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Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992)
Starring Kyle MacLachlan, Sheryl Lee, Chris Isaak, and Kiefer Sutherland. Cinematography by Ronald Víctor García. Edited by Mary Sweeney. Produced by Gregg Fienberg and Francis Bouygues. Written by Robert Engels and David Lynch. Directed by David Lynch.
FBI Special Agent Chester Desmond is paired up with Agent Sam Stanley to investigate the murder of a seventeen year old waitress named Teresa Banks. The case brings them to a small town in WashingtonState where Banks’ body was found. Her autopsy reveals a small type-printed letter “T” embedded underneath her fingernail. A year later high school prom queen Laura Palmer lives the last seven days of her life. Laura seemingly lives a normal life, but as the layers are peeled back it proves to be anything but. Laura juggles two sexual relationships, snorts cocaine all day long, and is haunted by a supernatural sexual predator named “Bob”. As her life quickly approaches its end, the mysteries of the woods surrounding her town of Twin Peaks reveal themselves.
David Lynch was introduced to writer Mark Frost in the late 1980’s when the two were teamed up to collaborate on a biopic detailing the final days of Marilyn Monroe titled Goddess. After a couple of failed attempts at another creative teaming, they decided to try something completely foreign to Lynch: a television series. Their idea was to create a sappy soap opera and infuse it with the dark underbelly of humanity that Lynch had become so well associated with. Their concept, titled “Twin Peaks”, was a smart blend of soaps like and “Dynasty” and Blue Velvet. Though the limitations and restrictions of television may not have seemed suited to a filmmaker like Lynch, “Twin Peaks” caught on quickly and was soon a national phenomenon. But the surprise success was indeed too good to be true. After the resolution of the Laura Palmer murder at the end of the first season, the show’s audience cut nearly in half. On top of that, ABC, who never really knew how to handle the series, continued to shift it’s time slot making it very difficult to regularly tune in to. It was also nearly impossible for a casual viewer to keep up with the series as every episode built on top of the last and it was easy to get lost in the intricately woven storylines. After twenty nine episodes “Twin Peaks” was cancelled.
The idea of a “Twin Peaks” prequel had always been in the back of Lynch’s mind. When his series was cancelled, he recruited the financial support of French millionaire Francis Bouygues to help make his vision a reality. Laced with deviant sexuality, graphic violence, and dark supernatural overtones, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me is everything that Lynch could not do on television. But outside of the hardcore fan base, the feature film would not find many supporters. Like the series, if you were not familiar with the established storyline you would likely be lost. And once again Lynch would find himself under scrutiny for what many saw as glorified violence; especially against women. If you are a “Twin Peaks” enthusiast, you have likely already seen and enjoyedTwin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, but if you are not you may want to play catch-up with the television series before getting into the film.
Budget: $10,000,000
Total US Gross: $4,160,851
Genre: Mystery
Runtime: 135 Minutes
US Release Date: 8/28/92
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 (intended ratio)
Awards: Cannes Film Festival: Nominated for the Golden Palm.
Tagline: In A Town Like Twin Peaks No One Is Innocent.
Quote: “When this kind of fire starts, it is very hard to put out. The tender boughs of innocence burn first, and the wind rises, and then all goodness is in jeopardy.”
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