Garnering Lynch a second Oscar nomination for direction, Blue Velvet is rightly considered to be one of the cornerstones of 1980's cinema, and is arguably the director's best film to date. Coming after the 1984 box-office failure of Dune, it's rumoured that Lynch only agreed to helm that adaptation of Frank Herbert's science-fiction epic if producer Dino De-Laurentiis gave him absolute free reign on his next picture. If the rumour is true then it would seem that De-Laurentiis capitulated as, for the first time, one of the recurrent themes of Lynch's work - namely the occurrence of the dark and disturbing just beneath the surface of middle-American suburban life - is clearly to the fore here. With hindsight it can now be seen as a clear precursor to the likes of Twin Peaks, but it was in 1986 with the self-penned Blue Velvet (rather than with his debut - Eraserhead, or its follow-up The Elephant Man) that Lynch first staked his claim to genuine auteur status.
Set in the picture-postcard small-town environs of Lumberton, Kyle MacLachlan plays the clean-cut Jeffrey Beaumont, who, whilst returning from a visit to his hospitalised father, makes the shocking discovery of a severed human ear. After reporting his discovery to a local police detective, Jeffrey decides to pursue his own line of enquiry, aided by the detective's daughter, Sandy (Laura Dern). This sets Jeffrey on a voyage of discovery that takes him to the very heart of Lumberton's seedy and sinister underworld where he encounters a collection of misfits whose various chronic compulsions threaten to engulf him in their twisted and nightmarish world. Whilst eliciting superb performances from the entire cast in their portrayal of Blue Velvet's assortment of bizarre characters - particularly Isabella Rossellini as night-club chanteuse Dorothy, and Dean Stockwell as Ben - it is however undoubtedly Dennis Hopper who steals the show here with a career-reviving performance as the malevolent Frank Booth, a drug snorting sexual sadist obsessed with Rossellini's tragic femme fatale. This special edition DVD of Blue Velvet features a brand new telecine transfer of the film and remastered 5.1 surround sound. DVD extras exclusive to this Special Edition DVD, will include brand new and extensive interviews; with the key cast, crew, and production-team members.
OMG OMG, I cant believe we are finally getting some lynch on UMD. This is so sweet for those of us that grew up being confused and awed by this amazing director.
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