Twin Peaks: A Limited Event Series

Hard to know how many stars to give this, since it's in a category by itself. Parts of it, I loved. Parts of it, I hated. Throughout the whole thing, I realized I was sitting with my head tilted sideways like a confused puppy... but that's what David Lynch does, and I admire his ability to shift our perceptions even if I ended up feeling like I'd been on an 18-episode-long mushroom trip. It's more or less impossible to give away actual spoilers, since the entire series isn't linear and it's not as if there's a mystery to be solved with a beginning, middle and end. In the original Twin Peaks series, the big question was, "Who Killed Laura Palmer?" Hell, I even had a t-shirt with that saying, and crazy as this may sound I swear there was a billboard somewhere around Los Angeles with just that question emblazoned in gigantic letters.The thing about this new series that I liked was that it successfully recreated the atmosphere and mood of the original series - up to and including the haunting theme music by Angelo Badalamenti. Most of the original cast found a way to find their way back to Twin Peaks, even if some of those appearances might have been unnecessary. I'm thinking of Dr. Jacoby and Nadine Hurley and even Audrey Horn and Jerry Horn. While it was good to see them on screen again, I would have preferred to see the time given to those characters devoted to more pertinent,aspects of the "plot" - though as indicated, there really wasn't an overt plot when all was said and done.The fun thing is that there's room for the viewer to speculate - and if you get all the way through to the end and it doesn't make you think, chances are you'd do better with a more linear and cohesive police procedural rather than what plays like a cross between an art-house movie and a director's cut where only the director really knows what was ultimately intended. Another aspect that was intellectually stimulating was that not all questions were answered - and I'm not sure they could have been. Who was the fireman? Who or what actually runs the black lodge? Or the white lodge, for that matter? I did like the fact that Lynch brought the idea of tulpas into the script - a subject I've always found fascinating, since I've written my own tomes about created beings gaining sufficient sentience to realize they aren't quite human.Some major flaws (in my opinion only) were that some scenes just dragged on as if Lynch wanted to make a specific point, but most of the time it was a point that could have been made in half the time. In episode #13 in particular, there's a scene of an exploding nuke that must stay on screen for 5 minutes or more. In another episode, we see someone sweeping the floor in the road house for several minutes. Road trips turn into elongated slide shows worthy of your perverse uncle's vacation to Bora Bora... and yet I can't really fault the series for that, since that appears to be part of the underlying visionary foundation. In other words, I accept it for the artistic endeavor it is even though I might personally wish it had focused more on the inner gazurkis workings of the black lodge and the mysterious beings who run the joint. Another weirdness that seemed out of place had to do with the characters who kept showing up in the road house. Always 2 girls at a table, but no one we knew that I could determine. Perhaps it was meant to symbolize Laura and Donna, but that's just a wild guess. Also, some of the new characters didn't seem to have much of a purpose in the grand scheme of things. Several scenes involving "shadow people" were creepy as hell - something that haunted me long after I'd turned off the tube and gone to bed. I'm pretty much immune to that kind of thing, so the fact that it did affect me is a tribute to how well it was done.Overall, I vacillated between giving it 3 stars, 4 stars, or 5. I finally settled on 5 because I feel it's a tribute to the original series, and to David Lynch as both a writer and director, someone not afraid to push the envelope. Yes, I had mixed feelings about the plotting and the pacing, but the cinematography, sound and technical aspects were exemplary, as well as the performances by all of the actors. Kyle MacLachlan was outstanding, as always, particularly since he played 3 distinctly different roles throughout the new series.You'll either love this or hate it - very little middle ground. If you're a newcomer to Twin Peaks, I'd strongly recommend watching the original series first - or else I can virtually guarantee you'll find yourself lost in the haunted forest where the black lodge resides. If you're already a fan of the old series, give the new one a chance, keep an open mind, and go into it knowing it's not meant to be a mystery or a simple cop drama. It's an experience. If you can enter it with that mindset, you'll probably find a lot to enjoy and some things to think about long after the credits have rolled.

WOW - What i learned from Inland Empire was that Lynch had found a new medium to gain more time to tel a story. This new medium was his groundbreaking use of digital camera which he now swears by. Inland Empire unfortunately was too much for even a lot of Lynch fans which is sad. The movie put me into a complete trance or the full Lynch experience. I could never understand why it sort of fell between the cracks when it was like an event or in my opinion a massive body of work.With this new Twin Peaks project we see him almost ten years down the line with these digital cameras and wow this is Lynch fan heaven. I love how the first 4 episodes can be watched merged togerther in 2 parts like a 4 hrs movie. It is pure art house lynch for the first 4 episodes then he cools if off almost to a complete standstill for 5 and 6 only to reveal its a joke. After episode 8 my mind was completely blown. Serious Lynch fans even get an old tribute to his student film- the Grandmother -- with that still freeze frame tripped out stuff very reminiscent to that scene where the two people have distorted faces and are rummaging around like dogs.There are great guest appearances that work every time instead of seeming forced.I love how in the character played by Lynch's office there is a giant Franz Kafka poster on the wall and positioned to be purposely in the shot. I recognized the photo from the cover of Kafka's Diary which i have had for many years. I have been waiting my whole life to experience Lynch how he is supposed to be experienced exactly like John Coltrane. While people loved his earlier work many of his fans refused to ride along when he started doing what he considered more pure art. When Coltrane released the Live in Japan album there were tracks that were and hr and other that were 45 min.. I am a believer as an artist that if you are lucky enough to have a large canvass and an audience that is the ideal aesthetic. Remember Lynch is a serious transcendental meditation person and i enjoy the implementation here. The whole series is like a giant meditation experiment because you really can only enjoy it if you have a certain type of patience. If you are this type of person you should be proud because you can experience this 18 hr exercise with an open mind. Lynch is telling us he wants to make 18 hr movies and i think it is brilliant.A very important aspect to point out is the Lynch linguistics. What i mean by this is his use of time and space during dialogue as an obvious constant that says he is obviously working within the style of the absurd.I see a handful of reviews that say the pace is slow or its boring.Thats is the dividing factor right there. If you think there is even one minute of boring material in this 18 hrs then you are by definition not getting it and probably need to 1. try some basic mindfulness techniques(beginning meditation. or 2. Start off in art film 101 and watch tarkovsky to understand pace.For example if i say hello good morrrrrjhfsojfhofhd udud to you--that is a break in linguistic flow and immediately causes awkwardness. Lynch constantly uses this deviation in every scene rather than 90% of the time with his other films. He is making it totally obvious that this series is not about Laura Palmer its about how we define the aesthetic of moving images.His use of space breaks in dialogue have become standard in new horror/comedy like tim an eric- Here we get tons of it like any scene where Gordon (lynches character) takes long pauses and just stares.Its so obvious i really have no sympathy for any negative reviewers. Lynch cannot go wrong. Take a min... breath ahhhhh now try watching again with an open mind an realize Lynch knows EXACTLY what hes doing and he is challenging you.He hypnotizes the audience and if you go into this with an open mind you will find it an unbelievable meditation through dark and light. It is also the most funny as well as terrifying thing he has done. I was constantly laughing and during episode 8 really scared i mean its real scary stuff. Not to give spoilers but we see things such as the Giant floating suspended in air/space with color beams shooting out of his head or propagating would be the better word. We also get to see Grace Zabraski (i think thats how you spell her name)-sitting in her dark living room with projections of animals fighting each other all around her. Grace is my favorite Lynch female actor and she is getting even better and more weird as she ages.This event series is very psychedelic.