Review Detail
9.2 33 10
(Updated: September 08, 2012)
Enjoyment
9.0
May 14, 2011 @ 5:06 pm
At five hours, you might be wondering if this edit is worth your time. If you like David Lynch’s work generally–his off-kilter take on small-town America, odd and dreamlike characters and situations, fondness for surrealism, hints of the supernatural–then the answer is yes.
I’d say this edit has three phases. First, an introduction to the setting, main characters, and the crime event that is at the focus. Then a long central segment where characters are introduced and fade away, plot lines start up and disappear, while the main investigation chugs along in an episodic way. This central segment is relatively shapeless and unorchestrated; it just flows along like a broad, deep river. Finally, the ending draws together with some surreal sequences and a resolution of the crime mystery.
The first phase was my favorite, as it has the most humor, mystery, and atmosphere. I enjoyed the finale too, even though the surreal parts ran on a bit. The central phase could have been shorter and more suspenseful. Because some of the plot lines come and go without much resolution, and because Dale Cooper tends to solve things with flashes of insight that come out of nowhere, more material could be cut without much disruption. I agree with Emphatic that the Orchid Guy could have been cut… the key diary page doesn’t come from him. Maybe the entire Maddie character could have been cut.
Flaws are few. There are a few transitions that flow less smoothly than I would have liked, but the disruption is minor. A few scenes near the end are in the wrong aspect ratio. Sound work is excellent. Overall, Q2 has done a fine job of assembling many disparate scenes into a coherent and absorbing narrative. 9/10
At five hours, you might be wondering if this edit is worth your time. If you like David Lynch’s work generally–his off-kilter take on small-town America, odd and dreamlike characters and situations, fondness for surrealism, hints of the supernatural–then the answer is yes.
I’d say this edit has three phases. First, an introduction to the setting, main characters, and the crime event that is at the focus. Then a long central segment where characters are introduced and fade away, plot lines start up and disappear, while the main investigation chugs along in an episodic way. This central segment is relatively shapeless and unorchestrated; it just flows along like a broad, deep river. Finally, the ending draws together with some surreal sequences and a resolution of the crime mystery.
The first phase was my favorite, as it has the most humor, mystery, and atmosphere. I enjoyed the finale too, even though the surreal parts ran on a bit. The central phase could have been shorter and more suspenseful. Because some of the plot lines come and go without much resolution, and because Dale Cooper tends to solve things with flashes of insight that come out of nowhere, more material could be cut without much disruption. I agree with Emphatic that the Orchid Guy could have been cut… the key diary page doesn’t come from him. Maybe the entire Maddie character could have been cut.
Flaws are few. There are a few transitions that flow less smoothly than I would have liked, but the disruption is minor. A few scenes near the end are in the wrong aspect ratio. Sound work is excellent. Overall, Q2 has done a fine job of assembling many disparate scenes into a coherent and absorbing narrative. 9/10
B