Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992)

A young FBI agent disappears while investigating a murder miles from Twin Peaks that may be related to the future murder of Laura Palmer; the last week of the life of Laura Palmer is chronicled.

Director:

David Lynch

Writers:

David Lynch, Robert Engels,

Stars:

Sheryl Lee, Ray Wise, Mädchen Amick

3 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sheryl Lee	...	Laura Palmer
Ray Wise	...	Leland Palmer
Mädchen Amick	...	Shelly Johnson
Dana Ashbrook	...	Bobby Briggs
Phoebe Augustine	...	Ronette Pulaski
David Bowie	...	Phillip Jeffries
Eric DaRe	...	Leo Johnson
Miguel Ferrer	...	Albert Rosenfeld
Pamela Gidley	...	Teresa Banks
Heather Graham	...	Annie Blackburn
Chris Isaak	...	Special Agent Chester Desmond
Moira Kelly	...	Donna Hayward
Peggy Lipton	...	Norma Jennings
David Lynch	...	Gordon Cole
James Marshall	...	James Hurley

Storyline

Essentially a prequel to David Lynch and Mark Frost's earlier TV series "Twin Peaks". The first half-hour or so concerns the investigation by FBI Agent Chet Desmond (Chris Isaak) and his partner Sam Stanley (Kiefer Sutherland) into the murder of night-shift waitress Teresa Banks in the small Washington state town of Deer Meadow. When Desmond finds a mysterious clue to the murder, he inexplicably disappears. The film then cuts to one year later in the nearby town of Twin Peaks and follows the events during the last week in the life of Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee) a troubled teenage girl with two boyfriends; the hot-tempered rebel Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook) and quiet biker James Hurley (James Marshall), her drug addiction, and her relationship with her difficult (and possible schizophrenic) father Leland (Ray Wise), a story in which her violent murder was later to motivate much of the TV series. Contains a considerable amount of sex, drugs, violence, very loud music and inexplicable ...

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Plot Keywords:

murder | fbi agent | fbi | investigation | sex | 

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Taglines:

In a town like Twin Peaks, no one is innocent.

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Genres:

Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence, sex, and drug content, and for language

Details

Country:

France USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 August 1992 (USA)

Also Known As:

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, Teresa Banks and the Last Seven Days of Laura Palmer

Filming Locations:

534 Lewis Street, Monroe, Washington, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$4,160,851 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

New Line Cinema, CiBy 2000

Technical Specs

Runtime:

135 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby DTS (DVD version) Dolby Digital (DVD version)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

David Lynch:  [highway at night] 

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Quotes

[first lines]
Gordon: [shouting very loud] GET ME SPECIAL AGENT CHESTER DESMOND OUT IN FARGO, NORTH DAKOTA!

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Connections

Referenced in Clueless (1995)

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Soundtracks

"She Would Die For Love"
Lyric by David Lynch
Music by Angelo Badalamenti
Publishing: Anlon Music Co./ASCAP, Bobkind Music/ASCAP

User Reviews

Maybe my favourite movie of all times...

This movie is very difficult to find where I live but after I have fallen in love with the brilliant series and all the other works that David Lynch has done, I was really looking forward to watch this prequel that many professionals had heavily criticized. Many people said that the movie didn't have the same charming way of the life in a small and mysterious town, many people commented that the characters weren't as intense and believable as in the series and some people regretted that some of the series's characters like Audrey Horne or Harry Truman didn't appear in this movie and that some other main characters like Dale Cooper only had small roles.

But I think that those people didn't understand the intention of this movie. It is sure that a movie of two hours and fifteen minutes can't develop the characters as much as a series with almost thirty episodes. It is also sure that this movie is about the last days of Laura Palmer and that's why characters like Audrey Horne have not much to do with this movie as they had no closer connection to the main character. This movie has a faster development than its series, it is straight forward and maybe less mysterious.

But this movie is intense in every sense of the word. It is frightening, has a very dark and desperate atmosphere, it is horrifying and it is brilliantly played by Sheryl Lee and we get a true insight of the character of Laura Palmer and her everyday life along side her strange father, her weak mother, her many different friends and especially boyfriends. This movie shows in a very straight and hard way the wasted life of a beauty that has lost its youth and innocence. This movie is about sex, drugs, violence, crime, murder and fear and how to get drowned in a circle of desperation. The scene were Laura and Donna are in the discotheque is one if the most intense moments ever filmed in cinema's history with its strange music, weird light effects, ugly sex and violence scenes and the feelings that evolve from there. You feel hypnotized and desperate about the characters. The scene where Laura and her father are in their car and surprised by a strange one-armed man is strange, disturbing and extremely weird. The scene where Laura meets the strange Bob in her sleeping room is spooky, haunting and could create nightmares. The scene where Laura finally faces her destiny is brutal, uneasy and pervert. The conclusion and final scene of the movie is the only part where you feel a little bit of piece and hope in a very transcendent and spiritual way.

David Lynch plays with your emotions and your wildest dreams and drowns you from one feeling to the other. While watching this movie I was frightened, I was almost crying, I was disturbed, I was delighted and I was absolutely impressed. I never thought that this movie would mess up with the best series in history but this flick is absolutely at the same level even if it is different because of its intensity.

But even though this movie is straight and heavy, there are still many mysterious details and typical trademarks of the series from time to time like the weird introduction of the case by Gordon Cole and the dancing lady, things that only a genius could have invented. The weird scene with David Bowie is also one for the ages and extremely cool. There are also many little hints to discover that concern the fate of other characters of the series for example the scene where a bloody Annie sleeps next to Laura and transmits her a strange message.

A sure thing is that this movie is no easy stuff and more scaring than any horror movie I have seen in my life. That's why this movie hasn't been a success for the masses and its very particular style is in fact very charismatic and different from anything you might expect. The point of desperation is that you know what will happen if you have seen the series and that you know that the characters are damned or even lost and the frightening about all of this is that you know that there is no escape and that you don't exactly know how or when it might happen. I really felt with the characters in this movie and this is something that has been developed in the series over several episodes but in this movie, I had the same feeling only after a couple of minutes. I have never seen or felt something as intense and strong concerning a movie in my whole life.

I always thought that David Lynch's masterpiece concerning a movie is "Lost highway" but after watching this flick I am no longer sure about it. This is a masterpiece, a mysterious, weird, scaring horror movie with some dramatic elements. This movie doesn't need much blood or gore effects to frighten you, it's all about the atmosphere. This movie is so intense that you simply don't have the time to miss Audrey Horne and all the others that I have liked so much throughout the series. That is something brilliant and unexpected that only David Lynch could create and it's a shame but as well typical for the mainstream masses that they didn't accept this style at the time and that there haven't been any more movies about Twin Peaks. At least, the legacy found its end on an absolute climax.

I would recommend this movie to anyone that likes movies and has a little sense of genius and is open-minded enough to accept the flick's very unique style. It is probably my favourite movie of all times or comes at least quite close to it.