"We are like the dreamer who dreams and then lives inside of the dream. But...who is the dreamer?" "I had a dream about this place..." "Somebody spoke and I went into a dream..." "Don't...fall...asleep..." "Hey baby wake up, come and dance with me!"
This is my longest episode yet, even longer than the last time I featured a film in focus (Holy Smoke! in June) despite that previous episode including special guests (Em and Steve of No Ship Network) and the most acclaimed part of the new Twin Peaks (Part 8). In some ways, however, Part 14 is even denser than Part 8, including not only a motherlode of mythology (Gordon's dream, the trip to Jack Rabbit's Palace and Andy's vision, Freddie's origin story, Sarah's face trick) but important ongoing plot points as well. Certain subjects - the inclusion of the Upanishads, Sarah's place in the narrative, the nature of Judy, even an aside on the Throbbing Gristle album Giftgas - required extended treatment. Additionally, I had a lengthy piece of listener feedback onhand, one that I'd been holding off until Monica Bellucci's appearance (the listener uses "Who is the dreamer?" as the springboard to discuss that recent "Is Cooper the guilty dreamer?" essay and theories about Mulholland Drive as an allegory for childhood trauma). This feedback inspired my own long reply, which detours into Rita Hayworth's traumatic history as well as something I once witnessed at a hypnotist's show. And finally, my film in focus takes up a good chunk of the episode; Sorry to Bother You, the acclaimed new surrealist/sci-fi/satirical comedy from Boots Riley, is the rare new release I felt compelled to seek out and discuss. Its explicitly political - explicitly Marxist - message resonates with the current moment and I wanted to relay my own roller coaster experience on this first viewing (I loved the early scenes, felt a bit lost during the middle section, and was back on board by the ending).
In fact, I recorded so much material that the podcast originally ran well over three and a half hours and had to be cut down. This includes splitting up the originally mammoth "Other Topics" section - this week, I'm sharing a number of other podcasts about Sorry to Bother You (including some excellent interviews with Riley) as well as some thoughts on Incredibles 2, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and a childhood alarm clock. However, a dozen other podcast recommendations, along with discussions of the brief mix CD era and a Spielberg bio I'm reading, will have to wait for later episodes. Episode 33 concludes with a new "Opening the Archive" subject (also to be continued next week), focused on the vampire film Let the Right One In as well as the book it's based on. Finally, for my biweekly preview I shared three quick character sketches: Walter, the manager of Norma's Double R franchise; the mysterious Pianist who accompanies Cooper's dinner at the Vegas restaurant; and the Bleeding Drunk, whose annoying presence inspired one of my stronger little studies.
Oh, and there are loads of links in the show notes.
Twin Peaks characters: Walter, the Pianist, and the Bleeding Drunk (August "See the Future" Preview #1 - 2nd tier reward)
Episode 33: DREAMS AND NIGHTMARES... Twin Peaks season 3 rewatch - Part 14 & film in focus: Sorry to Bother You (+ Let the Right One In, abuse in Mulholland Drive, Rita Hayworth, A Nightmare on Elm Street 4, Incredibles 2 & more)
Line-up for Episode 33
INTRO
Episode 33: DREAMS AND NIGHTMARES... Twin Peaks season 3 rewatch - Part 14 & film in focus: Sorry to Bother You (+ Let the Right One In, abuse in Mulholland Drive, Rita Hayworth, A Nightmare on Elm Street 4, Incredibles 2 & more)
Line-up for Episode 33
INTRO
WEEKLY UPDATE/recent posts: added "5 from Fandor" video to Back to the Future post from 2015
WEEKLY UPDATE/Patreon: 2nd tier biweekly preview - Walter/Pianist/Bleeding Drunk character studies
WEEKLY UPDATE/works in progress: archive, 4 Ways to Watch Fire Walk With Me (discussion of Nightmare on Elm Street 4 - subject returns in "Other Topics")
TWIN PEAKS REFLECTIONS Return Rewatch Pt. 14
The feel & structure of the episode
Trinity test site in New Mexico desert
Twin Peaks - Cooper investigation/Frank's family/Chad in jail/Hit and run/Drugs/Freddie/James/Ben & Beverly/Sarah/Roadhouse
FBI in South Dakota
Mr. C
Las Vegas - Dougie at home/The search for Dougie
Spirit World - Red Room/Purple World Tower/Convenience Store/Zone Spiral
The Other Side - Odessa
Character introductions & re-introductions/screentime rankings/timeline of events
Coffee, pie, and donuts
Lodge lore
Laura Palmer
FILM IN FOCUS: Sorry to Bother You
OTHER TOPICS: Sorry to Bother You podcasts, Incredibles 2, A Nightmare on Elm Street 4 as a very 80s movie, rock n roll chicken alarm clock
LISTENER FEEDBACK: Twin Peaks pianist, different types of UK football, old Epcot rides, Cooper as the guilty dreamer in The Return & sexual abuse as the secret of Mulholland Drive - followed by my reply about the Mulholland Drive theories & Rita Hayworth's traumatic history
OPENING THE ARCHIVE: Let the Right One In (1 of 2) - the book & Swedish film
WEEKLY UPDATE/Patreon: 2nd tier biweekly preview - Walter/Pianist/Bleeding Drunk character studies
WEEKLY UPDATE/works in progress: archive, 4 Ways to Watch Fire Walk With Me (discussion of Nightmare on Elm Street 4 - subject returns in "Other Topics")
TWIN PEAKS REFLECTIONS Return Rewatch Pt. 14
The feel & structure of the episode
Trinity test site in New Mexico desert
Twin Peaks - Cooper investigation/Frank's family/Chad in jail/Hit and run/Drugs/Freddie/James/Ben & Beverly/Sarah/Roadhouse
FBI in South Dakota
Mr. C
Las Vegas - Dougie at home/The search for Dougie
Spirit World - Red Room/Purple World Tower/Convenience Store/Zone Spiral
The Other Side - Odessa
Character introductions & re-introductions/screentime rankings/timeline of events
Coffee, pie, and donuts
Lodge lore
Laura Palmer
FILM IN FOCUS: Sorry to Bother You
OTHER TOPICS: Sorry to Bother You podcasts, Incredibles 2, A Nightmare on Elm Street 4 as a very 80s movie, rock n roll chicken alarm clock
LISTENER FEEDBACK: Twin Peaks pianist, different types of UK football, old Epcot rides, Cooper as the guilty dreamer in The Return & sexual abuse as the secret of Mulholland Drive - followed by my reply about the Mulholland Drive theories & Rita Hayworth's traumatic history
OPENING THE ARCHIVE: Let the Right One In (1 of 2) - the book & Swedish film
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