I think the question here is does a strong ending make up for any earlier perceived shortcomings? In the case of Inland Empire I don’t yet have an answer…. I’m sure being able to articulate its meaning would help find such an answer but then it wouldn’t be a Lynch film.
What I do know about the film is that it’s by far Lynch’s scariest film, not in the usual “horror” sense of scary but instead in a dread-inducing Lynchian concoction…