Episode 22

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p-air
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Episode 22

Post by p-air »

I don’t have much particular interest in Episode 22 really (although I know it’s a somewhat divisive one among fans) I have just one question. I was wondering if anyone knows what language Thomas Eckhardt and his assistant are speaking (and what they’re saying) in the Great Northern lobby after Eckhardt phones Josie. It would be neat if this were Hungarian as this would tie into Pete’s crazy banter about the Hungarian dry cleaning lady in the previous (or sort of same) scene. But I can’t tell. It’s an interesting little interlude which never gets explained.

On a side note, I like that scene with Pete, it’s really one of his funniest.
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LostInTheMovies
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Re: Episode 22

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p-air wrote:I was wondering if anyone knows what language Thomas Eckhardt and his assistant are speaking (and what they’re saying) in the Great Northern lobby after Eckhardt phones Josie.
I always thought they were Afrikaner but I'm not sure.
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Re: Episode 22

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LostInTheMovies wrote:I always thought they were Afrikaner but I'm not sure.
Ah right because she wanted to speak to the South African Embassy. I think you got it. Oh well anyway now we have a thread for Episode 22...!
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Re: Episode 22

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p-air wrote:
LostInTheMovies wrote:I always thought they were Afrikaner but I'm not sure.
Ah right because she wanted to speak to the South African Embassy. I think you got it. Oh well anyway now we have a thread for Episode 22...!
I might have bet on this being the last episode to get a thread. :D

Honestly, I go back and forth. I never LOVE it but there are times where its stylistic experimentation feels slightly refreshing after trudging through the weak scripts of the mid-season. Like ok, if we're going to have these cheesy storylines at least there's something visually unique to hold our interest! And then other times it feels so forced and stale and faux-Lynchian and James Foley's episode a few episodes later feels so refreshing with its economical, straightforward camera setups.

Also, on rewatches (and even sometimes watching in isolation) the off-the-rails madness of ep. 17-19 tends to hold my interest just because it's so bizarre that the show went in that direction. Whereas by ep. 21-23 even the novelty value of the camp/cheese has worne off and I'm just read to get on with it.
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Re: Episode 22

Post by Audrey Horne »

Is this the Diane Keaton episode? Just to know before getting my ducks in a row.
God, I love this music. Isn't it too dreamy?
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LostInTheMovies
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Re: Episode 22

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Audrey Horne wrote:Is this the Diane Keaton episode? Just to know before getting my ducks in a row.
Yes - it's "that one." ;)
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Re: Episode 22

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I loved this one when it came out, but in retrospect it really is just a filler episode. Loved when Audrey found out Ben was just faking his dementia and how she stole the tape from Bobby about the mill fire.

The scene with Sarah is heartbreaking. When she goes to the town store, and those three women are gossiping and whispering about her behind her back. Leland and Laura might be gone, but their presence is still felt. Donna visiting her later was wonderful.

Loved the brief throwaway comment from Audrey when he asks her if she should be in school, and she replies, "who can remember?" Very meta.

Earle is becoming really creepy, meeting and befriending Audrey in their first meeting is all the more terrifying when we see what he does with her in the finale.

The handling of James is shoddy though. His complete departure four episodes ago with no followup seems sloppy. Surely they could have come up with a brilliant plot line with him to some degree. But the character just literally disappeared.
God, I love this music. Isn't it too dreamy?
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Re: Episode 22

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Audrey Horne wrote:I loved this one when it came out, but in retrospect it really is just a filler episode. Loved when Audrey found out Ben was just faking his dementia and how she stole the tape from Bobby about the mill fire.

The scene with Sarah is heartbreaking. When she goes to the town store, and those three women are gossiping and whispering about her behind her back. Leland and Laura might be gone, but their presence is still felt. Donna visiting her later was wonderful.

Loved the brief throwaway comment from Audrey when he asks her if she should be in school, and she replies, "who can remember?" Very meta.

Earle is becoming really creepy, meeting and befriending Audrey in their first meeting is all the more terrifying when we see what he does with her in the finale.

The handling of James is shoddy though. His complete departure four episodes ago with no followup seems sloppy. Surely they could have come up with a brilliant plot line with him to some degree. But the character just literally disappeared.
I like this even better than the infamous 1/26 episode...
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Re: Episode 22

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LostInTheMovies wrote:
p-air wrote:I was wondering if anyone knows what language Thomas Eckhardt and his assistant are speaking (and what they’re saying) in the Great Northern lobby after Eckhardt phones Josie.
I always thought they were Afrikaner but I'm not sure.
Afrikaans is the language.
http://www.dugpa.com/forum/viewtopic.ph ... 66&p=10329
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p-air
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Re: Episode 22

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OK,Bob wrote: Afrikaans is the language.
http://www.dugpa.com/forum/viewtopic.ph ... 66&p=10329
Thanks for digging this up. My question is answered !
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Twin Peaks Out of Order #29: Episode 22

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Re-watching Twin Peaks from my least favorite to favorite episode...

Previously: Episode 21 (http://www.dugpa.com/forum/viewtopic.ph ... 844#p41789)

Different directors emphasize different qualities of Twin Peaks. If the previous episode's Uli Edel was taken with the familiar iconography of Twin Peaks - owls, coffee, wood, donuts, etc. - then Diane Keaton seems determined to replicate David Lynch's peculiar visual techniques. Bizarre behavior, odd camera angles, and distracting objects are her stock in trade, but it all feels too artificial, the actors posed like mannequins in lifeless dioramas. Aside from acting, Keaton's background was in photography, and a number of these shots, if frozen, "would look nice on your wall" to borrow Mrs. Tremond's phrase. What they lack is that dynamic "anything can happen" quality that Lynch's work evokes. This was a close contender for my least favorite episode: sometimes Keaton's choices just alienate me even further from the poor subplots, while other times 22 has been a relief from the dull, very TV-ish preceding episodes (hey, at least there's something to look at here). I think my biggest problem is that the staging often obstructs the performances: when Truman and Norma squeeze their profiles into the kitchen's small window I found myself laughing out loud at the awkwardness rather than appreciating what the sheriff had to tell her about Hank. On the other hand, Albert fares really well here, with both Miguel Ferrer and Michael Ontkean ( :cry: ) selling the previously hostile duo's newfound bromance. And Jack Nance's bewildered delivery of the Hungarian dry cleaning anecdote overcomes the irritation of that swinging door. Since I actually watched the previous episode last night (a practice I'll mostly be avoiding on this rewatch), I wasn't really able to see 22 outside of its normal context. So I'm left with the same hang-ups as usual: aside from the visual conceits that don't work for me Windom is quickly reduced to a cackling cartoon, Catherine's and Eckhard's machinations feel unnecessarily convoluted, and Ben's Civil War drama remains a bizarrely anachronistic dramatic choice (on another note, something sure pulled a fast paint job on his office, didn't they? And all gone by the following day!). At least the Evelyn story is over, although that's little consolation to me as I still have ep. 18 - 20 to go! Why they stretched that plotline out over 5 episodes when Denise only got 3 I'll never know.

That's it for the worst of the worst, as far as I'm concerned. The remaining weak episodes all have at least a few things to recommend in them beyond just featuring beloved characters and partaking of the Twin Peaks vibe: at least a full scene or two worth waiting for. Much as I like the image of Caroline's death mask, I can't really say that about this episode.

Next: Episode 28 (http://www.dugpa.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=42140#p42140)
Last edited by LostInTheMovies on Wed Oct 28, 2015 5:52 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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Re: Episode 22

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LostintheMovies - I'm really enjoying your new critiques of each episode. I'm thinking I might try and out-of-sync rewatch at some point, too. And it's a great idea to start with the bad ones first. I've never skipped them but during my last rewatch back in January, for the first time in years, I considered skipping them that time for some reason, felt they really dragged.

Episode 22 is one I too remain mixed about. I kind of enjoy some of Keaton's shots (the opening chess pieces, the men in Hideout Wallies and the way they all move their heads in unison - the latter something I found uber creepy and "Lynchian" when I was not so clear on who was directing what, but now view with a bit more disdain, though still consider an arresting image). This episode is one I remember fondly, but always find lacking. I've read some fans say Keaton was the worst director on the show but I don't think that's true. She's certainly in the camp of trying too hard to be weird like most of the later Season 2 directors, but I think she's got some interesting ideas and visuals up her sleeve. I think she was nervous directing here too. I would have liked to see her direct a few more. So, yeah, 22 is a mixed bag, but a fascinating one to study I think.
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Re: Episode 22

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Like the previous episode, this is a slickly-lensed hour bogged down badly by an uninteresting script. Earle's promising introduction is pretty much sullied here by the image of him prancing around in long johns whilst playing the flute. He'll have better moments later, and this is far more welcome than, say, Little Nicky, but it's still a disappointment. I like some of Keaton's touches, but I do agree with those who say her direction feels too over-determined, too self-consciously Visually Striking; she stages the actors a bit awkwardly at times just so she can get some cool shot. On the other hand, Lynch's compositions may feel artificial at times but seldom if ever have this kind of amateurish try-hard feel to them. I'm not dissing Keaton too much, though, because I don't think she outright failed; actually she did the best she could have with such material. Edel and Keaton's visual flair (along with the exciting ending of Episode 20) is precisely what makes these episodes give off the deceptive feeling of being out of the slump -- but while they feel a bit less aimless than 17-19, these two ep's don't land any better than those did. This one's an interesting quasi-experiment and I don't think it's the worst of the series, but it's somewhere far down there.
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Re: Episode 22

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David Locke wrote:Like the previous episode, this is a slickly-lensed hour bogged down badly by an uninteresting script. Earle's promising introduction is pretty much sullied here by the image of him prancing around in long johns whilst playing the flute. He'll have better moments later, and this is far more welcome than, say, Little Nicky, but it's still a disappointment. I like some of Keaton's touches, but I do agree with those who say her direction feels too over-determined, too self-consciously Visually Striking; she stages the actors a bit awkwardly at times just so she can get some cool shot. On the other hand, Lynch's compositions may feel artificial at times but seldom if ever have this kind of amateurish try-hard feel to them. I'm not dissing Keaton too much, though, because I don't think she outright failed; actually she did the best she could have with such material. Edel and Keaton's visual flair (along with the exciting ending of Episode 20) is precisely what makes these episodes give off the deceptive feeling of being out of the slump -- but while they feel a bit less aimless than 17-19, these two ep's don't land any better than those did. This one's an interesting quasi-experiment and I don't think it's the worst of the series, but it's somewhere far down there.
It's amazing how bad they screwed up even simple scenes like the one with Earle here.

Have him in a suit, take away the hammy performance (even for simple stuff, like reading Leo's rap sheet), get rid of the bad styro-foam rocks, and the scene could work in some capacity. Mind you, putting Leo in this situation is just dumb. I guess the aim was to try to make us eventually feel sorry for him (I.e., a Theon Greyjoy torture arc), but, Leo's been a wife beater through and through (first thing he does when waking up from a coma after trying to murder his wife in a mill fire? Tries to kill his wife with an axe ..) and has zero dimension. Incredibly boring to watch this villain just sit around beating on a mentally disabled .. well, asshole (which in turn makes the play toward the end of season, where they imply that Leo suddenly gives a crap whether Earle kills Shelly all the much weirder ..).

As for Keaton's directing .. I don't think it's all that much better or worse than some of the other episodes in this block (it does feel like she's trying hard to get those shots, like the tracking-squared off shot of Pete/Coop carrying Josie's clothes). Though, it also feels a bit like she misses some of the basics (Coop's reaction to finding Josie's glove is .. super understated, to the point where his only visceral reaction to the gloves is to immediately pull a fibre, not even a pause as he comes to what should be a fairly shocking revelation that Josie possibly tried to kill him .. and this is all exacerbated by using an medium-shot from behind barely allowing you to see his face, or having a punch-in of the glove to at least emphasize the importance).

(As I watch further, the 'artsy' post-production slow-mo, and cross-fades, during the Evelyn segments are pretty weak. I'm not sure if Keaton just thought it looked cool, or she was desperately trying to put .. *something* into this really cliche material)


*Edit* Further sloppiness or laziness; using what clearly look to be publicity stills of Audrey/Shelly/Donna during the Windom/Leo section, the piss-poor disguise they give Windom (which only further makes the whole thing silly as hell), and the dumb light they stick under the death mask of Caroline (if you look closely, in the eye holes you can see the white reflective cloth get pulled away as Coop starts to pick it up, and you can see the blanket get pushed up as they dragged the lightbulb and cloth away away .. hence the awkward way he pauses before fully picking up the mask).
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Re: Episode 22

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This episode isn't quite as bad as some make it out to be, IMO. I think it gets a lot of flack for Keaton's stylistic choices, maybe more because of the fact that she's a famous actress playing director rather than her actual direction - I wonder if it would be as derided if it were a no-name director turning in this episode. Not that I'm justifying all of her choices - some are rather jarring, but still. The material wasn't that great, at least she made it a bit more interesting.

The Josie reveal was so poorly handled - so understated and blink and you miss-it. As much as I dislike the Josie character, this is a pretty big plot twist, or should have been. And with two great actors handling that scene, it's strange that it could have been fumbled so badly.

Some of the best parts of this episode are the inside knowledge that some of these plot threads are finally ending - Evelyn/James, the Horne Civil War crap. Who really thought this was the direction to take a great character like Ben? And practically ruining Bobby and Audrey in the process. Ugh.

I do like Windom's scenes with Leo. Yes, they're campy. But I think it was a good idea to make Leo the Windom puppet - how can I possibly feel sorry for a dope like Leo after all he's done? Interesting.....
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