David Lynch is, quite simply, one of the most shocking movie directors working today. He is a man whose pictures are near-impossible to label. His credits include his debut feature, Eraserhead, the television show Twin Peaks and its disappointing film follow-up, Mulholland Drive, and his magnum opus, Inland Empire, starring the ever-reliable and wonderfully gifted Laura Dern. Lynch is not a filmmaker who fits into any particular category he is certainly not Academy material, probably for no other reason than his pictures do not have commercial value quite like Lincoln or The Master. Lynch is a surrealist and surrealists are people who are frequently misunderstood or not understood at all. His films are difficult to penetrate. I learn something new each and every time I watch his pictures. His pictures are not the type one can watch on any mood. It's a little like watching 2001: you need to be in a relaxed, inquisitive mood. Be prepared to wonder and raise your eyebrows a couple of times. Lynch is underappreciated for obvious reasons (either people are either far too uninterested in good filmmaking or are generally wary of his idea of storytelling). But here is a filmmaker pushing boundaries, not unlike Kubrick, Dali and Bunuel. Here is an artist telling stories of the absurd, stories of magic and realism. Here is a great filmmaker, albeit a complicated one. Join me as I relay 5 reasons why David Lynch is one of the most important directors working today...