FWWM - Extended Cut: Thoughts about the ring, garmonbozia and Mike and BOB

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Doug Rolnick
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FWWM - Extended Cut: Thoughts about the ring, garmonbozia and Mike and BOB

Post by Doug Rolnick »

So I've been obsessing over Fire Walk With Me over the past few days after having not seen it for something like 15 years and I wanted to share some thoughts that I haven't found out there before:

Albert asks Dale what the next victim is doing right now, Dale replies "Preparing an abundance of food" and the film cuts to Laura getting ready for her Meals on Wheels delivery where she is literally shown preparing food. My thought is that Cooper isn't really describing this, but rather the garmonbozia that Mike/MFAP/the arm will consume.

Above the convenience store, the MFAP regards the creamed corn saying "Garmonbozia" then specifies "This is a formica table" and that it's green. We see the circular cut out on the table and then the MFAP introduces the ring. Having some fun with words, a synonym for 'table' is 'meal' and formica sounds a lot like "for Mike" so it could be that Mike/MFAP is stating that he will consume the meals associated with a green color (marked by the ring). Most fans have connected these dots already, but I haven't seen the phonetic association made regarding formica and MFAP's alter ego.

I also noticed that the train car where BOB kills Laura, and into which the ring is thrown, is green.

The names Mike and BOB might have associations with Christian mythology:

Mike is short for Michael which means "who is like God?" and is strongly associated with the archangel who subdues Satan in the Book of Revelation (the portion of the Bible from which Major Briggs reads in the film). The arm's sound (whooping) could also reference the sound of trumpets (associated with angels) and even though it's generally assumed that MFAP referring to himself as "the arm" means that he was the arm removed from Phillip Gerard/Mike, he could be (or have become) the arm of a higher force.

We know BOB is short for Robert as he spells out his proper name by placing the letters spelling it under his victim's fingernails, and also Leland's statement of having met a man named Robertson in the series. Robert is a name with two components; the first means "fame" or "glory" and the second means "bright". BOB seems to be the only Lodge inhabitant who wants to make his name known (i.e. he is seeking fame). Of course, one of Satan's other names includes Lucifer "the shining one". BOB is associated with electrical disturbances and the ceiling fan. While gazing at the fan, something flashes brightly on Laura when she nearly allows BOB to possess her.

Tying these associations together, it could be that the disagreement between BOB and MFAP is representative of the War in Heaven depicted in Revelation. Mike “defeats” BOB with the ring and BOB is humbled before MFAP when he is compelled to give up the garmonbozia. After the War in Heaven, Satan is thrown to earth where he works against humanity until his final (prophesied) defeat. Similarly, BOB seems to spend more time in Twin Peaks and “on the earth” than the other spirits. I can’t recall right now, but I’m fairly certain that BOB and MFAP don’t appear together in the series (although they appear in back to back visions to Cooper when Josie dies). It could be that after paying his dues, BOB is either unwilling or unable to appear in MFAP’s presence (I haven’t seen the Return yet, so I’m not sure if they appear together there).

Also noteworthy, near the end the script reads:


219. EXT. PATHWAY FROM THE CABIN - NIGHT

With the face of the devil, Leland double time marches Laura and
Ronette out the cabin door and thru the woods.


I’m not a big fan of Christian allegory, but these associations were easy to make when looking at the names. In any case, there’s a lot going on in Twin Peaks.

I’ve been thinking a lot about the little boy/Mrs. Tremond’s grandson. I really like the idea that he could be or represent a young Leland Palmer and, after hearing that interpretation, I noted that when Donna brings Mrs. Tremond’s meal (in the series) the little boy makes the corn disappear from the plate and ‘steals’ it for himself as Mike accuses BOB of having done.

Also the line “Fell a victim” could be taken a number of ways. It could be a suggestion, an accusation, or a prediction. It could even mean that MFAP will fall victim to BOB’s deception in stealing the corn, or that BOB will fall victim to “the fury of [his] own momentum” when he kills Laura.

Regarding MFAP/Mike’s alignment:
Much has been said about how FWWM creates doubt as to whether he is truly a helpful and/or repentant spirit as he demands and consumes garmonbozia and that the wearers of the ring seem marked for death. It has been noted that the ring certainly ties (weds) the wearer to MFAP. When Laura is killed while wearing the ring, he reacts strongly showing emotion we don’t typically see from him (he is also shown reacting when Laura see’s BOB reflected in the mirror). It’s hard to pin down the emotion being represented but when she sees the reflection, he screams and looks angry or scared and then terrified. When Laura is being killed, he turns and jerks as if stricken.

In any event, everyone seems to agree that the wearer of the ring cannot be possessed by BOB and that would appear to be a fate worse than death. It’s been suggested that the ring compels BOB kill the wearer and that the wearer’s garmonbozia belongs to MFAP. I definitely think that the later point is true, but I’m not certain that BOB must kill whoever wears the ring. It seems to me that he needed to kill someone and probably wanted it to be either Ronette or (more likely) Leland; “needed” because he was caught in the fury of his own momentum. With the ring, Laura couldn’t be possessed and I suspect that his “momentum” was such that BOB needed to strike at that moment.

For whatever reason, Laura is now certain to die because of the ring. My thought is that since MFAP and the ring wearers are linked, it could be that it was devised not just to ensure that he will have his share of garmonbozia, but so that the wearer can be numbed (like Teresa’s arm) to their own pain and suffering. In any case MFAP seems to suffer with Laura. It could be that, as an enlightened spirit, he want to share the experiences of the humans who feed him (kind of like knowing where your food comes from; “Animal life”) and makes their pain and suffering truly his garmonbozia. Certainly, Laura seems to be free of pain upon her death “the look on her face when it was opened… there was a stillness like the formica tabletop”. In the series, MFAP’s “cousin” seems unaware of her experiences except as a vague memory “I feel like I know her but sometimes my arms bend back”. This might reveal the ring’s value as a protective item.

The other point that comes up is whether “good” Cooper or “bad” Cooper was urging Laura not to take the ring and why. I think that we’re seeing the real Cooper here, trapped in the lodge, and nothing suggests that he’s a doppelganger or being controlled by BOB. If taking the ring would have helped Laura, why then does he not want her to take it? I’ve seen it suggested that it could be that he knows weird things happen to people who come into contact with it: Teresa was murdered; Desmond disappeared; Jeffries… had something happen. Ultimately, Cooper is fallible. We know this because of what happens to him at the end of the series. He’s trying to learn all of this even as the audience is and he has arguably less information to go on than we do, even with his dreams. I suspect the ring was helpful (to Laura at least) and Dale was just wrong about it (in that instance).
Doug Rolnick
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Re: FWWM - Extended Cut: Thoughts about the ring, garmonbozia and Mike and BOB

Post by Doug Rolnick »

Another thing that caught my eye is that garmonbozia is referred to by name both above the convenience store and when BOB is asked to turn it over. In the first instance, several bowls of corn are seen and the subtitles do not have a parenthetical note but in the second they read (pain and sorrow). Also, only MFAP is shown to eat it.

I wonder if garmonbozia is always pain and sorrow, or only in that second instance. It could be that the bowls shown above the convenience store represent experiences the Lodge inhabitants have gathered while "among the people", whether good or bad. It's stated that BOB feeds on fear and MFAP is shown eating pain and sorrow, but I wonder if MFAP can subside on other forms of garmonbozia. It could be that the spirits collect human emotions and experiences and MFAP eats whatever the bring.
psyifinotic
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Re: FWWM - Extended Cut: Thoughts about the ring, garmonbozia and Mike and BOB

Post by psyifinotic »

the happy dinner scene gets me everytime. 'that's my girls!' ray wise is incredible


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Doug Rolnick
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Re: FWWM - Extended Cut: Thoughts about the ring, garmonbozia and Mike and BOB

Post by Doug Rolnick »

The dream theory has been discussed before but FWWM provides more hints as to what the "real" story might be. Some scenes feel more real than others in the film including the murder of Teresa, the rape of Laura, the coke deal gone bad, the homecoming queen prostituting herself and so on.

It seems possible that the mundane reality is that Laura isn't dead, there are no other realities, and dreams lead nowhere except in circles. In this timeline, Leland has been abusing his daughter and he murdered a call girl. Desperate to escape life (wishing she were dead), Laura constructs an alternate reality, perhaps both consciously and subconsciously in which the death of a small town drifter that nobody knew draws a significant FBI presence. Would this happen in reality? Probably not, but in the mind of a teenager with mental health issues these events seem logical.

In this world a kind, young, sensitive and handsome FBI agent has connected with Laura in her dreams and he is going to put all the pieces together and solve both crimes and find the "real" killer. Not her loving, but weak-minded father but rather the demon possessing him and afflicting her. Laura wishes BOB will kill her so in her dreams/psychotic perception this actually happens but her "death" brings people together and touches many lives.

Despite believing this reality Laura actually wakes up each day and faces all of the agony again exiting in a state that feels both alive and dead. In this grim world, Desmond and Cooper never come to Deer Meadow or Twin Peaks and they probably don't exist except in Laura's mind. The only "killer" Bob is Bobby and Leland goes on abusing Laura. The entire run of the series and most of FWWM is partly a delusion, partly Laura's dreams, and partly her wish. If Laura survives high school she'll probably end up living in a trailer park and wondering where her hot water is.
Doug Rolnick
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Re: FWWM - Extended Cut: Thoughts about the ring, garmonbozia and Mike and BOB

Post by Doug Rolnick »

psyifinotic wrote:the happy dinner scene gets me everytime. 'that's my girls!' ray wise is incredible


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I love him. In Reaper he's the best devil ever.
psyifinotic
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Re: FWWM - Extended Cut: Thoughts about the ring, garmonbozia and Mike and BOB

Post by psyifinotic »

Doug Rolnick wrote:
psyifinotic wrote:the happy dinner scene gets me everytime. 'that's my girls!' ray wise is incredible


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I love him. In Reaper he's the best devil ever.
i need to watch that even if its just for ray
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DopplerDonut
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Re: FWWM - Extended Cut: Thoughts about the ring, garmonbozia and Mike and BOB

Post by DopplerDonut »

What strikes me is that the MFAP is afraid of BOB. In the scene from "Missing Pieces", when the MFAP says "We are descended:, the camera shows faces of the MFAP, the Woodsmen, the Tremonds ... but does not look at BOB. BOB is in the larger picture, but only becomes relevant when he says "I have the momentum of my own fury". It is at this point where the MFAP looks concerned/alarmed, and raises a hand as if warding against attack. It is at that point that Pierre says "fell a victim", which causes the MFAP to relax. The MFAP THEN says "with this ring I thee wed", telling me that the ring is used as a device to restrain BOB from attacking the Other Place entities.

The hole in the formica ("For Mike"?) is the same size as the green substance in the ring, which I take as a hint that the MFAP and the convenience store are one kind of entity, while BOB is something else. Which kinds of entities have doppelgangers is a big clue.
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Re: FWWM - Extended Cut: Thoughts about the ring, garmonbozia and Mike and BOB

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test post..ignore
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