A surreal world, existence outside of time and a kind of symbiosis of horror, mysticism and detective. “Twin Peaks” rightfully carries the title of a cult series. With an intricate plot and non-linear narrative, this masterpiece changed the idea of what a television series is. The collaboration of David Lynch and Mark Frost marked the beginning of a new era of cinema. TV series are no longer entertainment for housewives, they have become a full part of the industry.
Despite the fact that the story begins with a completely ordinary crime, the audience immediately understands that not everything is so simple here. The arrival of FBI agent Dale Cooper to investigate the murder proves this. With each series of mysticism, it becomes more and more and eventually reaches its climax. The characters speak in riddles, the meaning of which we can only guess. Cooper himself explores in an unfamiliar way – he trusts his intuition, trusts dreams, and seeks answers to questions using the Tibetan method.
Many things in the series are not particularly chewed by the audience. David Lynch has always believed that everyone should analyze for themselves what they see. “I don’t like when a movie answers all the questions. The last frames should always be on the minds of the audience,” he said. By the way, due to the large number of abstractions, many believe that Twin Peaks should be seen as a dream.
But the desire to decipher the authors’ intent and get answers to questions (who turn 30 this year) periodically kicks in. Therefore, after the next viewing, a good half of the viewers go to Google in search of an explanation. We also decided to deal with the secrets of a quiet town on the Canadian border. Moreover, the opportunity presented itself very conveniently. Today, April 8, 1990, the first episode of the cult series was broadcast.
Here are nine moments that still need to be unveiled, 30 years after the series.
Are owls what they seem or not?
Even if you haven’t watched Twin Peaks, you know two things for sure: owls and cherry pie at the Double R cafe. If everything is perfectly clear on the second, there are a few questions for the first. And although we know almost from the first episodes that these birds are not what they seem (the Giant first told Cooper about them in a dream, and then Major Briggs), we will not be able to get a definitive answer to the question of what this means (thank you, David Lynch).
As conceived by the authors, it is a symbol. “This is one of those elements that expresses exactly what it means to you. The answer will be different for each. And if I voice my answer, it will mean nothing but your answer. And I don’t want to limit your ability to be right,” said Mark Frost in an interview. But if you add the general guesses and theories, you can conclude that owls are the conductors of the dark forces. Because they only appear in the most intense scenes of the series.
Why are my hands shaking?
In season two, we learn of the existence of the Black Mansion due to a series of misfortunes (for those who don’t remember, this is where Bob and all the other evil spirits come from). and incomprehensible situations occur in the city. For several episodes, the creators of Twin Peaks deliberately focus on the fact that the inhabitants of the town – Peter and Agent Cooper, and even a random guest in a cafe shake hands.
Any viewer will want to hear a logical explanation, but of course not. At least directly. Thus, it turns out that an inexplicable tremor is a manifestation of dark forces. Meanwhile, some of the heroes’ hands were completely numb.
Why are we being shown a horse?
We understood the owls and shook hands, continued. Periodically, the characters of the series see a white horse. The quirks of another surreal director? Yes and no. In the Twin Peaks universe (and in the mythology of some countries), a white horse is a harbinger of death. For example, Laura Palmer’s mother saw her in the living room before her niece Maddie was murdered.
By the way, another sign of the Black Mansion’s existence is the smell of burnt engine oil, which opens the door to another dimension.
Is Josie a nightstand? And what does the Black wigwam have to do with it?
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“Twin Peaks” -
“Twin Peaks”
The scene where Sheriff Truman’s lover dies still haunts millions of fans and is rightfully considered one of the most surreal scenes in Twin Peaks. A reminder for those who forgot: Dale Cooper and Harry Truman burst into Josie’s room, saw her with a gun, dropped her, then started shaking all over (remember the second point). talked about the manifestation of dark forces) and dies in a second. And here the strangest thing begins – first a gnome appears on the bed, then Bob and Josie herself (attention!) turn into a bedside table. And that’s it. No more mention of him until the end of the series.
But we still tried to find an explanation for it. Josie is one of the most hypocritical characters on the show. She tried to kill Dale Cooper, ordered her husband killed, wanted to set the sawmill on fire, and eventually broke Harry Truman’s heart (not even worthy of a nightstand holder in our humble opinion). Meanwhile, Lynch wanted to show the audience what happened to Josie, so he filmed an important scene that was unfortunately never included in the series. In it, the girl’s body ends up in the Black Lodge, while her head is locked in the Great Northern Hotel. With this, the director wanted to show that Josie’s spirit remained restless. By the way, when she learned about the release of the third season, the actress who played the role of Josie wrote a letter on behalf of the protagonist to Lynch with a request to release her.
Why were we shown James’ strange journey and what a goddamn boy?
In the first two seasons, viewers see how the series changes from episode to episode. The first eight episodes (except the first and second) were handled by Mark Frost. So they turned out to be more linear and less abstract. In season two, Lynch became more involved and directed four episodes (including one where the whole truth about Leland came out). But problems started when ABC forced the creators to name the killer mid-season. David Lynch was so dissatisfied with the company’s actions that he decided to step back from the creation of Twin Peaks for a while.
The situation worsened with the fact that at the same time Mark Frost got his own movie “Storyville”. After Laura’s murder was revealed, ABC requested new intrigue and drama from Lynch and Frost, but no one gave them time to change. Also, the romance between Cooper and Audrey did not happen due to the strained relationship between Lara Flynn Boyle (player of the role of Donna, who was dating Kyle MacLachlan at the time) and Sherilyn Fenn (Audrey).
Full-time screenwriters could not cope with drastic changes in the plot, so they resorted to creating good old fillers. For those who don’t know, filler in a movie is extra material that has nothing to do with the main story and is added to increase the length of the show. So scenes where James lives in a mysterious stranger’s house can be safely skipped. Fill-ins include footage with an orphaned boy that Dick and Andy think is cursed.
What did we see in episode 8?
If the first two seasons, the producers of the ABC channel controlled Lynch, then in the third season they were given complete freedom. Therefore, the audience received a double dose of surrealism and again did not understand anything. Especially in episode 8. Do you know which episode this is? We will gladly refresh your memory. Remember the big bang in the middle of the episode, the weird guy asking everyone for a light, and the nasty fly/frog hybrid? Name Lynch derailed.
After the resurrection of the evil Cooper, we are transported to 1945 and watch the first test of the atomic bomb under Penderecki’s Requiem for the Hiroshima Victims. The explosion results in the birth of Bob (we see him emerging from an abstract female figure). The Giant in the White Lodge watches all this and sends a golden ball with Laura Palmer’s face to Earth.
However, a strange man appears on Earth, who says only one sentence: “No light?” And a little later, a strange creature hatches, resembling a hybrid of a fly and a frog. This is what transforms into a young girl who turns out to be Sarah Palmer (Laura’s future mother).
In short, in this series we were shown the appearance of the greatest evil, the birth of Bob, the reincarnation of Laura Palmer and the true essence of Sarah Palmer.
Who is Judy?
We learn about Judy for the first time from the movie Fire Walk with Me. Particular attention was paid to missing FBI agent Philip Jeffries, who allegedly visited another dimension. “I’m not going to talk about Judy,” he said in one scene. This was followed by a few more words that did not contain any details.
Already in the third season, we understand that Cooper is also trying to find out who his stunt double is. In one of the episodes, it comes to Philip Jeffries, who hints that he has already met Judy. It is worth clarifying here that Philip is talking about the period in which Cooper was found. He met FBI agent Judy while investigating the Laura Palmer case.
We get at least one response from Gordon Cole, who says that Judy is the negative force “Jaodei”, the highest universal evil that gave birth to Bob. Returning to the events of 1945, we recall that the evil created by a mysterious black figure infects Sarah’s body.
In the first season, we see that he has psychic powers. They intensify with age – in the store, the audience notices Palmer’s strange behavior, as if struggling with a split personality. And of course, let’s not forget the scene where she kills a man while sitting in a chair. And finally: When Evil Cooper entered the White Box, he saw Palmer’s house. However, the fireman deliberately does not let him go there.
All these facts together give us reason to believe that Laura Palmer’s mother is the earthly incarnation of Judy.
Is Laura alive?
The penultimate episode of season three could have been the perfect conclusion to the cult series – Cooper could come to Twin Peaks, meet old friends, beat his twin and start a new life. But not for David Lynch.
In the end, they decided to confuse us so much that it is almost impossible to solve. Moreover, there is no definite answer to the question that the author himself put in the final. We have to analyze it ourselves and solve it like a problem in math lessons at school. Here we are: Cooper tries to change the past and flashes back to the night Laura Palmer was murdered. She prevents him from coming to see Leo and Jacques, thus changing the story. At this point (currently), Laura’s mother goes crazy and destroys her daughter’s photo.
So Cooper saved him. That’s why we see Laura as old at the beginning of the season. “I’m dead, but I’m also alive,” she says in that scene. While Dale searches for a way out of the tent, he meets Leland, who begs to find his daughter. It is important to remember this detail.
When Cooper leaves the tent, he decides to find Laura in order to destroy Judy with his help (as Laura’s mission is to fight evil). The fireman’s clues help him move to another dimension. There he finds a cafe called Judy’s, from which Palmer learns the address.
He finds it, but is rearranged not by Laura, but by Carrie Page. This name speaks. Translated from English, Carry Page translates as “pay attention to the page.” And if you look carefully, you’ll remember that a page from Laura’s diary could not be found.
Cooper convinces her to go with him, but when they arrive at Twin Peaks, it’s revealed that it’s a certain Trimond family, not Sarah, who lives in the Palmer house. By the way, this name was worn by the spirits of the Black Mansion in the first season and the feature film. Neither Cooper nor Laura know what year they are in or where they are. It turns out that both are in another dimension.
The result: Cooper’s intervention made things worse. Laura lost her character and her life meaning. He went somewhere in a parallel world, and Dale was with him. They don’t know if they can come back or what to do next. The main idea of season three is that the past cannot be brought back, no matter how much we want it.
Source: People Talk
