Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov September 29, 2017

David Lynch's "Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me" (1992) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include original trailers; large collection of deleted scenes assembled by director David Lynch; new video interview with actress Sheryl Lee; new video interview with composer Angelo Badalamenti; and more. The release also arrives with an illustrated leaflet featuring an interview with David Lynch from filmmaker and writer Chris Rodley's book "Lynch on Lynch", and technical credits. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

David Lynch as Gordon Cole

David Lynch's Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, the prequel to the famous TV series, is arguably the director's most vulnerable film. It is too serious, too dark, too complex, too much everything. In other words, it is absolutely overwhelming, and, frankly, quite difficult to endure.

FBI Bureau Chief Gordon Cole (David Lynch) sends two agents (Chris Isaak, Kiefer Sutherland, Flatliners) to Wind River, Washington to investigate the death of Teresa Banks (Pamela Gidley, Liebestraum). They begin sniffing around and quickly realize that the nearby town, Twin Peaks, has a dark secret. Eventually, both of them disappear.

Far and away from the scene, Agent Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan, Showgirls) encounters Agent Jeffries (David Bowie, The Man Who Fell to Earth), who is supposedly dead. Agent Jeffries has an interesting message for Agent Cooper - which introduces him to the Red Room, the Man From Another Planet, and a whole bunch of other fascinating characters and things.

Meanwhile, Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee, Notes from Underground), who lives in Twin Peaks, begins to lose her mind - perhaps because of the hard drugs she regularly takes, perhaps because of the constant sexual abuse courtesy of her father's (Ray Wise, Closing the Deal) alter ego, Bob (Frank Silva), which she is forced to endure. Her best friend, Donna (Moira Kelly, Little Odessa), tries to help her but fails.

Things get really bizarre when Laura's father accidentally discovers that she has been having sex with strangers to support her drug habit. Consumed by anger and a great dose of lust, he permanently becomes Bob, and all hell breaks loose.

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me is a dark and exceptionally disturbing film populated with some of the most vicious characters Lynch's mind has produced during the years. It is true that some of the violence in it is borderline cartoonish, hence there are a few genuinely hilarious scenes, but the rest is downright ugly.

Unlike the TV series, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me feels rather chaotic - there isn't enough time to get to know all of the key characters and the all-important symbolic scenes that reveal so much about them are simply not as effective; they look and feel awkward, creating more confusion rather than bringing clarity.

The TV series had a strong cyclic structure - the various scattered pieces in it were put together in well conceived large cycles, which among other things gave meaning to the strong sex and violence. Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me is too short to sustain a similar cyclic structure, which is why it resembles an intense set of hallucinations that have common characters but not a common message.

Still, there is no other director that knows how to mix the beautiful with the ugly and present it to us with style as well as Lynch does. Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me is a genuinely unsettling but fascinating film to behold, and a litmus test of sorts for those who like their films raw and uncompromising.

* In 1992, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me was screened at Cannes Film Festival and nominated for the prestigious Palme d'Or Award.

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, David Lynch's Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.

The following text appears inside the booklet provided with this Blu-ray release:

"Supervised by director David Lynch, this digital transfer was scanned from the 35mm original camera negative by MK2 at Eclair Laboratories in Vanves, France, and restored in 4K resolution at CBS Television City in Hollywood. The 7.1 surround soundtrack was created in 2014 by recording mixer Dean Hurley and Lynch at the director's own Asymmetrical Studio in Los Angeles. It was made using the original 35mm magnetic stock stems, which were originally created in configurations of monaural dialogue, LCR effects, stereo additional effects, and stereo music reels. The original 2.0 surround magnetic printmaster was digitized along with period laserdisc source audio for A/B comparative listening reference. The original theatrical and early home video sources of the film's "Partyland" scene had historically featured music that intentionally obscured dialogue intelligibly to convey the oppressively loud bar environment. This was adhered to for this mix, correcting an early 2000s 5.1 surround mix that failed to carry over that relationship between the music and the dialogue. A specific mix buss chain was developed for this mix that emulates the EQ tape saturation, and dynamic characteristics of older full-coat magnetic printmasters that Lynch has an affinity for. The original 2.0 surround soundtrack was mastered from the 35mm magnetic printmaster.

Transfer supervisor: David Lynch."

The only release of this film that I have in my library is the French Region-B edition from MK2. When we reviewed it back in 2010 I thought that the high-definition transfer it used was very good, and to be honest, I have not changed my mind. My biggest concern was the presence of some stronger than usual edge definition that on a larger screen could be a tad distracting. On the Criterion release this issue is completely eliminated, and especially during the darker indoor footage the visuals are noticeably better balanced. You can get a general idea of what type of difference you should expect to see if you compare screencapture #14 and screencapture #8 from the previous review. In addition to the better defined visuals there is improved density, though this is hardly surprising as the 4K transfer is of exceptionally high-quality. Plenty of the daylight footage, for instance, looks absolutely stunning (see screencaptures #3, 5, and 10). Elsewhere you should be able to notice that the sporadic black crush from the previous release is also eliminated. The color palette is different and more convincing, boasting healthier primaries and a better range of nuances (see screencapture #2). There are no traces of problematic digital tinkering. Image stability is excellent. All in all, this upcoming release offers a noticeable upgrade in quality over the Region-B release. However, even though I can see that the existing U.S. release is also sourced from the 4K master, I don't know how it compares to it. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

*Please note that the disc does not have chapter stops, which is a common practice on home video releases of David Lynch films.

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 and English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track was supervised by David Lynch, so it is the one that I used to view the release. What immediately made an impression on me was that it has a very wide range of nuanced dynamics, with some of the more atmospheric footage from the bar for instance essentially boasting the type of reference quality that David Lynch films demand. Depth is also outstanding, though I have to say that I did some direct comparisons with the Region-B release and the basics appear identical. There are a few sequences where dynamic fluctuations tend to squeeze the sound a bit, but as far as I am concerned it is quite clear that they are part of the original sound design. Ultimately, I think that the DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track serves the film really well, and since it was endorsed by its creator, it should probably be considered the default track.

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailers - in English, not subtitled.
  
  1. U.S. Theatrical Trailer. (2 min, 1080p).
  2. International Theatrical Trailer (2 min, 1080i).
  3. The Missing Pieces Trailer (3 min, 1080p).

• The Missing Pieces - presented here is a large collection of deleted scenes and alternate takes from Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, which were assembled by director David Lynch. In English, (92 min, 1080p).

• Interviews -
  
  Sheryl Lee - in this brand new video interview, actress Sheryl Lee recalls her initial encounter with David Lynch and first impressions of Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, and discusses the director's working methods before and during the shooting process, her work with various cast members, the shooting of the famous bar sequences, the important role of music and how it shaped up the ambience of the film, the different rules of the Red Room, the signs and messages from Laura's story that remain relevant today, etc. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in Los Angeles in 2017. In English, not subtitled. (23 min, 1080p).
  
  Angelo Badalamenti - in this brand new video interview, composer Angelo Badalamenti explains how the music of Twin Peaks was conceived and how David Lynch reacted to the emerging themes, the different moods and colors that the director was looking for, their discussions and the fact that he never had to see a script, the important role of organic sounds (wind), etc. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in New Jersey in 2017. In English, not subtitled. (21 min, 1080p).
  
  Actors' Discussion - in this filmed video conversation, David Lynch, Sheryl Lee, Grace Zabriskie, and Ray Wise remember what it was like to work on Twin Peaks. The conversation was filmed in Los Angeles in 2014. In English, not subtitled. (29 min, 1080p).

• Leaflet - an illustrated leaflet featuring an interview with David Lynch from the 2005 edition of filmmaker and writer Chris Rodley's book Lynch on Lynch, and technical credits.

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me was included in the big box set with the original TV series that Paramount produced last year, so this upcoming release will likely appeal to those who wish to have an individual copy of the film and are intrigued by the exclusive interviews that Criterion conducted with Sheryl Lee and Angelo Badalamenti. It is sourced from the recent 4K remaster that was supervised by David Lynch, and I personally think that it looks magnificent. RECOMMENDED.