Oprah Movie Club Pick for June: Blue Velvet


1986 neo-noir thriller

Rating: 17/20

Plot: Jeffrey, home from college because his father is hospitalized after a stroke, finds a severed ear while throwing rocks at a trash can. He takes it to a detective, but he and the detective's daughter decide to do a little sleuthing on their own. They uncover a sinister world of kidnapping, sexual depravity, and Roy Orbison lip-synching routines. Soon, Jeffrey is up to his nipples in shadows.

It's been suggested that Jeffrey's story is a neo-noir exploration of the Oedipus Complex, that Dennis Hopper's Frank is an abusive father figure, and Rossellini's Dorothy represents the mother. (See Fetishism and Curiosity by Laura Mulvey--Chapter Nine is all about this and can be found [mostly] online.) It's an interesting idea, but I couldn't get through the entire chapter either because I'm too lazy or not smart enough or some combination of the two. For me, Blue Velvet is really straightforward, perhaps Lynch's easiest movie to digest. It's still Lynchian--sprinkled with his trademark dark quirkiness and horrifying outlook on sexuality and violence. Of course, according to imdb.com, there are also allusions to Lincoln's assassination, so maybe I'm not digging into this nearly enough. I don't buy the Lincoln stuff, however. A Lincoln Street? Frank's last name being Booth? Victim's shot through the head? Seems like a reach or two to me. Something else learned from the imdb.com trivia page: Lynch (during the filming) and later Rossellini both find the rape scene that Jeffrey watches from the closet funny. I find that extremely odd. I don't see any humor in that scene at all; in fact, I think it's one of the more horrifying moments in film. I've always thought Lynch and I had similar senses of humor.

Anyway, this is a movie about things that are submerged, things that either people don't know about because they're actually hidden or people just want to pretend to not know about. Or it's about mysteries and what happens when you're curious enough to start uncovering those mysteries--sociological mysteries as well as personal ones. "It's a strange world." Those words are said during several conversations between Kyle MacLachlan and the lovely Laura Dern's characters. Lynch never hides the strangeness in our world. In fact, he brings it to the focus in his movies, and that's one of the things that can make watching his movies a sometimes-uneasy experience. That submerged strangeness is shown metaphorically right at the beginning of Blue Velvet. There are shots of white picket fences, flowers, a guy watering his grass, and waving firemen to the saccharine crooning of "Blue Velvet" by Bobby Vinton. Suddenly--a gun on the television and a hose caught in a bush, the latter which I just typed and wondered if it was meant to be as dirty as it looks in words. And then insects snarling subterraneanly. Above, things are just peachy, but just below the surface, there's all sorts of nastiness. Look at MacLachlan's goofy character. He's nothing but innocent at the beginning of this thing. Hell, he tries to impress a high school senior with a story about the kid with "the biggest tongue in the world" and something called "the chicken walk." We don't see any evidence that there's anything darker going on with his character until he is in the nightclub watching Rossellini's character for the first time. Then, you see the lust on his face in a brilliantly acted scene. Just eyes, and you see everything start to unravel. Or maybe you don't if you're watching this for the first time. I don't know. Of course, earlier in the story, Jeffrey is plotting to break into a women's house, but there's still a kind of childish naiveté with that whole scheme. No, the sinister nature--submerged evil goop--in Jeffrey will be uncovered a bit later in the proceedings. Dennis Hopper's Frank Booth is the personification of that evil in society and maybe in all of us. And what a performance that is! There's a physicality to his character even when he's not moving, and each curse word he utters--and those are numerous--seems to pack more meaning than when I curse at people when I'm driving. And "I'll fuck anything that moves!" is one of my favorite lines/deliveries of all time. Hopper's at the height of his unhinged powers here. The great Jack Nance is in there, too, introducing himself as Paul multiple times and asking Jeffrey, "Have you ever been to pussy heaven?" Oh, and Brad Dourif. I like all the performances in this movie. They're the typical performances David Lynch usually gets in his movies, performances always threatening to completely cross the line into soap opera performances. They're performances that--almost thankfully--remind you that you're just watching a movie.

Other stuff:

Knife seduction--Lynch would have had to call in a double or stunt man for me, first because my naked rump is disturbing and covered with a layer of hair and second because I would have gotten to excited, lunged at Rossellini, and been stabbed. It would have been a Brandon Lee end to my career.

Oil drill shadows spotlighted on a brick wall. This doesn't have much unusual imagery. There's a guy with a gas mask, a few random shots of candles, and, of course, the severed ear with ants crawling all over it. But Lynch deliberately uses a spotlight to throw the shadow of an oil drill on the wall. I guess it must be important. Digging? Sexual symbolism (i.e. being drilled)? Something else?

There are references to logs or logging, and the town's called Lumberton. It really made me miss the presence of the Log Lady.

Heineken product placement--the first time MacLachlan is drinking it, you could almost mistake the scene for a commercial. It's awkward.

A blind guy working in a hardware store--seems like throwaway stuff. Is there anything deeper with this character?

"I have your disease in me now." I'm not sure if that's hot or creepy.

"Yes, that's a human ear all right." For whatever reason, that makes me laugh. Either the detective doubted that Jeffrey knew what a human ear looked like or he didn't believe him.

There's a song that plays when MacLachlan and Dern's characters tell each other they love each other--"Mysteries of Love" apparently, lyrics about how "Sometimes the wind blows"--and it might be the worst thing I've ever heard in my life. And I can't figure out why anybody would play that at a party unless they were trying to clear the room. It's Julee Cruise singing to Angelo Badalamenti's music. Badalamenti's the piano player in this, by the way. I like a lot of what Badalamenti did here, especially during the title credits where the work could almost be mistake for something Bernard Herrmann did. But this "Mysteries of Love" song is the worst thing ever.

I could have done without Mike, Sandy's boyfriend. I guess something needed to happen so that Rossellini's can wander into the background completely naked, but that pretty great scene could have been completely terrific without that distracting little subplot that didn't need to be there.

Dern discusses her dreams, talking about how it was dark because there weren't any robins. Of course, Hopper refers to it being "dark" a couple different times, too. MacLachlan's response is a beautiful "You're a neat girl" to which she responds, "So are you." Just beautiful. Those crazy kids living in this messed-up world. I sure hope they make it.

7 comments:

  1. I'm not a Lynch fan, but I love this movie. Apart from the slightly tacky look of some of his work, I think there's a difference between opting for a surreal, associative narrative, and being unable to sustain a regular one. The Elephant Man is supposed to be a conventional story, but it falls apart at the end because Lynch can't really figure out how to tell it. I always think of that when he gets deeply weird and it makes the incoherence feel less earned.

    That's my standard criticism, but by luck or special effort Blue Velvet sure hit the mark. The atmosphere is perfect, just the right blend of humour and menace. It's coherent enough that I can care about the characters, and their likeability keeps the repellent side of Lynch in check.

    This is the second time I've seen it, and after reading your review, I agree there's all kinds of symbolism thrown right in your face. I still didn't work very hard to figure out whether it's about digging or assassination or anything else - I just like floating along on the weirdness.

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  2. Man, I love The Elephant Man! I like Lynch, too, even though I don't really understand much of what is going on in some of the movies.

    How about 'The Straight Story'? Have you seen that one, Matt? It's not like a Lynch movie at all. I love it, too.

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  3. I watched a bit of this about 15 years ago and couldn't stay with it (I made it to the Rossellini degradation stuff). Then I watched it again a few years ago and though it was still very disturbing, it also had a lot going for it, especially Hopper's over-the-top, mesmerizing performance. A 16.

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  4. I haven't seen the Straight Story, but I just added it to the list. I've also gotta see Inland Empire sometime. I slag the guy, but enough people are serious enough about this Lynch character to keep me curious.

    I kinda liked My Son My Son What Have Ye Done? even though it's really messy. I was going to suggest that one, but I searched the archive and it turns out you're way ahead if me.

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  5. I'm sure I like 'My Son, My Son. . .' more than most people. I still can't believe they got away with that goofy title.

    I follow Lynch on Twitter where he tweets sporadically. Here's a selection:

    "Dear Twitter Friends, the happy squirrels are running fast and free."

    "Dear Twitter Friends, I'm making a lightning bolt to take a picture of."

    "Dear Twitter Friends, I am building a box with wallpaper & a nude woman. What are you doing this weekend?"

    "Dear Twitter Friends, I'm thinking of steam shovels today."

    "Dear Twitter Friends, I like to watch & count birds in the morning. I've made friends with a humming bird."

    "I'll be working with a pink cookie." (One week later: "This weekend I will be working with fire in the pink cookie.")

    "This weekend I'm going to try to find out if I'm connected to the moon." (3 days later: "I'm pretty sure I'm connected to the moon.")

    The guy is nothing but lovable...

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  6. I searched diligently for this post because today is Roy Orbison's birthday (April 23). My grandparents first got me singing Orbison when I was young and my voice hadn't changed yet, and I was able to hit all of those lofty notes that Roy hits so effortlessly. Still, after seeing Blue Velvet, there's only one place my mind goes when hearing "In Dreams," and it ain't to my grandma and grandpa's quaint little house on the corner...It's to the image of Dean Stockwell masked in pasty foundation, eyeliner, and pale lipstick lip-syncing into a construction flashlight, the light casting shadows on the peaks of his features.

    I watched that movie for the first time when I was 17 at around 11:00pm. By the time that scene rolled around, it was well within the bewitching hour. Without getting too verbose, it absolutely creeped the white off me, I shit you not. The antagonists offered in this movie aren't just villains -- they're demons. They strike at the epitome of evil doings and show most Hollywood bad guys what being bad is all about. You are unpredictable and find ways not just to kill people, but find ways to torture them and the ones they love.

    I never thought much of Stockwell as a "great" actor; he's just done his time in Hollywood, and I give him credit for that. It's Dennis Hopper's performance that showed me why he was considered such a great actor. He is from the Brando Camp of method acting. I never bought into that kind of approach, but it certainly pays off here. Hopper inhabits this role and you can see that his delivery is totally organic and fresh right on the screen for you. For example, Lynch's idea of using "In Dreams" and juxtaposing that with the seediness of the surroundings is cool, and that song incorporated with MacLachlan's first joy ride with Hopper in the movie is one of complete suspense. This is where they take him out to a field and Stockwell starts his one-man act to "In Dreams." Frank Booth lays on the intimidation pretty thick, but it's when these lines are hear in the song that Booth jumps from bully to psychotic:

    "In dreams I walk with you
    In dreams I talk with you
    In dreams you're mine
    All the time"

    After every line, Booth repeats the line to Jeffrey:

    In dreams I walk with YOU
    In dreams I talk with YOU
    In dreams, YOU ARE MINE
    ALL the time"

    With Booth laying on those words, he's conveying the idea that Jeffrey can never escape the hell the Booth can bring. He will fuck with him physically or mentally, which ever hurts the most. Booth with fuck his soul...He'll "fuck anything that moves."

    So, with that, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to the golden voice that was Roy Orbison!

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  7. First, I enjoyed reading that.

    "In Dreams" is the perfect Lynch song. He seems to throw creepy musical numbers in all his movies. And the Orbison number, with the kind of ethereal voice Lynch seems to like, so perfectly fits the mood and themes of Blue Velvet.

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