Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

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Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

Little Nicky
23
15%
James/Evelyn Marsh Storyline
51
34%
Ben Horne Civil War
22
15%
Audrey and John Wheeler
14
9%
Nadine in High School
13
9%
Packard/Eckhardt Battle
4
3%
Josie as a maid
1
1%
Leo as a vegetable
0
No votes
Donna and her true father
2
1%
Donna and James season two
4
3%
Milford/Lana
11
7%
Other (Please specify in comments)
6
4%
 
Total votes: 151
Agent Earle
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

Post by Agent Earle »

claaa7 wrote:for me it's the Nadine super-strength storyline, it's just HORRENDOUS in its execution.... i thought Nadine was a hilarious character in S1, ther drape runners schtick always have me laughling and the way she played that outragerous character with the eyepatch was just amazing. i even liked in the beginning of S2 when Lynch directed Everett McGill singing to her in bed during her coma and she suddenly started convulsing and ripped the restraining cuffs apart. That was actually quite creepy but it all Went downhill from there.

what i really dislike is that she is supposed to be 18 (obviously because they wanted to use her sexuality) but she plays the character like she's between 8 and 12 for the most part.. it's really ridiciolous.. on top of that, i think Badalamenti's music in those scenes are really weak, no mystery, no interest, no nothing. the scriptwriters did a bad job, the executive producers did a bad job, the studio musicians did a bad job and the actor did a bad job. Nightmares!
Amen!
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

Post by Agent Earle »

Agent Sam Stanley wrote:
Aerozhul wrote: I think Zane does the best he can with what little he had to work with. Zane is a pretty good actor in other stuff (Dead Calm - in which he was really creepy, Titanic). He seems to work better as a villain than a good guy, though. Honestly I don't think it would have mattered what male actor was brought in to be Audrey's love interest - the fact that he wasn't Cooper was basically a no-win.
Yep, Zane is terrific in Dead Calm, which is one of my all time favorite films. I don't remember him very well in Titanic, I think I've only watched that film once. Not really my type of film TBH.
He is also pretty good in a 1998 John Landis comedy called 'Susan's Plan'. Lara Flynn Boyle is also in it and they're both hilarious.

Re Audrey and JJW, I don't think Zane worked in the role. I don't find him charming or sexy, just kind of dorky (that scene he sings to her, as Truman would say, "Good Lord..."). But I like Wheeler's interactions with her. They're both kind of stubborn, Audrey wants to be appreciated for who she is and Wheeler wants to be appreciated period, but Audrey won't give in. That kind of interaction would never happen with Cooper, so at least they tried a different angle. I kind of like it, it's not the disaster everyone says it is. But like you said, I guess the fans would have a problem with any actor who wasn't Kyle doing romantic scenes with her, so it was a no win case before it even began.
Hm, I recently watched Dead Calm for the first time after hearing loads of good things about it for years and thought it was horrible (and I'm a sucker for psycho thrillers!): the writing was all over the place, the characters made illogical decisions and did stupid things, the flick had endless stretches of time when virtually nothing happened, the ending was totally out of the blue... It looked nice, though, but that was practically its only redeeming attribute in my eyes...
Wanna watch a flick where Zane's acting abilities and hilarious comic sensibility shine the brightest? How about Tales from the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight, a spin-off of the popular HBO anthology series, or Mad, a zombie comedy (or "zomedy", as they labeled it) where meat patties are turning people into ravenous crazies - good times and Zane effin' ruleZ!
claaa7
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

Post by claaa7 »

i love Billy Zane in Zoolander but i'm a sucker for that Movie hahah.. i liked "Dead Calm" but i was pretty Young when i saw it.

fun fact - Orson Welles actually directed that novel "Dead Calm" as "The Deep" but unfortunately it never made it through post-production (or maybe fortunately), heres some clips:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMNr1jWKi4A
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Agent Sam Stanley
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

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Agent Earle wrote:
Agent Sam Stanley wrote:
Aerozhul wrote: I think Zane does the best he can with what little he had to work with. Zane is a pretty good actor in other stuff (Dead Calm - in which he was really creepy, Titanic). He seems to work better as a villain than a good guy, though. Honestly I don't think it would have mattered what male actor was brought in to be Audrey's love interest - the fact that he wasn't Cooper was basically a no-win.
Yep, Zane is terrific in Dead Calm, which is one of my all time favorite films. I don't remember him very well in Titanic, I think I've only watched that film once. Not really my type of film TBH.
He is also pretty good in a 1998 John Landis comedy called 'Susan's Plan'. Lara Flynn Boyle is also in it and they're both hilarious.

Re Audrey and JJW, I don't think Zane worked in the role. I don't find him charming or sexy, just kind of dorky (that scene he sings to her, as Truman would say, "Good Lord..."). But I like Wheeler's interactions with her. They're both kind of stubborn, Audrey wants to be appreciated for who she is and Wheeler wants to be appreciated period, but Audrey won't give in. That kind of interaction would never happen with Cooper, so at least they tried a different angle. I kind of like it, it's not the disaster everyone says it is. But like you said, I guess the fans would have a problem with any actor who wasn't Kyle doing romantic scenes with her, so it was a no win case before it even began.
Hm, I recently watched Dead Calm for the first time after hearing loads of good things about it for years and thought it was horrible (and I'm a sucker for psycho thrillers!): the writing was all over the place, the characters made illogical decisions and did stupid things, the flick had endless stretches of time when virtually nothing happened, the ending was totally out of the blue... It looked nice, though, but that was practically its only redeeming attribute in my eyes...
Wanna watch a flick where Zane's acting abilities and hilarious comic sensibility shine the brightest? How about Tales from the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight, a spin-off of the popular HBO anthology series, or Mad, a zombie comedy (or "zomedy", as they labeled it) where meat patties are turning people into ravenous crazies - good times and Zane effin' ruleZ!
I highly disagree with your take on Dead Calm but I'm interested in Demon Knight now. Thanks, I'll definitely look for it.
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

Post by Agent Sam Stanley »

claaa7 wrote:i love Billy Zane in Zoolander but i'm a sucker for that Movie hahah.. i liked "Dead Calm" but i was pretty Young when i saw it.

fun fact - Orson Welles actually directed that novel "Dead Calm" as "The Deep" but unfortunately it never made it through post-production (or maybe fortunately), heres some clips:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMNr1jWKi4A
Thanks a lot for sharing this. I didn't know any footage of Welles' version still existed and that he managed to shoot most of the film before the actor died. Maybe someday the existing footage will be edited and released as a curiosity for Welles' fans just like George Sluizer released his unfinished film Dark Blood as a tribute to River Phoenix.
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

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Agent Sam Stanley wrote:
I highly disagree with your take on Dead Calm but I'm interested in Demon Knight now. Thanks, I'll definitely look for it.
Super-cheezy storyline about some ancient relic filled with Jesus Christ's blood in which various time-traveling parties - the good and the evil ones - are interested, an always reliable plot device of an accidentally assembled cluster of panicky people holed up in a building under siege by otherworldly forces trying to force themselves in, delicious splatter and excellent practical make-ups and special effects conjuring demonic creatures to life, good part tongue-in-cheek part creepy atmosphere, Zane giving it his all in the role of the titular antagonist and he's well matched by William Sadler as his archnemesis, plus it's got Dick Miller too - you're in for a treat! :)
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

Post by claaa7 »

Agent Earle wrote:
Agent Sam Stanley wrote:
I highly disagree with your take on Dead Calm but I'm interested in Demon Knight now. Thanks, I'll definitely look for it.
Super-cheezy storyline about some ancient relic filled with Jesus Christ's blood in which various time-traveling parties - the good and the evil ones - are interested, an always reliable plot device of an accidentally assembled cluster of panicky people holed up in a building under siege by otherworldly forces trying to force themselves in, delicious splatter and excellent practical make-ups and special effects conjuring demonic creatures to life, good part tongue-in-cheek part creepy atmosphere, Zane giving it his all in the role of the titular antagonist and he's well matched by William Sadler as his archnemesis, plus it's got Dick Miller too - you're in for a treat! :)

i actually never saw "Demon Knight" but i remember it well.. "Tales From The Crypt" was a brilliant series, especially as a kid sneaking around to see it with my older brother.. but there's some episodes that really hold up today, Lance Henriksen did two really good ones, Malcolm McDowell had a funny / great one and even Arnold Schwarzenegger came through as director of a tterrific episode.. i thinnk mos off theme are up on Youtube these days
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

Post by Agent Earle »

claaa7 wrote:

i actually never saw "Demon Knight" but i remember it well.. "Tales From The Crypt" was a brilliant series, especially as a kid sneaking around to see it with my older brother.. but there's some episodes that really hold up today, Lance Henriksen did two really good ones, Malcolm McDowell had a funny / great one and even Arnold Schwarzenegger came through as director of a tterrific episode.. i thinnk mos off theme are up on Youtube these days
How do you remember the flick if you haven't seen it?

Yeah, TFTC sure is landmark televison - besides emulating the feel of the original EC comics it's based on by being loads of fun and damn near scary when it wants to be, it also has top-notch production values (though the show vaned a bit when the production moved to UK during its last, seventh, season), a whole slew of talented writers, directors, and actors (who were already established names at the time of its production or became such a few years down the line), and regularly pushes the limit in terms of nudity, sex, vulgarity, violence, and gore. In short, it's one of HBO's crowning achievements and retrospectively doesn't get the recognition it damn well deserves. Hell, it kept the horror flame burning during the genre-wise lackluster 90's like few other series did at the time (The X Files doesn't hold a candle to it IMO).

I remember one of the Henriksen episodes (the one where he played a degenerate gambler who dukes it out with a fellow degenerate gambler during the night via a series of outlandish dares that have to do with them throwing the dice and chopping each other's fingers off and then playing Russian roulette). Schwarzenegger-directed episode was also terrific - it deals with a very old man (played by the always terrific William Hickey) who spends his fortune on operations that "switch" his withered body with that of a bodybuilder in order to get the girl of his dreams - only for things to go terribly awry (as is the norm for a TFTC episode :) ) and fate dealing him a cruel card...

Trivia: Kyle MacLachlan starred in an episode during the show's third season (1991), back when he was trying to shake Agent Cooper's saintly aura that could've lead to his typecasting. It's called "Carrion Death" and if you wanna see our dear old (but then still very young) Coop playing a real sleazeball, I urge you to check it out!
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

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Would've been remiss if I didn't contribute briefly to the Zane appreciation. Obviously I disagree that he's not charismatic enough on the show. But for me he's had a career overall much like that of Mickey Rourke or Stephen Dorff, where for whatever reason much time has been spent in very bad films in which his presence is often the only highlight. Part of this may simply have to do with churning out so many films over the years (like Nic Cage). Having said that though he has featured in at least a handful of very good to exceptional pictures, though I'll only list a couple here that may be of most direct interest to Peaks fans. 1991's Blood & Concrete: A Love Story is a very funny, breezy screwball black comedy farce which, while successful, was quite likely too niche and marginal for even early 90's indie sensibilities and hence has fallen into a bit of obscurity, though that may make it all the more cult of an item. 1997's This World, Then the Fireworks, meanwhile, is at the opposite end of the scale tone wise. It's a profoundly underrated Jim Thompson pulp adaptation, remarkably successful at translating not just the perversities that abound but also the main character's sociopathic disposition and narrative voice. This was, or should have been, another calling card picture for Zane but nobody saw it so it didn't matter. Co-stars Sheryl Lee, btw, in another hot and seething sensual role.
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

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Agent Earle wrote: How do you remember the flick if you haven't seen it?
i mean i remember seeing it EVERYWHERE back when it dropped in the '90s, video bins, rental stores and the likes. i'm not entirely sure, but i don't think i ever saw it.

the one with Henriksen you mention with the two gamblers trying to come up with the craziest shticks to beat each other in is a great one.. the other episdoe is maybe the most un-"Tales" episode ever aired, yet it is one of the best imo.. it is called "YELLOW" and is an homage to Stanley Kubrick's classic 'Paths of Glory' with Kirk Douglas, a film that takes place during WW1 down in the trenches. here Kirk Douglas plays the sadistic general instead of the heroic young man of the first film, and his actual son (Eric not Michael) plays an extremely cowardly soldier - a yellow man so to speak.. it's like 40 minutes long and from what i heard it was supposed to be the pilot episode of a new series produced by the same team but focusing less on horror.. it didn't get picked up but they threw the crypt keeper on there and put it on as either the season premier or season closer. well worth watching it, and especially if you're a Kubrick nut as i am. i can't remember who Lance plays, but Dan Akroyd is on it too.



Did anyone see the anthology series Masters Of Horror, think they did two season with 12 hour episodes each - it features directors like Dario Argento, Takashii Mike, Mick Garris, John Landis, Tobe Hooper, John Carpenter, Tom Holland, etc. Check out the Takashii Mike episode here, it's not for the faint of heart but it is real quality horror:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIIdDhHwdq8
Last edited by claaa7 on Sat Mar 25, 2017 10:49 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

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Loving this tangent!
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

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Dalai Cooper wrote:Loving this tangent!
Ditto!

& another Masters of Horror & Tales From The Crypt fan over here. Neither are pillars of my life, but I have a special place in my heart for both of them them (nestled between Twilight Zone & American Gothic). JJW mentioned Stephen Dorff, I actually have an even SPECIALER place for his first film, The Gate. Typical late 80s horror in many ways, but evokes a lot of nostalgia for me.

But yes, The Gate is probably my least favourite storyline in Twin Peaks.
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

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Hm, that "Yellow" episode sure sounds like an interesting concept - thanks for the details, I'll seek it out, since I guess I've missed it initially.

Never saw Masters of Horror but have always intended to, as I love the concept of famous horror directors (many of the my favouites) contributing an hour-long anthology segments (almost mini movies) in their genre and am especially keen to see the supposedly unprecedented levels of uncensored violence and splatter (plus it was on Showtime :) ).

The Gate is indeed a nostalgia piece for all us 80's horror-loving kids, and comes with a nearly-as-good sequel which unjustly catches flak (if it's remembered at all)!
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

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definitely look up "Yellow", and if you haven't seen it before you should watch "Paths of Glory" by the great Stanley Kubrick (my favorite director tied with Lynch witout a doubt).. now i'm going to go back to the original thread topic, but just one last post that might interest many since we are discussing horror anthologies and famous directors. in the late '80s Steven Spielberg produced an anthology series called "Amazing Stories".. it really wasn't much to write home about imo, but what's interesting is that Martin Scorsese actually directed an episode for the show. "Mirror Mirror" it's called, and it was his first and only foray into televison until "Boardwalk Empire" in like 2010. it used to be on YouTube but unfortunately it's not there anymore, you can read about it here - https://directorsseries.net/2016/05/13/ ... rror-1986/


and while we're at it, David Cronenberg (another one of my top 5 directors) also made it to the small screen via the Canadian horror anthology "Friday the 13th: The Series" in 1986 (it has nothing to do with Jason), using most of his trusted film crew. this one is definitely worth watching if you like Cronenberg as much as i do (be sure to watch it ASAP as it keeps getting deleted from YouTube):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPXo-oAvevI

45 minutes of prime Cronenberg cirka "The Fly", "Videodrome", "Dead Ringers"
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Re: Least Favorite Storyline in Twin Peaks

Post by claaa7 »

claaa7 wrote:definitely look up "Yellow", and if you haven't seen it before you should watch "Paths of Glory" by the great Stanley Kubrick (my favorite director tied with Lynch witout a doubt).. now i'm going to go back to the original thread topic, but just one last post that might interest many since we are discussing horror anthologies and famous directors. in the late '80s Steven Spielberg produced an anthology series called "Amazing Stories".. it really wasn't much to write home about imo, but what's interesting is that Martin Scorsese actually directed an episode for the show. "Mirror Mirror" it's called, and it was his first and only foray into televison until "Boardwalk Empire" in like 2010. it used to be on YouTube but unfortunately it's not there anymore, you can read about it here - https://directorsseries.net/2016/05/13/ ... rror-1986/


and while we're at it, David Cronenberg (another one of my top 5 directors) also made it to the small screen via the Canadian horror anthology "Friday the 13th: The Series" in 1986 (it has nothing to do with Jason), using most of his trusted film crew. this one is definitely worth watching if you like Cronenberg as much as i do (be sure to watch it ASAP as it keeps getting deleted from YouTube):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPXo-oAvevI

45 minutes of prime Cronenberg cirka "The Fly", "Videodrome", "Dead Ringers"
aah i found Scorsese's "Mirror Mirror":

http://www.y8.com/animation/amazing_sto ... ror_mirror
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