinema buffs - with such a prestigious father offering guidance, how could it not turn out to be an interesting project? Unfortunately, Jennifer Chambers Lynch's directorial debut Boxing Helena turned out to be something of a dud. It certainly had some promise, though. Julian Sands stars as Nick Cavanaugh, a surgeon who becomes increasingly obsessed with a beautiful woman called Helena after she's involved in a hit and run accident which leaves her crippled. Kidnapping her and treating her in his home, he amputates her legs followed by her arms as his uncontrollable desire to to control and contain her grows. What could have been a fascinating character study, mining the depths of obsession and seduction in equal measure, fell far short of its ambitions in the final cut. But what really killed any potential for Boxing Helena emerging as an effective psycho-sexual thriller was the ending - after being killed by one of Helena's former associates, Nick wakes up in the hospital having dreamed the entire thing. The golden rule of storytelling - never use the "it was all a dream" ending - was violated, and the result was a travesty.
