The film has been positively reevaluated by critics in the years since its release. Ladd was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture at the 63rd Academy Awards and the 48th Golden Globe Awards, respectively. At the 6th Independent Spirit Awards, Dafoe was nominated for Best Supporting Male and Elmes won for Best Cinematography. The film was theatrically released in the United States on August 17, 1990, to polarizing reviews from critics and grossed $14 million against its $10 million budget. Wild at Heart won the Palme d'Or at the 1990 Cannes Film Festival, which at the time was considered a controversial decision. Early test screenings for the film were poorly received, with Lynch estimating that at least 300 people walked out due to its sexual and violent content.

The film is noted for its allusions to The Wizard of Oz and Elvis Presley. He disliked the ending of the novel and decided to change it to fit his vision of the main characters. Lynch intended to only produce the film, but after reading Gifford's book, he decided to write and direct it as well.

Starring Nicolas Cage, Laura Dern, Willem Dafoe, Crispin Glover, Diane Ladd, Isabella Rossellini, and Harry Dean Stanton, the film follows Sailor Ripley and Lula Fortune, a young couple who go on the run from Lula's domineering mother and the criminals she hires to kill Sailor. Wild at Heart is a 1990 American romantic crime drama film written and directed by David Lynch, based on the 1989 novel of the same name by Barry Gifford.

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