Film Review: WILD AT HEART (1990)

Director: David Lynch
Writers: Barry Gifford (novel “Wild at Heart: The Story of Sailor and Lula”), David Lynch (screenplay)
Running time: 125 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 18

Genre: Crime/Romance
UK Release date: 24^th August 1990

Watched on Terrestrial PVR Monday 23^rd September 2013.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE UNINTENTIONAL SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

I have to admit I knew very little about this one before viewing. I have seen copies of the DVD in many a bargain bin but never paid it much heed. On discovering it was directed by David Lynch I decided to give it a go when it appeared in the TV listings recently. So what did I think; well, it’s got Lynch all over it with many of his tropes well to the fore and I did like it, although it did have its problems. I’ll tell you more after this very brief summary.

After a spell in prison for manslaughter, Sailor Ripley (Nicolas Cage) gets out and is met by his girl, Lula Fortune (Laura Dern). The pair decides to drive across country from Cape Fear to California but Lula’s domineering mother, Marietta (Diane Ladd) has other ideas. She sends a series of hit men after the couple as they travel to New Orleans and then on to a small town in Texas. This is where they run into Bobby Peru (Willem Dafoe), could he be the one to cash in?

Filled with some crazy characters, this one certainly catches your attention and refuses to let go. Nicolas Cage is at his best playing the larger than life Sailor Ripley and Laura Dern does a great job as Lula. I thought Diane Ladd as Marietta was truly excellent and Willem Defoe was also great as the sleazy Bobby Peru. You cannot fail to notice the many references to ‘The Wizard of Oz’; a theme that runs throughout. Unfortunately I found the film ran too long, there’s only so long you can put up with all the craziness. It reaches a point where we lose one of the main threads that have been running through the first two thirds of the film and I found that quite distracting. Still, it’s worth a look for a decent Cage performance and the, almost comic-book, like characterisations from Lynch (well at least for the first two thirds).

SteelMonster’s verdict: RECOMMENDED

My score: 6.9/10.

IMDb Score: 7.2/10 (based on 44,027 votes when this review was written).
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100935/

MetaScore: 52/100: (Based on 18 critic reviews provided by Metacritic.com at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Tomatometer’ Score: 65/100: (based on 43 reviews counted at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Audience’ Score: 80/100: (based on 42,112 user ratings counted at the time of going to press).
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/wild_at_heart/

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LINKS:
(Note: All were working at the time of going to press)
Trailer:

Film Review: BLUE VELVET (1986)

Writer/Director: David Lynch
Running time: 120 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 18

Genre: Crime/Mystery/Thriller
USA Release date: 19th September 1986

Watched on Sky+ Sunday 6th March 2011.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

A bit of amateur sleuthing is always good value, but put it in the hands of someone like David Lynch and you’ll get something very different. After having had this one recommended to me by several people I decided to give it a viewing when it came up on TV recently. I have to admit, it’s pretty good… very strange in places, but still, very watchable and very compelling. But more of my thought later, here’s a brief summary first (summary haters and those that don’t wish to know anything about the plot please hide in that closet while I write the next paragraph).

Young Jeffrey Beaumont comes across a human ear in a field near his home. Being a responsible type, he takes it to a policeman he knows, Detective Williams. The detective looks into the matter and later tells Jeffrey that he cannot discuss the case but he will tell him everything after the investigation. Jeffrey is not satisfied with this and is determined to find out more. Detective William’s daughter, Sandy, tells Jeffery that she overheard her father say that a woman called Dorothy Vallens may be involved. The pair decides to try and find some evidence. Sneaking into her apartment and hiding in a closet, Jeffery discovers more than he bargained for when a violent and shady character called Frank Booth turns up. I will leave my short summary here… I think that’s enough to intrigue you for now.

A very well made film with some great moments and also some totally strange moments. I found it very compelling and also quite bizarre in places. Great performances all round, particularly from Dennis Hopper as Frank Booth; he really gets to chew all the scenery in this one! Also worthy of note is Isabella Rossellini as Dorothy Vallens, again, a stellar performance. Kyle MacLachlan was excellent as Jeffrey Beaumont, as was Laura Dern as Sandy Williams. I should also give an honourable mention to Dean Stockwell who I hardly recognised as Ben.

As I’ve already said, this is a very compelling film with lots of quite strange and bizarre touches. I liked it a lot, but found the whole tone rather muted which, I felt, took away some of the impact of it. I would definitely watch it again though because I’m sure there are many nuances I missed first time around. Over all, it’s a very compelling story told it a way that is, at times, quite bizarre, but even so, very enjoyable… Recommended.

My score: 7.6/10

LINKS:
(RT = Rotten Tomatoes)
IMDb Page: http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0090756/
RT Page: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/blue_velvet/
Trailer: http://www.alltrailers.net/blue-velvet.html