Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me ( * * )
I'm only doing this review because I'm curious how many stars I'm going to have to award it using the Tredekka Rules. Looking back, I realize that I always point out whenever a movie uses a Twin Peaks alum, so what would happen when I review a movie with ALL Twin Peaks alum? Does the meter explode? [Okay, P.S.--it's two stars, but you already knew that.]
The Acting: It should be apparent by now that I'm a huge Twin Peaks fan. It was the best TV show of the 90s, bar none. There have been a few good shows since then, most notably The Sopranos, but Twin Peaks had a weird timelessness that's rarely found in any medium. I loved the cast, individually and as an ensemble. The movie adds some new figures, and they don't disappoint--actually, they do disappoint, because the characters played by Chris Isaak, Keifer Sutherland, Harry Dean Stanton and David Bowie are all so fascinating (or in the case of Stanton, amusing) that I wanted to see much more of them than I got. Let me just add that Sheryl Lee as Laura Palmer gives what may be the most emotionally packed performance I've ever seen by an American actress. Lynch later got a comparable performance out of Naomi Watts in Mulholland Drive.
The Story: As prequels go, it's a doozy. Not only do we launch into R-rated territory, with heavy onscreen drug use, sexuality, and nudity (including, golf clap, Sheryl Lee and Moira Kelly as the new Donna Hayward) there is also an astonishingly tantalizing series of events that make it a sequel as well, as we see Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle McLaughlan) acclimatizing himself to the Black/White Lodge, where he was trapped in the series finale. Everybody jumped when the bloody-faced Heather Graham sat up in Laura's bed and declared, "The good Coop's in the lodge and he can't get out." (I don't recall the exact quote.) Mostly it deals with Laura's relationship with her best friend Donna and abusive father, Leland Palmer, played brilliantly by Ray Wise. (Quick theory time...Donna's character was played by Lara Flynn Boyle on the show, but she wanted to film The Rookie or some shit instead of doing this movie. Well, Moira Kelly took her place, and it occurred to me that this was cool in a way, because most of the story is seen through Laura Palmer's eyes and she probably saw Donna as an idealized, naive waif. Moira Kelly plays Donna because we're seeing her through Laura's eyes, Q.E.D.)
The Direction: Lynch was pretty well panned for this one, and like the series it followed, was rather frustrating to sit through. But rarely boring. Only Lynch--ONLY LYNCH--could pull off the scene where Laura and boyfriend Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook) blow a guy away during a drug deal, both coked out of their heads, start to bury the poor fuck in a thin layer of leaves, and Laura gets a fit of the giggles and starts telling Bobby he just killed his best friend, and he's so high he half-believes her...and Lynch makes the scene funny. But the stuff with Keifer and Isaak is my favorite in the movie, as they play two feds investigating the death of Killer BOB's first victim, Theresa Banks. Isaak plays it super aloof and cool, while Keifer displays an almost autistic earnestness. They should've got their own movie.
Overall: Not the best movie, but I'll be damned if it didn't leave me wanted a lot more. And the ending, with Laura and Cooper and the ridiculous school pageant angel, is transformed into an emotion-fest through the alchemy of Angelo Badalamenti's heartbreaking score.
Tredekka Rules:
The Acting: It should be apparent by now that I'm a huge Twin Peaks fan. It was the best TV show of the 90s, bar none. There have been a few good shows since then, most notably The Sopranos, but Twin Peaks had a weird timelessness that's rarely found in any medium. I loved the cast, individually and as an ensemble. The movie adds some new figures, and they don't disappoint--actually, they do disappoint, because the characters played by Chris Isaak, Keifer Sutherland, Harry Dean Stanton and David Bowie are all so fascinating (or in the case of Stanton, amusing) that I wanted to see much more of them than I got. Let me just add that Sheryl Lee as Laura Palmer gives what may be the most emotionally packed performance I've ever seen by an American actress. Lynch later got a comparable performance out of Naomi Watts in Mulholland Drive.
The Story: As prequels go, it's a doozy. Not only do we launch into R-rated territory, with heavy onscreen drug use, sexuality, and nudity (including, golf clap, Sheryl Lee and Moira Kelly as the new Donna Hayward) there is also an astonishingly tantalizing series of events that make it a sequel as well, as we see Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle McLaughlan) acclimatizing himself to the Black/White Lodge, where he was trapped in the series finale. Everybody jumped when the bloody-faced Heather Graham sat up in Laura's bed and declared, "The good Coop's in the lodge and he can't get out." (I don't recall the exact quote.) Mostly it deals with Laura's relationship with her best friend Donna and abusive father, Leland Palmer, played brilliantly by Ray Wise. (Quick theory time...Donna's character was played by Lara Flynn Boyle on the show, but she wanted to film The Rookie or some shit instead of doing this movie. Well, Moira Kelly took her place, and it occurred to me that this was cool in a way, because most of the story is seen through Laura Palmer's eyes and she probably saw Donna as an idealized, naive waif. Moira Kelly plays Donna because we're seeing her through Laura's eyes, Q.E.D.)
The Direction: Lynch was pretty well panned for this one, and like the series it followed, was rather frustrating to sit through. But rarely boring. Only Lynch--ONLY LYNCH--could pull off the scene where Laura and boyfriend Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook) blow a guy away during a drug deal, both coked out of their heads, start to bury the poor fuck in a thin layer of leaves, and Laura gets a fit of the giggles and starts telling Bobby he just killed his best friend, and he's so high he half-believes her...and Lynch makes the scene funny. But the stuff with Keifer and Isaak is my favorite in the movie, as they play two feds investigating the death of Killer BOB's first victim, Theresa Banks. Isaak plays it super aloof and cool, while Keifer displays an almost autistic earnestness. They should've got their own movie.
Overall: Not the best movie, but I'll be damned if it didn't leave me wanted a lot more. And the ending, with Laura and Cooper and the ridiculous school pageant angel, is transformed into an emotion-fest through the alchemy of Angelo Badalamenti's heartbreaking score.
Tredekka Rules:
- Rule 3: Suck Actor Penalty--Heather Graham, -1 star
- Rule 4: Sweet Actor Bonus--Sheryl Lee, +1 star--Ray Wise, +1 star--Eric DaRe, +1 star--Miguel Ferrer, +1 star
- Rule 6: Over The Top Acting Award--Sheryl Lee gives an absolutely explosive performance. If the Academy Awards had legitimacy, she'd have one. Or at least have been nominated. +5 stars.
- Rule 9: Any David Lynch Movie Without Jack Nance Gets -1 star. (Nance and many other Twin Peaks alum had scenes which were cut and unfortunately are unavailable in the States.)
- Rule 26 (NEW RULE): All Prequels Suck. -5 points.
Tredekka Score: ( * * )
posted by Tredekka at 1:16 PM
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