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Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Fri Aug 01, 2014 11:28 am
by tamygdala
I thought the extended 'Above the Convenience Store' scene was mesmerizing. It plays like a mini-origin story of the denizens of the Black Lodge -- explaining (albeit abstractly) their journey to our world and revealing BOB's desire (fury) to go rogue. Mike/LMFAP showed genuine fear when Bob screamed, "I have the fury of my own momentum." That was surprising to see.

One thing I'm trying to figure out is if this scene takes place before or after the murder of Teresa Banks, and how Teresa came into possession of the ring? The only people connecting Teresa to the ring (other than Bob/Leland) are the Tremonds/Chalfonts.

As for the 'chrome' line --- here's what Lynch/Engels wrote originally:

FIRST WOODSMAN
(subtitled)
Our world.

MAN FROM ANOTHER PLACE
(subtitled)
With chrome. Any everything will
proceed cyclically.

As to the actual meaning, I'm as blank as a fart. The only thing I can come up with is that the word 'reflection' follows the doubles motif of FWWM --- maybe there's something with chrome and mirrors. The one great mirror shot we get is during Laura's murder, seeing her 'reflection' turn into BOB.

As for the sound design, my gut is that this was newly created by Lynch. I like the consistent electrical buzzing -- it's consistent with the electricity motif of FWWM. The 'squawking monkey' sounds are a bit too much. I would've preferred mixing in Indian whooping and some of the more abstract, backwards audio from the original soundtrack --- i.e. fingernail being torn, train car.

Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Fri Aug 01, 2014 12:33 pm
by Rami Airola
Yeah, I think the CHROME line is a way to say that things like mirrors can reflect them.

tamygdala wrote:Mike/LMFAP showed genuine fear when Bob screamed, "I have the fury of my own momentum." That was surprising to see.
I don't think he was afraid. To me it looked more like he was surprised by Bob's sudden burst of rage. His hand gesture seemed to be something like "wow, everyone quiet, let him speak" or "wow, calm down"
Or something like that.
Anyway, it was a serious expression on his face and the hand gesture had serious tone to it. I just didn't feel he was scared. To me, the whole scene said more clearly than ever before that the LMFAP is Bob's partner in crime.

EDIT:
Well, now as I think about it more, I guess he was intimidated by Bob. Meaning that perhaps there even was a bit of fear in LMFAP. I still think he was more in awe than exactly in fear. Well, even so, yeah I guess there was some fear even if only tiny bit. You are correct.
One thing I'm trying to figure out is if this scene takes place before or after the murder of Teresa Banks, and how Teresa came into possession of the ring? The only people connecting Teresa to the ring (other than Bob/Leland) are the Tremonds/Chalfonts.
I think it's before Teresa's death, because Jeffries was surprised to see the year 1989 in the calendar.

Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Fri Aug 01, 2014 1:55 pm
by Montana
I can't find th TP deleted/extended scenes. Which disc are they on? Am I being really stupid? I found the FWWM scenes but not the TP ones. Please help!

Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Fri Aug 01, 2014 2:36 pm
by worthit
Anyone knows where exactly Will Hayward got the note he read to Laura? They were all eating muffins and suddenly this note pops up. Where did it come from?

Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Fri Aug 01, 2014 5:13 pm
by LostInTheMovies
worthit wrote:Anyone knows where exactly Will Hayward got the note he read to Laura? They were all eating muffins and suddenly this note pops up. Where did it come from?
My impression was that Donna wrote it to be cute and affectionate and handed it to the Doc to read aloud as a "prescription". I don't think this was in this script, right? Such a lovely moment.

Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 12:53 am
by Jasper
james wrote:To get this started, does anyone have a clue what 'THE CHROME REFLECTS OUR IMAGE' means in the extended version of the meeting in the room above the convenience store, please?
I think we need to examine the script again, especially the line preceding what tamygdala mentioned:
MAN FROM ANOTHER PLACE:
This is a formica table. Green is its color.

He touches the table.

FIRST WOODSMAN:
Our world.

MAN FROM ANOTHER PLACE:
With chrome. And everything will proceed cyclically.
MIKE/LMFAP touches the green table with great purpose, and mentions its color. Then Woodsman #1 says "our world". The GREEN formica table is rimmed with chrome, or some shiny metal. Then we have the ring, which is also green and rimmed with metal. Rings and cyclical happenings are already known in Twin Peaks, which is full of cyclical/circular imagery and themes. So, I think that this scene is, among other things, the forging of the ring, the ring being something which encompasses their world (their world being represented by the table).

This guy tends to go off the deep end, to put it very mildly, but when he analyzes Lynch he's generally quite lucid:
http://subliminalsynchrosphere.blogspot ... ree_9.html

He points out that as the ring is introduced, there seems to be a chunk missing from the table that's about the size of the green portion of the ring:
Image
Whether or not you accept that this hole could be related to the ring, it's pretty hard to deny that the green table is related to the green ring, especially when so much emphasis is placed upon it.

That blogger goes a step further and talks about the Emerald Tablet (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emerald_Tablet), which could resemble the table.
Image
You can take or leave what he says, but portions of the tablet, like "This ascends from the earth into the sky and again descends from the sky to the earth, and receives the power and efficacy of things above and of things below." seem eerily close to the dialogue a few lines earlier:
FIRST WOODSMAN:
We have descended from pure air.

MAN FROM ANOTHER PLACE:
Going up and down. Intercourse between the two worlds.
Not to mention that receiving power could tie in with The Electrician and the mention of electricity.

I think that this is a pretty outstanding observation. Now, the Emerald Tablet was thought to be the key to alchemy, the most well-known goal of which was to turn junk (base metals) into gold. Based upon this, I would add my own observation, which is that on the table we have bowls of Garmonbozia. What is Garmonbozia? It's a GOLDEN substance, which is of the highest value to the lodge inhabitants. From what is Garmonbozia created? Pain and suffering. Through an alchemical-like process, the lodge inhabitants transform something shitty into extremely valuable golden stuff, Garmonbozia.

Image

Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 1:11 am
by kingsoprano718
Man I would love to get into all the theories but I am spent. I just spent the week watching the whole show movie and pieces and wanted to comment only on th pieces part right now.

I loved seeing the scenes and felt some were better than others. The Packard Mill scene, The Annie scene and Leland coming home as well as Mike in the candles stand out to me but one thing I noticed is that with these scenes, it felt like FWWM would have been a totally different movie.

As it is now the movie is quite dark but these scenes feel more in spirit with the TV show, and thats not a bad thing. I just wonder how someone will be able to edit all that in and make it feel like one cohesive movie and not something that jumps from mood to mood.

Please dont think I am criticizing because I am not. I watched Peaks weekly on TV when I was just 13 years old and have clamored for these scenes but after seeing it all back to back those scenes are definitely filmed in a different tone than how the final movie came out.

Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 4:57 am
by bluefrank
Jasper wrote:
james wrote:
This guy tends to go off the deep end, to put it very mildly, but when he analyzes Lynch he's generally quite lucid:
http://subliminalsynchrosphere.blogspot ... ree_9.html

I think that this is a pretty outstanding observation. Now, the Emerald Tablet was thought to be the key to alchemy, the most well-known goal of which was to turn junk (base metals) into gold. Based upon this, I would add my own observation, which is that on the table we have bowls of Garmonbozia. What is Garmonbozia? It's a GOLDEN substance, which is of the highest value to the lodge inhabitants. From what is Garmonbozia created? Pain and suffering. Through an alchemical-like process, the lodge inhabitants transform something shitty into extremely valuable golden stuff, Garmonbozia.

Image
Hey...this is my work, I am 'horselover phat' aka Bluefrank! Interesting that this post (of mine) has piqued your attention.
Aspects of this stuff was first mentioned over at Twin Peaks Gazette, sadly no longer with us.

Yes...I'm 'way out there' (as you put it) but then, so is the subject matter. I've basically connected the Twin Peaks mythos to 'lodges' (dualism/masonry) '(egyptian) sycamore/tree of life', 'dweller on the threshold' (Bulwer-Lytton) to mystery relgion/kabbalah/tree of life etc. I have of course, treated the subject matter with this in mind (a form of confirmation bias), I actually think that David Lynch is a kind of 'rosicrucian adept'.

Image
Bulwer-Lytton coined the term 'Dweller on the Threshold' which actually links into 'Crossing the Abyss' (kabbalah/tree of life)
The term is also used in Twin Peaks...relating to the white/black lodges and 'under the Isis sycamore tree of life'! Don't forget that 777 Bowie (777 & the kabbalistic 'ziggy stardust zag' lightning flash of creation, the 'zig-zag' being a huge Lynchian motif!) featured in scenes relating to the lodges and its inhabitants!
Above quote...is from recent work.

Re: alchemy the 'transforming of base metal into gold' is likely an allegory for the transformation of base matter (human ignorance) into gold (human enlightenment) this is definitely a barely veiled aspect. I do like your take on the 'golden garmonbozia' though.

You should see my piece on Mulholland Drive!
http://subliminalsynchrosphere.blogspot ... -post.html

Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 5:19 am
by bluefrank
With all that said...I've yet to see 'the missing pieces' from FWWM. I will order it soon (the new blu ray release) and take a look at the extended aspects. I've already seen the entire series in HD and have had FWWM on Blu Ray for 2 or 3 years now, whenever the MK2 version was released.

Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 5:50 am
by kingsoprano718
Here's a point I am not sure anyone has made yet. Did we always just assume a 2nd or 3rd film was not made because of how the movie did? Because if the plan was to go three why was the decision made during editing to remove the Annie and is it past scenes that were shot specifically to set up the next movie. One has to think a decision was made in the editing room to not include these crucial scenes as they only take up a few minutes of the run time. Why were they removed if sequels were planned up until release date?

Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 5:58 am
by Jasper
bluefrank wrote:Re: alchemy the 'transforming of base metal into gold' is likely an allegory for the transformation of base matter (human ignorance) into gold (human enlightenment) this is definitely a barely veiled aspect. I do like your take on the 'golden garmonbozia' though.
I thought you were likely a member here. :lol: As for the allegory, I think that's even better, because I suspect that Garmonbozia is more of a representation of a sort of psychic sustenance, and pain/suffering itself isn't an object/material. I think this approach works, especially with the Emerald Tablet hypothesis, so I appreciate that you did the hard analytical work that enabled me make that connection. I tried to comment about it on your blog, maybe about a year ago, but for whatever reason I wasn't able to post (technical problem on my end, I think).
bluefrank wrote:You should see my piece on Mulholland Drive!
http://subliminalsynchrosphere.blogspot ... -post.html
Oh, I've read and enjoyed it already, and I've sent some other people to read that piece as well. Very good work.

Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 6:17 am
by Jasper
kingsoprano718 wrote:Here's a point I am not sure anyone has made yet. Did we always just assume a 2nd or 3rd film was not made because of how the movie did? Because if the plan was to go three why was the decision made during editing to remove the Annie and is it past scenes that were shot specifically to set up the next movie. One has to think a decision was made in the editing room to not include these crucial scenes as they only take up a few minutes of the run time. Why were they removed if sequels were planned up until release date?
I think it may have been a mistake to not have included the flash forwards. I don't necessarily mean from an artistic standpoint, but from a pragmatic standpoint. It seems to me that it would have gone a long way in demonstrating to the audience that there would be a continuation of that series plot, which everyone seemed to want from the film. It may have given them the feeling of, "Oh, well we didn't quite get what we were expecting in terms of a continuation of the series cliffhanger, but it's coming and we got a taste of it and a good setup." They may have left the theater in a better mood.

From an artistic standpoint, I can see why Lynch would have wanted to end with the angel scene (and that brief Judy monkey). He couldn't have predicted how poorly the film would be received, and he may have included the deleted epilogue material had he known, rather than the much-less-explicit "Judy" tease.

I think we also have to consider the possibility that he was unsure if he could get Kyle to return for another film (or two) with a much-expanded role. Additionally, must have always known that there are no sure things, and that he might not have been able to make another film, so tacking on another cliffhanger (of sorts) may have seemed risky. The fans got burned once by a cliffhanger. What if things went wrong (as they did) and the fans got burned a second time?

Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 8:12 am
by bluefrank
Jasper wrote:
bluefrank wrote:Re: alchemy the 'transforming of base metal into gold' is likely an allegory for the transformation of base matter (human ignorance) into gold (human enlightenment) this is definitely a barely veiled aspect. I do like your take on the 'golden garmonbozia' though.
I thought you were likely a member here. :lol: As for the allegory, I think that's even better, because I suspect that Garmonbozia is more of a representation of a sort of psychic sustenance, and pain/suffering itself isn't an object/material. I think this approach works, especially with the Emerald Tablet hypothesis, so I appreciate that you did the hard analytical work that enabled me make that connection. I tried to comment about it on your blog, maybe about a year ago, but for whatever reason I wasn't able to post (technical problem on my end, I think).
bluefrank wrote:You should see my piece on Mulholland Drive!
http://subliminalsynchrosphere.blogspot ... -post.html
Oh, I've read and enjoyed it already, and I've sent some other people to read that piece as well. Very good work.
Thanks for the appreciation...I usually get tarred with the mad brush!
I love writing about Lynch because I've been a fan since I was a child, so thats over 30 years now. (I'm 44)
He is not the easiest artist to decipher and many fail to penetrate his work...and tbh, that is all part of the fun.

Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 9:26 am
by LostInTheMovies
kingsoprano718 wrote:Man I would love to get into all the theories but I am spent. I just spent the week watching the whole show movie and pieces and wanted to comment only on th pieces part right now.

I loved seeing the scenes and felt some were better than others. The Packard Mill scene, The Annie scene and Leland coming home as well as Mike in the candles stand out to me but one thing I noticed is that with these scenes, it felt like FWWM would have been a totally different movie.

As it is now the movie is quite dark but these scenes feel more in spirit with the TV show, and thats not a bad thing. I just wonder how someone will be able to edit all that in and make it feel like one cohesive movie and not something that jumps from mood to mood.

Please dont think I am criticizing because I am not. I watched Peaks weekly on TV when I was just 13 years old and have clamored for these scenes but after seeing it all back to back those scenes are definitely filmed in a different tone than how the final movie came out.
I agree and it's actually a quality I really like about them. Keep in mind that Lynch apparently recut these scenes recently - and in the surreal sequences, it looks like he actually manipulated the footage as well (they are far more in his Inland Empire/digital experimental mode than anything he was doing in '92). In the "normal" sequences he sticks mostly with master shots and longer takes than in the film, which adds to the sense that this is a very separate entity (or entities), and not just extra material from Fire Walk With Me as it stands.

For these reasons, The Missing Pieces serve as a good bridge between the series and film - I believe they should be watched between the two for the best effect. They also remind us how Fire Walk With Me is, in fact, a complete experience on its own and the appropriate end to the Twin Peaks saga, or at least the Laura Palmer thread which was in many ways the heart of the saga all along (even when it was submerged). Yeah, Twin Peaks could have continued and they obviously wanted it to (though in retrospect this hope seems pretty delusional) but as it stands, the arc from the eerie mysteriousness of the pilot (with the dead Laura our object and the confused community our subject) to the individual transcendence of FWWM's conclusion (with the spirit of Laura our subject) is really powerful. And the deleted scenes, at least if watched before the film, really help that arc to feel complete. The arc also really reflects Lynch's feelings about spiritual growth and ultimate reality - watching all of this together as one work makes "Twin Peaks" feel structurally similar to Mulholland Drive (albeit less pessimistic) and particularly The Elephant Man and Inland Empire.

I'll be posting a piece on this on Monday and probably start a new thread on the subject, but I really feel that the Missing Pieces works as canon if viewed between series and film. Not just narratively but tonally and stylistically it feels perfect in that spot, taking us one step closer to Laura (now we get to see her in person) but not quite all the way yet (we're still outside her trauma, and seeing her through the community). Certainly the ending leads us on to Fire Walk With Me rather than serving as any kind of final punctuation in and of itself.

Re: Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces - analysis/thoughts etc

Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 9:30 am
by LostInTheMovies
kingsoprano718 wrote:Here's a point I am not sure anyone has made yet. Did we always just assume a 2nd or 3rd film was not made because of how the movie did? Because if the plan was to go three why was the decision made during editing to remove the Annie and is it past scenes that were shot specifically to set up the next movie. One has to think a decision was made in the editing room to not include these crucial scenes as they only take up a few minutes of the run time. Why were they removed if sequels were planned up until release date?
This is a good question. It's as if, subconsciously if nothing else, Lynch and Sweeney (I would love to know what role she played in nudging him towards this) finally realized that they were completing a story, the story of Laura's journey, rather than keeping a longer one going. But in dramatic/narrative terms having Cooper and Annie in there would have just seemed really distracting after the film's harrowing conclusion. Just wouldn't have worked.

I also suspect, especially after watching the Moving Through Time documentary, that the level of Sheryl Lee's performance was really unexpected and had a hand in re-orienting the material around her (and perhaps to great inclusion of the angels and the ring as a positive feature, which were added pretty late in the game - during production I believe, though Wrapped in Plastic editor believes the latter was actually improvised through pick-up shots in post).