I apologize in advance for
A Dream Within a Dream (Edgar Allan Poe)
Take this kiss upon the brow!
And, in parting from you now,
Thus much let me avow-
You are not wrong, who deem
That my days have been a dream;
Yet if hope has flown away
In a night, or in a day,
In a vision, or in none,
Is it therefore the less gone?
All that we see or seem
Is but a dream within a dream.
I stand amid the roarMaybe we all live inside a dream. Or the Black Lodge? Backwards speaking not. Enjoying Garmonbozia. And David Lynch is the only sane person in the world.
Of a surf-tormented shore,
And I hold within my hand
Grains of the golden sand-
How few! yet how they creep
Through my fingers to the deep,
While I weep- while I weep!
O God! can I not grasp
Them with a tighter clasp?
O God! can I not save
One from the pitiless wave?
Is all that we see or seem
But a dream within a dream?
But maybe not. Maybe David Lynch just shared an 18 hour nightmare with his audience. And from the mind of this cracked genius, that is quite something. Just not entertaining. Or, heaven forbid, fun! Or even just watchable. Showtime handed him a shitload of money, and he let his imagination run wild. At least it payed for a date with Monica Bellucci (in Paris, no less). But where was his collaborator, Mark Frost? Wasn't he supposed to temper his extremes? The cable network is playing it down, saying The Return won it new subscribers. But it's a safe bet that from now on, no one will offer the 71-year-old money to film a funeral, let alone a movie or tv series.
Through the darkness of future past / The magician longs to see / One chants out between two worlds / Fire walk with me. I'll catch you with my death bag. You may think I've gone insane, but I promise I will kill again!
This is certainly not an objective opinion. I love the Original, especially the first half (say, until the "resolution" of Laura's murder). It's right up there with my favourite drama shows: Star Trek (TOS), Buffy, The West Wing, Lost, Game of Thrones, Sense8. I also love most of David's movies, though not Lost Highway (1997), which is referenced quite a lot in the Return. But I certainly consider Blue Velvet (1986) and Mulholland Dr. (2001) to be minor masterpieces, which (to my astonishment) garnered him Best Director Nominations from the Academy. Of course, Hollywood preferred his "mainstream" movies. I certainly don't agree, but I still think The Elephant Man (1980) is his most satisfying movie. I even liked his strange debut Eraserhead (1977) and still enjoy the immensely flawed Dune (1984) now and then. However, that is in the past. Even ten years ago, Inland Empire was an unmitigated desaster. So I'm especially pissed off by this new pile of garbage in 18 pieces.
Lynch's best and most personal work always had surreal parts. But it was all grounded in reality, never weirdness for weirdness's sake. Lynch showed us the rot beneath the veneer. But now the veneer is gone, and everything is rotten. I've never experienced more meanness and hopelessness. The new show almost completely lacks love and compassion, and most of the comfort comes from old characters who are only shadows of their former selves. I never felt that I was spending quality time with these people. The Original was sad (and funny, and suspenseful, and romantic), but the Return is just depressing. Gordon Cole may be hard of hearing, but David Lynch certainly is tone-deaf.
And what's up with all the dead people? Is it really a proper way to say goodbye to so many fine actors by dragging them before a camera? Have Catherine E. Coulson (the "Log Lady") talk about her fear of death? Put a sick Warren Frost on display via Skype? Put Miguel Ferrer in a lot of scenes but not give him anything of note to do (but have Gordon Cole cast sad looks at him)? By the way, Michael Ontkean (Sheriff Harry Truman) might as well be dead, what with all the good wishes for his health (stand-in Robert Forster is still with us, though). And then there's the "photograph" and flashback cameos: Major Briggs (Don S. Davis, 1942-2008), Bob (Frank Silva, 1950-1995), Pete Martell (Jack Nance, 1943-1996). And Bowie is a a smoking kettle now...
And what's up with all the old people? Of course, Peggy Lipton (Norma) still looks mighty pretty at 70. The same cannot be said for Grace Zabriskie (Sarah Palmer), not just because she plays a monster. For most of the others, it's quite embarrassing to watch them shuffle across the screen, especially Harry Goaz (Andy) and Michael Horse (Hawk). Richard Beymer (Benjamin Horne) at least has some energy left (well, who wouldn't be invigorated by the presence of beautiful Ashley Judd).
And what's up with all the middle-aged people? It's downright cruel to display a picture of the young Laura Palmer throughout the series and then show us a haggard 50ish Sheryl Lee (whom I never liked anyway). Equally cruel are the scenes with Sherilyn Fenn, whose Audrey may have the worst fate of all her peers in the show. James Marshall/Hurley is not treated much better. Dana Ashbrook as (Deputy - who'd have thunk) Bobby Briggs fares a bit better, and Mädchen Amick as Shelly is still sexy as hell (no thanks to Lynch). I think Lara Flynn Boyle made the right decision not to return. Now I can at least imagine bright young Donna having a happy future.
And what's up with all the new characters? Not much, to be frank. The greatest impact is made by Diane, who we only knew as the recipient of Cooper's voice recordings. Maybe they should have left it that way (I used to like Laura Dern, but not anymore). Then there's Naomi Watts, wife of Cooper Doppelgänger Dougie, who is nice to look at but whose character is almost as frustrating as vegetable Cooper, Amanda Seyfried as Rebecca looks pretty, which makes sense for the daughter of Shelly. Caleb Landry Jones (her husband Steven) and Eamon Farren (devil-spawn Richard Horne) seem to have been cast for their asymmetric looks. Others are just returning actors from Lynch movies, e.g. Patrick Fischler as a gangster. His funny counterparts, James Belushi and Robert Knepper as the Mitchum Brothers, do have some of the best scenes, and they are always accompanied by eye candy (Sandie, Mandie and Candie). The most clueless must be Chrysta Bell as FBI agent Tammy Preston. Blue Rose, anyone?
And what's up with all the homages? The obvious one would be Tarantino - none other than Tim Roth and Jennifer Jason Lee play a homicidal couple (sounds familiar?) Sadly, David Lynch was not able to provide them with Tarantinesque dialogue, just generous amounts of blood. There's also pretty obscure references - why would you name three detectives "Fusco" if not to make a nod to Jonathan Nolan's Person of Interest? The most embarrassing homage, alas, is the appearance of Michael Cera as the Wild Son (of Lucy and Andy, of all possible parents) in what must be the worst Brando parody I could imagine. And that's just off the top of my head - I'm certain there's lots of stuff to discover for masochists on a Return watch.
Is the coffee on?
And what's up with Agent Cooper? He used to be the cheerful, intense center of the show. Kyle MacLachlan still has presence and acting chops, but the two (and a half) characters he plays do not engage the viewers enough. Some of Dougie's antics are funny, some of Bad Cooper's poses are menacing, but everything is stretched out to nothingness. Coffee and cherry pie just remind us of happier times. At least, Lucy (now even dimmer than before) can tell Bad Cooper apart from Good Cooper for his appreciation of a damn fine cup of coffee.
You all live inside a dream.25 years ago, Twin Peaks was a cultural phenomenon, like Game of Thrones today. People discussed it by the water cooler: Who murdered Laura Palmer, what was the significance of the red room, the one-armed man, the strange dwarf ("I am the arm") and the giant? Twin Peaks: The Return came and went and will soon be forgotten. The outrageously high IMDB ratings stem from a small population of geeks. Of those, many sceptics now will fondly remember episode 17 and forget all the anguish that came before. Perhaps if the return of Agent Cooper had been placed in the middle of the series, I could tolerate all the lunacy that went on before. But by episode 17, it was too late, and I'm not gonna talk about episode 18 at all. It's really pathetic how most of the critics disected each episode to find some good entrails. Let me tell you: If you have to dig that deep, it's not worth the effort! And as for Lynch directing (and writing): Scenes don't breathe, minor events are played out until no-one cares anymore. There is so much fan-service (or self-service?) that he forgot to put in intriguing drama for any characters. Some have lauded the special effects. They must have never seen movies or shows with good effects (see Zelig or The Curious Case of Benjamin Button). The Return feels like an artist finishing an oil painting with water color. It is said that not all entertainment is art, but that all art is entertainment. I conclude logically that Twin Peaks: The Return is NOT art.
David Lynch (via the "Woodsman")
This is the water, and this is the well. Drink full, and descend. The horse is the white of the eyes, and dark within.
Gotta light?
Keine Kommentare:
Kommentar veröffentlichen