Posts Tagged ‘David Lynch’

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10-26-2012

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Weekend Roundtable: “WTF?” Movies

Weekend Roundtable: “WTF?” Movies

If the trailers are even remotely representative of the actual film, this week’s theatrical release of ‘Cloud Atlas’, which apparently has a narrative that spans multiple timelines from the 19th Century to the distant apocalyptic future, promises to be the biggest “WTF?” movie of the year. You know what I’m talking about – the kind of wacko movie that leaves you utterly confounded as to what the &^(# you just watched. Cinema history is littered with such oddities. Perhaps the movie just had a really out-there twist ending, or perhaps it’s a total mind-screw from beginning to end. In today’s Roundtable, we’ll highlight some that have really stuck with us.
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09-04-2012

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Auteur Theory: ‘American Chronicles’

Auteur Theory: ‘American Chronicles’

Working through this David Lynch marathon, it occurs to me that I’d almost missed one of the filmmaker’s other, much lesser-known TV shows. To be fair, this one had the least involvement from Lynch, was little seen at the time, and has been almost entirely forgotten since. Nonetheless, for the sake of thoroughness, allow me to step back a moment to take a look at the obscure travelogue series ‘American Chronicles’.
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08-29-2012

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Auteur Theory: ‘Hotel Room’

Auteur Theory: ‘Hotel Room’

You certainly have to give David Lynch credit for persistence. Despite his feelings of resentment about the cancellation of ‘Twin Peaks’ and the stillbirth of his attempted sitcom ‘On the Air’, the idiosyncratic filmmaker made yet another attempt to work in the television medium in 1993. Hoping that HBO would allow him more artistic freedom and opportunity to develop a property over time, Lynch began production on an anthology series called ‘Hotel Room’. Unfortunately, the fact that you’ve probably never heard of the show (much less seen it) should tell you how well those plans worked out for him.
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08-28-2012

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Auteur Theory: ‘Diane… The Twin Peaks Tapes’

Auteur Theory: ‘Diane… The Twin Peaks Tapes’

As I found myself digging through my collection of old ‘Twin Peaks’ merchandise for my ongoing David Lynch marathon, I stumbled upon an interesting piece of memorabilia that I’d forgotten that I had – an audio cassette recording known as ‘Diane… The Twin Peaks Tapes of Agent Cooper’. The fact that I no longer own a tape player that I might use to listen to the cassette presented a small but fortunately not insurmountable obstacle to my nostalgic enjoyment.
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08-27-2012

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Auteur Theory: ‘The Autobiography of Dale Cooper’

Auteur Theory: ‘The Autobiography of Dale Cooper’

While ‘Twin Peaks’ was still a hot property on television, tie-in merchandise such as the previously-reviewed ‘Secret Diary of Laura Palmer‘ did brisk business among fans. When producers wanted to publish a second, similar book, its subject was both obvious and inevitable. For this new entry in my ongoing David Lynch marathon, I’ve pulled my old copy of ‘The Autobiography of F.B.I. Special Agent Dale Cooper: My Life, My Tapes’ from the shelf, dusted it off, and given it another read.
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08-23-2012

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Auteur Theory: ‘On the Air’

Auteur Theory: ‘On the Air’

David Lynch and comedy make an uneasy combination. Although many of the director’s best works are filled with quite effective, offbeat humor, his few attempts to tackle the comedy genre directly (such as his 1988 short film ‘The Cowboy and the Frenchman’) have mostly been disasters. Lynch himself attributes this to his fondness for jokes and situations that are “very absurd and really stupid. I love that combo, but apparently nobody else does!”* Nevertheless, after their TV show ‘Twin Peaks’ imploded in its second season, Lynch and co-creator Mark Frost found themselves pitching a half-hour comedy series called ‘On the Air’ to the network bosses at ABC. Yes, David Lynch actually made a sitcom. The fact that such a thing exists at all is perhaps the most surreal development in the filmmaker’s entire career.
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08-20-2012

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Auteur Theory: ‘Industrial Symphony’

Auteur Theory: ‘Industrial Symphony’

1990 was truly a banner year for David Lynch. Bursting with creativity at his artistic peak, Lynch had a hit show on TV, a weekly comic strip that ran in alternative newspapers across the country, and a new movie that won top prize at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival. Exhibitions of his paintings and sculptures drew further acclaim, and Time magazine even ran a cover story that called him a genius. This was quite a turn of events for a man who, just a few years earlier, had been derided as a Hollywood pariah for making one of the biggest box office flops of all time. David Lynch was back with a vengeance. In the midst of all this, the filmmaker also found time to stage a performance art concert called ‘Industrial Symphony No. 1: The Dream of the Brokenhearted’.
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08-17-2012

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Weekend Roundtable: Books Recently Read

Weekend Roundtable: Books Recently Read

While this blog may be primarily focused on movies, TV and videogames, we don’t want to leave the impression that we’re totally uncultured in literary matters here. We read books too, you know. (Well, some of us, anyway.) For this week’s Roundtable, let’s discuss what we’ve been reading lately.
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08-15-2012

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Auteur Theory: ‘Wild at Heart’ Deleted Scenes

Auteur Theory: ‘Wild at Heart’ Deleted Scenes

David Lynch has never been accused of doing anything in a conventional manner. Typically, when a filmmaker adapts a book to the screen, he or she must condense the text into a manageable length by removing inessential scenes or storylines. For his 1990 film ‘Wild at Heart’, Lynch took the opposite approach. Despite working from short novella that could be read from start to finish in a couple of hours, the director greatly expanded his script and shot enough material that his first rough cut ran over three hours long. He eventually trimmed that down to 125 disjointed minutes, but fans wondered for years what the longer version of the movie may have looked like. In 2008, Lynch actually released that extra footage, but did so on an obscure and expensive DVD that few have seen.
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08-13-2012

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Auteur Theory: ‘The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer’

Auteur Theory: ‘The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer’

At the height of its popularity during its first season on air, David Lynch’s ‘Twin Peaks’ was more than just a ratings hit or a critical darling. It was a genuine cultural phenomenon. Each episode of the series became the must-discuss topic of water cooler conversation throughout America, and even the rest of the world. Impatient fans in Europe begged friends from the United States to ship videotape recordings overseas rather than wait months for new episodes to hit their airwaves. To capitalize on this success, the show’s producers licensed a host of official ‘Twin Peaks’ merchandise. For the latest entry in my David Lynch marathon, I’ve decided to revisit the show’s most famous tie-in novel, ‘The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer’.
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