Scene analysis - Twin peaks - Red Room scene - David Lynch + Mark Frost - 92' - Analysis

Background

This Red room scene is from a dream that Cooper has in episode 2 of season 1 of Twin Peaks. Twin Peaks is a detective drama set in a small, humble town and includes expansive ideas and challenges our perception of reality, dream states, sub-conscious flow and meta physical concepts, transcendence, astrology, cosmology and time. The more the FBI Agent begins opening up to synchronicity and chance, becoming ever more humbled by the Tibetan crisis in the early 90's, he begins to receive clues and bits of information about a murder investigation he is currently in charge of. This dream sequence is from a space called the Black Lodge. This is a meta-physical realm that is inhabited with manifestations of information brought into being in the world of dreams, shamanism, death and faith, compassion...... This area is a holding area, similar to purgatory is to Heaven. There are 2 doors to this realm. Love opens the door to 'heaven.'(The White Lodge) Fear results in remaining in stasis, 'Hell.(The Black Lodge). Upon entry, after this sequence with the jazz 0 midget, he is faced with his worst fear. Love and forgive, spiritual transcendence is granted, fear this entity and it consumes inner being. This is obviously his visual representation of what this space may look like, devoid of time and part of the infinite. Other examples of this are prevalent in many faiths.
The girl is the murder victim. The midget returns later in the final Black Lodge scene but only to add more distortion to the scene. It is never explained why he is in the film, but he acts as a spiritual doorman. This is a great example of classic Lynch Camera work including slow pans, wide shots juxtaposed with close ups, which dislocates and refines abstract concepts, odd lighting that separates up the room and props that have a Salvador Dali element of surrealism too them... although this could just be the only thing my mind has to reference this visual aid......

Analysis...

2mins.30secs. This section starts with some relatively rapid mid-shots of Cooper the midget and the dead girl. They detail facial expressions in all the characters and don't give much of this surreal setting away. Vertically meandering Red curtains line the background, and the first long shot of the midget by the pole expose a 70's, Op Art style floor that juxtaposed with the curtains adds awkward angles and invites you into this strange world. Notice the long shot also complies to the rule of thirds compositionally. The mid shots portray an egar, excited midget and a calm composed and smiley dead girl (Laura Palmer), but Cooper is perplexed. Thats our entry into the scene as an audience i feel, being in a moderately confused state ourseles.

3mins.05secs. This long shot exposes more of the setting to us. Again comprising of thirds, the floor pattern, curtains, lamps, statue and seating all adopt the rule of 3's. Triangulation...... Spot lighting is used to highlight areas of red and draw the eyes in. Notice at 3m25scs the fluttery shadow moving from left to right.(Dali reference)

The next few shots are close up shots. Cooper is filmed from slightly below, which i believe demonstrates a visual representation of overstated ego. Cooper is visiting this strange world for the first time and gets the answer he needs. It demonstrates his psychological and cosmological prowess. However he is open and does not prove this point till later in the series, resulting in irony as it is ego which in the end destroys his inner being.

Lynch is so good with character interaction and the soundtrack. The reversed voice effect instantly adds a surreal context to the scene, but juxtaposed swing jazz with a blue note feel is just another example of Lynch using props and music to influence the Noir feel to this T.V. series.

5mins.05secs. The Jazz is introduced and the midget begins to dance. The strobe lighting adds a bit of emergency to and eerily slow scene. The sleaze of dreams and induced drug states referenced in Laura's death comes through in this odd dance, performed with dislocated bodily actions.
Untill 5m50secs it is just one long pan from right to left, then it zooms in to a mid shot, again comprised of thirds, where Cooper and the dead girl kiss.

6mins.11secs. It has zoomed to a close up where she whispers in his ear. The sequence plays out with this shot along side more of the midget dancing. All the way through the scene i cant help but notice and reference that the setting is similar to a slightly more detailed Rothko painting.

An amazing sequence and my favorite T.V. series.

The Final Episode and penultimate scene of season 2. The black lodge scene.