BLUE VELVET (1986)

Director David Lynch’s breakthrough film establishes one of his trademarks: exposing the seedy underbelly of a seemingly idyllic small town. After the fiasco of Dune (1984), Lynch took a salary cut to maintain complete control over this film. The result was a contentious, very personal mixture of surrealism, film noir, and coming of age tale. After an arbitrary change to his walk home, college student Jeffrey (Kyle MacLachlan) discovers a severed ear. Digging into the mystery behind it leads him to the twisted world of criminal Frank Booth (Dennis Hopper) and introduces him to the masochistic singer Dorothy Vallens (Isabella Rossellini), whose husband and son have been kidnapped by Booth. It’s a voyage that leaves Jeffrey and the audience changed forever. The film also established Lynch as one of the screen’s most visionary and controversial directors.

d. David Lynch, 121m, DCP

Courtesy of Park Circus and Amazon.