David Lynch
Blue Velvet
This movie is a playground in which Lynch develops his trademark dark moody velveteen sets, pitched against the veneer of normality in a sleepy suburban town. Its strongest points insurmountably being held in the Cinematography which I feel is stunning and leads us directly into his 'Twin Peaks' Is this the same town? One has to ask.
The basic story is follows our lead character Jeffrey (Kyle McLaughlin) who returns to his hometown for his father's funeral. Whilst walking he discovers a rogue mutilated finger which he takes to the police and begins to unravels our story by unveiling a dark and sinister side to his airbrushed, perfect suburban town.
Jeffery & his senior high aid and perpetual tease, Sandy (Laura Dern) become embroiled in a blackmail story in which Dorothy (Isabella Rossellini) is providing Frank (Dennis Hopper) a local sycophant with sexual favours so he will not harm her son.
There is a sexual intrigue with Jeffery & Dorothy that displaces the purity of his platonic relationship with the beautiful and pristine Sandy. Jeffery is troubled by the extent of his sexual deviation, which is highlighted in the scene where he beats Dorothy if not only briefly it is still wrong to him. Does he then compare himself to Frank, who seems to embody all he despises, the answer I believe to be yes.
This setting of Lynch's perfection masks a skewed or grotesque world in which Frank (Dennis Hopper) provides the performance of a lifetime. The young and naïve Jeffery (Kyle) gives us a limp and weak performance overshadowed by Hopper and Rossellini.
It is not the first times directors have used this setting of Americas suburbia, Stepford Wives, American Beauty, Traffic, Twin Peaks and Fargo to name a few. They all have a creepy edge and show that there is always an undercurrent no matter how much you try and fence yourself off from the world. This film for me is ahead of its time and is highly critical of the void between normality that which you find odd. It is also current with the USA's vehicle of a 'Fear Nation' of all things on the fringe.
Blue Velvet is a platform for Lynch to move on, it has all his signature dream sequences, which he does so well, tying the symbology to the film he loves so much. I was impressed with the settings and contrast of dark colour against light shots, however eventually I felt the story to fall down a little and become flimsy when it could have been much more. This is not to say I did not enjoy the movie, I just felt that it didn't make that 8/10 but rather gets a respectable 7/10 for the voyeur scene of Hopper & Rossellini if nothing else.
An intelligent film that attempts to delve into America's underbelly and uncovers more than the average film-goer would probably want
Blue Velvet
This movie is a playground in which Lynch develops his trademark dark moody velveteen sets, pitched against the veneer of normality in a sleepy suburban town. Its strongest points insurmountably being held in the Cinematography which I feel is stunning and leads us directly into his 'Twin Peaks' Is this the same town? One has to ask.
The basic story is follows our lead character Jeffrey (Kyle McLaughlin) who returns to his hometown for his father's funeral. Whilst walking he discovers a rogue mutilated finger which he takes to the police and begins to unravels our story by unveiling a dark and sinister side to his airbrushed, perfect suburban town.
Jeffery & his senior high aid and perpetual tease, Sandy (Laura Dern) become embroiled in a blackmail story in which Dorothy (Isabella Rossellini) is providing Frank (Dennis Hopper) a local sycophant with sexual favours so he will not harm her son.
There is a sexual intrigue with Jeffery & Dorothy that displaces the purity of his platonic relationship with the beautiful and pristine Sandy. Jeffery is troubled by the extent of his sexual deviation, which is highlighted in the scene where he beats Dorothy if not only briefly it is still wrong to him. Does he then compare himself to Frank, who seems to embody all he despises, the answer I believe to be yes.
This setting of Lynch's perfection masks a skewed or grotesque world in which Frank (Dennis Hopper) provides the performance of a lifetime. The young and naïve Jeffery (Kyle) gives us a limp and weak performance overshadowed by Hopper and Rossellini.
It is not the first times directors have used this setting of Americas suburbia, Stepford Wives, American Beauty, Traffic, Twin Peaks and Fargo to name a few. They all have a creepy edge and show that there is always an undercurrent no matter how much you try and fence yourself off from the world. This film for me is ahead of its time and is highly critical of the void between normality that which you find odd. It is also current with the USA's vehicle of a 'Fear Nation' of all things on the fringe.
Blue Velvet is a platform for Lynch to move on, it has all his signature dream sequences, which he does so well, tying the symbology to the film he loves so much. I was impressed with the settings and contrast of dark colour against light shots, however eventually I felt the story to fall down a little and become flimsy when it could have been much more. This is not to say I did not enjoy the movie, I just felt that it didn't make that 8/10 but rather gets a respectable 7/10 for the voyeur scene of Hopper & Rossellini if nothing else.
An intelligent film that attempts to delve into America's underbelly and uncovers more than the average film-goer would probably want
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