Movie Type: Psychological Thriller, Surrealist Film
Themes: Murder Investigations, Small-Town Life, Mind Games
Main Cast: Mädchen Amick, Dana Ashbrook, Lara Flynn Boyle, Sherilyn Fenn, James Marshall, Michael Ontkean, Ray Wise, Kyle MacLachlan
Release Year: 1989
Country: US
Run Time: 113 minutes
Plot
Also known as "The Northwest Passage," the two-hour pilot episode of Twin Peaks originally aired April 8, 1990. The central plot of the series is set when Pete Martell (Jack Nance) finds the body of high school student Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee) wrapped in plastic by the water at the Packard Sawmill dock. As the town slowly gets word of her murder, Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) from the FBI arrives in the Washington town of Twin Peaks to investigate. Assisted by Sheriff Harry S. Truman (Michael Ontkean), Cooper retrieves Laura's secret diary and a videotape. At the morgue, Cooper discovers the letter "R" from under Laura's fingernail, evidence similar to the murder case of Theresa Banks a year ago. Meanwhile, at the Great Northern Hotel, Audrey Horne (Sherilyn Fenn) disrupts her father's business deal, causing the would-be investors to back out. Deputy Hawk (Michael Horse) and Deputy Andy Brennan (Harry Goaz) locate the scene of the murder and find half of a gold heart necklace. Also, Laura's safe deposit box is opened, revealing a copy of Fleshworld magazine and about ten thousand dollars. Laura's boyfriend, Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook), who is having a secret affair with waitress Shelly Johnson (Madchen Amick), is brought in for questioning. Later on at the Roadhouse, Laura's other boyfriend, James Hurley (James Marshall), kisses Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle), Laura's best friend. This episode features Julee Cruise singing "Falling" and "The Nightingale" during the scenes at the Roadhouse. The American broadcast version ends with Sarah Palmer (Grace Zabriskie) having a vision about the other half of the heart necklace. The European release contains extra scenes and an alternate ending. The Twin Peaks pilot episode was not included on the 2001 Artisan Entertainment DVD release of Twin Peaks: The First Season due to rights restrictions. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
Review
David Lynch took a murder mystery, mixed it with equal parts soap opera and his own surrealist vision and produced one of the most memorable television pilots in the medium's history. Twin Peaks is a fascinating tightrope-walk: Lynch's ultra-cool unconventional storytelling techniques are modified just enough to allow the movie to reach a broad audience, but he still infuses the work with enough perverse touches to keep die-hard fans happy. The eerie score by Angelo Badalamanti -- highlighted by the theme song "Falling" performed by Julee Cruise -- and the crystalline cinematography give the movie an dreamy creepiness and haunting, ethereal quality. The murder mystery is the hook on which Lynch hangs his highly-personalized, symbolic imagery. Much the same manner as Blue Velvet (though with a more delicate touch), he examines the dark underbelly lurking just under the surface of seemingly normal, happy stretches of Americana. Twin Peaks features some of the most striking images, violent emotions, and enigmatic dialogue of any network television premiere. Kyle MacLachlan is the linchpin of the cast, his incessantly cheerful nerdiness and "aw shucks" determination providing an oasis of normalcy in the vast ocean of freakishness around him. The two-hour movie is distinguished by an amazing cast that includes Sherilyn Fenn as the strikingly beautiful bad girl Audrey, as well as Sheryl Lee in the double role of the murdered Laura Palmer and her eerily similar cousin Maddy, plus Lara Flynn Boyle, Madchen Amick, Peggy Lipton, Piper Laurie and Joan Chen. "Who Killed Laura Palmer?" was the question to ask around the proverbial water cooler the Monday after this pilot was aired. Twin Peaks was a precursor to some of the more cult-ish and quirky television series which would appear in the 1990s, including Northern Exposure and X-Files. In some video releases, this version of the series' pilot has been augmented by 15 minutes of extra footage aimed for overseas markets (folks who may not have been able to see the subsequent series) which contains key information regarding the identity of Laura Palmer's killer. ~ Dan Jardine, All Movie Guide
