Episode 4

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LostInTheMovies
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Episode 4

Post by LostInTheMovies »

I've heard a lot of people remark that it feels like a "filler" episode, marking time between the dramatic first arc (leading up to Laura's funeral, in which Cooper gets to know the town) and the second (in which, Laura in the ground, the individual investigations and storylines hit full blast and we zoom toward the finish). I wouldn't say that - to me it belongs to the second arc pretty tightly (Donna/James invite Maddy in, Cooper investigates the one-armed man, Audrey hatches her OEJ plan) but even so, that quieter quality is something I kind of like about it. There's a nice sense of relaxation in which we're really able to sink into Twin Peaks' world while slowly moving forward into the mystery instead of just gazing it impenetrably (though that can be fun too - but by the end of ep. 3, I always feel this itch of "c'mon, let's start looking for clues!" which is of course what they're going for with all the build-up of grief/guilt/malaise).

I love Tim Hunter's stylistic touches here too, which feel wonderfully "cinematic." This may be my favorite direction of season 1 next to Lynch - it's got a pronounced style without going too far over-the-top. Funny thing is, I don't care much for his work in season 2 even though ep. 16 & 28 are fan favorites (well, 16 anyway, although I've heard 28 praised too). I think he's better at handling a moody, relaxed story like this than attempting to build up to some grand climax. I also like Engels' work on the script - it has a very Howard Hawksian feel to it, and like Hawks he pulls off a relaxed camaraderie with both the guys and the gals: the shooting range scene and the high school bathroom are both gems. I particularly love Donna's and Audrey's tense repartee and wish they had more scenes together though the reasons they didn't seem obvious enough.

It's a pity - and kind of odd - that whenever he is interviewed (at least that I've read) Engels talks mostly about the goofy sci-fi stuff like planets of creamed corn. He has a really nice touch with the human drama (and comedy) on his TP outings. I remember when I aligned which episodes he wrote with the fact that he'd co-written FWWM, it made sense to me: Engels episodes always seem to dig into the high school characters' relationship with Laura. I always wonder if these sort of things are coincidental or if different writers got different episodes/characters/stories based on their strengths (Brad mentioned that Peyton and Engels were probably assigned different parts of the scripts they co-wrote; that said, they were obviously both adept at picking up different threads).

Anyway, I've been writing these episode responses after watching the episodes in question, but this one has been extemporaneous because my ep. 4 disc is having trouble at the moment. Maybe I'll go back and watch the parts I can; this discussion has certainly whet my appetite.
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BOB1
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Re: Episode 4

Post by BOB1 »

Lots of things are special about this episode - so to say, "objectively" and "subjectively".

I'd rather start with more personal things so: it was the first ep. that I decided to record on VHS and was able to rewatch before next week's episode was premiered on TV. It turned out useful because the plots were thickening and I was kind of getting lost in places, but most of all it was very inspirational. It turned out that watching an episode two or three (can't remember) times during one week is nothing but boring - it made me wanna crave for more!!

Moreover, I made myself a "soundtrack" of this episode. With the simplest technique of placing the tape recorder next to the tv set and pushing "REC", I recorded for myself the moments which included music, and obviously they included some dialogue, too. I listened to it a million times and there is not much in Twin Peaks that I know so well by heart as, say, Sarah's his hair was long... speech, or Audrey's algebra talk with Donna, or James and Donna's we have to do it for us, or Josie/Hank's did you get my message phone conversation. I know every breath of them! The best part is - I've still got it on tape and still listen to it from time to time! :D

Now to more universal stuff. Nooo, it's not a filler at all. This is where we (together with Coop& the gang) first start to touch the things that happened to Laura in her last hours. Leo and Jacques, and the bloody t-shirt. OK, it's not them who killed her but it IS the blood from that night. Before Ep.4 nobody knows anything. Here we start. It's not a filler, it's a beginning. Then Ep.5 introduces a story of someone who "saw something" (Log) and Ep.6 presents an actual witness (Waldo). But it all starts here.

And there's the cinematic value which was mentioned, it is amazing. Look at the last scene for instance. It wouldn't really be much of a cliffhanger perhaps. OK, quite intriguing perhaps, that's all. But the way it is filmed, the way music is used, the angles, even the sounds, makes it a realy good ending. Catch you later...

And what I think to the best moment of the episode, such a sequence (but listen how the music works!):
a casual, unimportant shot of tennis players, background music
snap! music gets dynamic, police rush for Jacques's flat
Harry knocking at the door, which at the same time works as a drumming passage before another change in music (!)
the way the police sirens are, again, a part of music
and on the top of that - cut to the woods (music still playing!), nice touch, Leo, nice touch!.
I know ever breath of this one, too.
Bobi 1 Kenobi

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Re: Episode 4

Post by TwinPeaksFanatic »

This episode is on the lighter side but it's still excellent. Here's my recap for it -

http://twinpeaksfanatic.blogspot.com/20 ... ode-4.html

:D
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LostInTheMovies
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Twin Peaks Out of Order #10: Episode 4

Post by LostInTheMovies »

Re-watching Twin Peaks from my least favorite to favorite episode...

Previously: Episode 12 (http://www.dugpa.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=43923#p43923)

Entering my top ten, we reach a group of episodes that are close to flawless (with one minor and one major exception, whose tremendous strengths tend to balance its frustrations). This doesn't mean all of these excellent episodes are equal; on the contrary, my ranking came fast and easy, and I haven't budged since. But it's matter of escalating heights rather than diminishing lows. And episode 4 is a perfect fit for the ten-spot. It lacks the major moments of the rest of season one, but its vibe is perfectly pitched between mellow, relaxed immersion in atmosphere, and the escalating excitement of an investigation discovering new clues, characters, and locations. I love the sense of Twin Peaks as a world we can explore: the Timber Falls Motel, Lydecker's Veterinary Clinic, and Jacques' apartment are distinctive one-off locations yielding fresh evidence and quirky moments in equal measure. The characters move the narrative forward while also revealing their personal idiosyncrasies, with the boy's club at the sheriff's shooting range matched by Donna's and Audrey's testy tete a tete in the high school bathroom. It's a pity that the school featured so rarely in later episodes, forgetting the show’s roots in teenage tragedy (a quality that will be recaptured in the prequel). And it's even more of a pity that Audrey and Donna are rarely paired. For all their real-life rivalry (maybe because of it) they have great chemistry. While director Tim Hunter has cited Otto Preminger as an influence on the episode's elegant and eye-catching visual style, I suspect writer Robert Engels took a page from Howard Hawks' crisp, chummy book, cultivating a "hang-out" aura that is both blunt and unflustered, economical and laid-back. It's hard to pick a favorite scene because the charm is more in the flow of the material than individual moments. Episodes like this - few and NOT far between (they are almost entirely clustered in the back half of season one) - suggest an alternate reality in which Twin Peaks might have thrived as a week-to-week TV show rather than a series of incredible, cinematic highs interspersed among many frustrating lows. Episode 4 provides an hour's distinctive entertainment before releasing you with a feeling of fulfillment and excitement for next week. I really like it, and always have.

Next: Episode 5 (http://www.dugpa.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=43968#p43968)
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Re: Episode 4

Post by Snailhead »

I just re-watched this one recently.

It's a solid episode - no specific issues with it, really - but it's certainly the weakest episode of the first season, in my humble opinion. It's got a lot of good moments but doesn't stand out overall.

I really liked the scene where James meets Maddy.

I was watching the Tim Hunter interview on the season 2 dvd set and when he mentioned that his season 1 episode was considered one of the better ones, I couldn't help but shake my head.
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Jonah
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Re: Episode 4

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This is the episode that features the iconic line "Gentlemen, when two separate events occur simultaneously pertaining to the same object of inquiry, we must always pay strict attention.” - but as I noted in my review of the pilot episode, this line originally originated in the European ending to that episode, spoken by Coop into the tape recorder to Diane. It's amazing how much stuff originated in that alternative ending, even this! Glad they reused it in the series proper.

Love the scene with Sarah sketching the killer for Hawk - and the fact that Donna is there and hears about the necklace.

I also really like Cooper saying he didn't want to influence her and that he's a strong "sender".

Great scene with Audrey and Donna in the school bathroom.

Cooper and the Lama! Love it.

Was all this stuff with the one-armed man's friend Bob Leydecker who's in a coma....was any of this ever really followed up on properly in the story?

And Leydecker of course is one of many references to the classic movie, "Laura", which was clearly a big influence on Frost (and Lynch?) when constructing "Twin Peaks" -
especially the first season.

Loved the scene at the shooting range - and Hawk's speech. I wish we got to meet Diane (!) Shapiro!

Is Cooper referencing Caroline here? He must be.

James and Maddy scene in the diner is great.

I love the shot of Donna and James in the woods and the zoom out to the owl looking at them. Is this a spirit watching them? Could it even be Laura? This scene is a great throwback to the Pilot - sometimes the memory of this scene even blurs in my mind and I forget that it wasn't in the pilot episode.

Great closing with Josie - I even like the sketch of the domino keyring she receives and the Dutch angle and the bear.

The eerie shot of the water in the woods after we see Leo and Ben talking will be reused for the long opening credits of Season 2's opener, Episode 8.
Last edited by Jonah on Sun Dec 20, 2020 7:28 am, edited 2 times in total.
I have no idea where this will lead us, but I have a definite feeling it will be a place both wonderful and strange.
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Mr. Reindeer
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Re: Episode 4

Post by Mr. Reindeer »

This episode’s edition of Coop’s Coffee Consumption:

— Coffee in the conference room while interviewing Jacoby (in Twin Peaks Sheriff Department mug)
— Coop after hearing Lydecker’s files are alphabetical by name: “We’re gonna need some more coffee”
— Coffee in the conference room while reviewing Lydecker’s files (in Twin Peaks Sheriff Department mug)

No food for Coop this episode, although Pete expresses his fondness for mayo. I love the moment where Pete lifts the bread to peer inside, presumably double checking that Josie gave him an ample amount.
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Re: Episode 4

Post by Henrys Hair »

Another winner, although surely Gerard could press charges for police harassment - having finally tracked down the man they want to question for no discernible reason, the police kick down his hotel room door and point guns at him...

Cooper and the llama! Yes! Even the receptionist can be seen laughing in the background.

Shelly suffers quite a dip in mood between her lunch with Bobby and returning to the diner. In the pilot Shelly doesn't seem to think Norma knows about Bobby but doesn't express any surprise here when Norma mentions them having two men apiece.

'James was always cool' - the diner scene where James meets Maddy is also the second scene James and Shelly share. Like the previous funeral scene, the two don't interact.

I've never really understood how Hank's vehicular manslaughter charge provided a cover for the (unsuccessful) assassination of Andrew Packard. I doubt it will make any more sense on this rewatch either.
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Re: Episode 4

Post by Mr. Reindeer »

Henrys Hair wrote:

I've never really understood how Hank's vehicular manslaughter charge provided a cover for the (unsuccessful) assassination of Andrew Packard. I doubt it will make any more sense on this rewatch either.
I think the idea is that he was allegedly in a completely different location when Andrew’s murder occurred, so he couldn’t have done it? I don’t know that the show really spells out the specifics much beyond implying that.
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