Eraserhead is a film watcher’s film.

But to attempt to figure it out or unlock the riddles layered within it would be a fool’s errand. This isn’t a puzzle to be solved. It’s a monstrosity to behold.

Most movies today are driven by a compelling plot or rich character development or witty dialogue. This movie tosses all of that to the wind and relies on something much more primal to keep viewers fixed to the screen: the human fascination with the abomination.
Henry’s walk home from work is an abomination, meeting his girlfriend’s parents was an abomination of a social engagement, Henry’s hair cut is an abomination and I don’t even need to mention the child. What this film does in the best of ways is stylize this bizarre universe so uniquely and grotesquely that we, as viewers, are so uncomfortable that we can’t look away.

When you think of Tim Burton’s style- it’s like an old circus fun house- crooked floors, wonky exaggerated angles, wobbly mirrors. For most, it’s fun! But some may find it kind of creepy or weird.
What Lynch has done here, though, is take a dark, creepy world and ground it just enough to make it feel real while still allowing us to suspend that reality for all that happens within it.

This is not a family movie night movie.
This is not a wind down before bed after a long day movie.
This is not a movie to watch when you’re at home sick with a fever.
This is probably not a good first date movie- although I can imagine this film bonding the right two people together for life.

This film is the cold plunge at the spa- it doesn’t feel good. But it’s good for you. There’s a reason that this film was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
To put it another way (and to use a reference from a movie that couldn’t be farther from this one- The Lion King) this film is “slimy yet satisfying.”