Episode 14 (Twin Peaks)

"Episode 14", also known as "Lonely Souls",[nb 1] is the seventh episode of the second season of the American mystery television series Twin Peaks. The episode was written by series co-creator Mark Frost and directed by series co-creator David Lynch. It features series regulars Kyle MacLachlan, Michael Ontkean, Ray Wise and Richard Beymer; and guest stars Frank Silva (uncredited) as Killer BOB, Hank Worden as The Waiter, Julee Cruise as Singer, and David Lynch as Gordon Cole.

"Episode 14"
Twin Peaks episode
Leland Palmer inhabited by Killer BOB. The scene is the beginning of one which reveals the answer to the long-running plot arc for the series.
Episode no.Season 2
Episode 7
Directed byDavid Lynch
Written byMark Frost
Production code2.007[1]
Original air dateNovember 10, 1990 (1990-11-10)
Running time47 minutes[2]
Guest appearance(s)

Twin Peaks centers on the investigation into the murder of schoolgirl Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee) in the small rural town in Washington state after which the series is named. In this episode, during the ongoing investigation into Laura's death, FBI special agent Dale Cooper (MacLachlan) and Sheriff Truman (Ontkean) continue to search for her killer, the demonic BOB, who has possessed a human host. Aided by Mike (Al Strobel), Cooper and Truman arrest Benjamin Horne (Beymer), believing him to be inhabited by BOB. Later that night, The Giant (Carel Struycken) warns Cooper "it is happening again," while BOB's real host, Leland Palmer (Wise), murders Madeline Ferguson (Lee).

"Episode 14" was first broadcast on November 10, 1990, on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) and was watched by an audience of 17.2 million households in the United States, about 20 percent of the available audience. The episode was well received, garnering positive reviews after its initial broadcast and in subsequent years. Academic readings of the entry have highlighted the theme of duality and the cinematography in the revelation scene.

Plot

Background

The small fictional town of Twin Peaks, Washington, has been shocked by the murder of schoolgirl Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee) and the attempted murder of her friend Ronette Pulaski (Phoebe Augustine). FBI special agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) has been sent to the town to investigate,[4] and has come to the realization that the killer was possessed by a demonic entity—Killer BOB (Frank Silva).[5] MIKE (Al Strobel), a similar spirit, has spoken to Cooper and his FBI superior, Regional Bureau Chief Gordon Cole (David Lynch), explaining the nature of their existence.[6]

Meanwhile, Madeline "Maddy" Ferguson (Lee), Laura's cousin, has arrived in Twin Peaks from Missoula, Montana, and helps Laura's friends Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) and James Hurley (James Marshall) investigate the killing. Donna finds Harold Smith (Lenny Von Dohlen), one of Laura's friends to whom she had given a secret diary, and Donna and Maddy attempt to steal it from him.[6]

Events

It is morning at the Sheriff's Station. Agent Cooper, Chief Gordon Cole, Sheriff Harry S. Truman (Michael Ontkean), Deputy Andy Brennan (Harry Goaz), Deputy Hawk (Michael Horse), and Phillip Gerard (Al Strobel) are drinking coffee in the lobby. Truman informs that preparations have been made for them at The Great Northern. Gerard, currently possessed by MIKE, mutters his description of Bob's current location. Truman tells Hawk to search Harold Smith's apartment. Cooper tells Hawk to search for Laura Palmer's secret diary. Cole bids all farewell and leaves for Bend, Oregon.

Cooper, Doctor Hayward (Warren Frost), Brennan, and Gerard / MIKE are in the lobby of The Great Northern Hotel attempting to find BOB's human host. The hotel is hosting a contingent of sailors who are bouncing rubber balls in the hotel lobby. MIKE is seated while hotel guests are brought to him one by one for "inspection". One after another, MIKE turns each away. An angry Benjamin Horne (Richard Beymer) enters the lobby demanding to know what is going on. Just then, Gerard enters a fit and collapses while grasping at his missing arm.

Meanwhile, Deputy Hawk visits the residence of Harold Smith and finds him hanging dead amongst his orchids. Maddy announces to her Uncle Leland (Ray Wise) and Aunt Sarah (Grace Zabriskie) that she is leaving Twin Peaks to return to her home in Missoula, Montana. Cooper, Truman, and a police team arrive at Smith's residence. They discover the torn-up remains of Laura Palmer's secret diary strewn about, and a suicide note that reads "J'ai une âme solitaire." Cooper translates, "I am a lonely soul".

Elsewhere, Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook) and Shelly Johnson (Mädchen Amick) discuss their financial concerns regarding Shelly's catatonic husband Leo (Eric Da Re). Audrey Horne (Sherilyn Fenn) confronts her father Ben over his ownership of the brothel One Eyed Jacks. He confesses that he and Laura Palmer had a sexual relationship. When Audrey asks him if he killed her, he replies "I loved her." Later, Shelly arrives for work at the Double R Diner and tearfully tells Norma Jennings (Peggy Lipton) she has to quit the diner to care for Leo full-time. Ed Hurley (Everett McGill) and his wife Nadine (Wendy Robie) enter the diner. Nadine, believing she is an eighteen-year-old high school student, asks Norma about her relationship with Ed, to their embarrassment. Nadine then accidentally shatters her milkshake glass. At the Johnson residence, Bobby Briggs and Mike Nelson (Gary Hershberger) break open the heel of Leo Johnson's boot, discovering a microcassette hidden within.

Cooper examines the remains of Laura's secret diary at the police station, finding repeated references to BOB, and a description of sexual abuse since childhood. Laura wrote that BOB was a friend of her father, and in another entry wrote, "Someday I'm going to tell the world about Ben Horne." Audrey then enters and tells Cooper about Ben and Laura's affair. After she leaves, Cooper reminds Sheriff Truman of The Giant's message, "Without chemicals, he points".[5] Cooper states that MIKE manifests when his human host, Philip Gerard, is not medicated,[7] and that MIKE fainted that morning just as a certain person approached him. Cooper exclaims to Truman, "Harry, we need a warrant ... a warrant for the arrest of Benjamin Horne!"

Later that evening, Benjamin Horne is meeting with Mr. Tojamura at The Great Northern. Mr. Tojamura gives Horne a check for $5 million to purchase the lands of the Packard Sawmill. Immediately after accepting the check, Sheriff Truman, Deputy Hawk, and Agent Cooper enter Horne's office. Truman arrests Horne for murder. Horne attempts to flee but is restrained and handcuffed. At the Palmer home, a severely impaired Sarah Palmer crawls down the stairs, crying to Leland for help. A phonograph is spinning in the background, its needle skipping at the end of the record.

After jailing Horne at the Sheriff's Station, Cooper and Truman encounter the Log Lady (Catherine E. Coulson), who tells Cooper, "... there are owls in The Roadhouse." Cooper replies, "Something is happening, isn't it, Margaret?" The moon is full, partially obscured by a dark and cloudy sky.

At the Packard residence, Pete Martell (Jack Nance) is fixing himself a midnight snack. He encounters Mr. Tojamura in the dark, who roughly embraces and kisses him, causing Pete to drop and shatter his plate. In a high dudgeon, Pete orders Tojamura to leave. Tojamura coyly reveals that he is actually Catherine Martell (Piper Laurie) in disguise. The two embrace as Pete emotionally dissolves.

Sarah Palmer crawls into her living room. She sees a vision of a pale white horse then passes out. Leland Palmer is fixing his tie in the mirror, ignoring her.

Cooper, Truman, and The Log Lady visit The Roadhouse, which is filled with sailors. Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) and James Hurley (James Marshall) are seated together discussing Harold's death and Maddy's departure from Twin Peaks. Bobby Briggs is seated at the bar next to the old waiter (Hank Worden) from The Great Northern. While a singer and band perform, Cooper has a vision of The Giant standing alone on stage. The Giant says to Cooper, "It is happening again." He repeats this warning.

At the Palmer home, Leland smiles at himself in the mirror. BOB stares back at him from the reflection and cackles madly. Leland dons a pair of latex gloves. Maddy comes downstairs complaining of a burning smell and sees Sarah unconscious on the floor. She sees Leland grinning at her, then sees BOB appear in Leland's place. She screams in terror and attempts to flee. Leland chases Maddy up the stairs, and drags her to the living room. He strangles and punches her, then taunts and chases her around the living room. He corners her and punches her in the face until she is catatonic. He dances with and cries over her limp body, calling her "Laura", while Bob kisses her. Leland / BOB then becomes enraged and screams, "Leland says you're going back to Missoula, MONTANA!" as he rams her head into a glass picture frame, the words "Missoula, Montana" in the lower corner of the picture. Maddy collapses, bloodied and dead. A crazed Leland places a cutout of the letter "O" under the nail of Maddy's left ring finger.

Cooper's vision of The Giant ends, replaced by the singer and band. The old waiter walks over to Cooper and says, "I'm so sorry." Donna begins to sob. James comforts her, to no avail. Bobby Briggs turns from the bar, overcome by a mysterious sadness. Cooper stares out, bewildered, as the band repeats a melancholy refrain.[5]

Production
"Episode 14" was directed by David Lynch, who co-created Twin Peaks.

"Episode 14" was written by series co-creator Mark Frost, who had written six previous episodes and directed the first-season finale, "Episode 7".[8] Frost co-wrote three further installments—"Episode 16", "Episode 26" and Episode 29"—and all the episodes of the 2017 limited series.[8] This episode was directed by Lynch, the fifth such episode of Twin Peaks; he later directed "Episode 29", the series' finale, and all the installments of the limited series.[9] Lynch has later said he feels he was able to show more on screen in the episode than he expected the network's standards and practices office to allow. He credits this to the unusual imagery used, adding "if it's not quite standard it sneaks through, but it could be that the 'not quite standard' things make it even more terrifying and disturbing."[10]

The cast of Twin Peaks did not know who would be revealed as Palmer's killer for some time. Wise had hoped his character Leland would not be the eventual murderer; as the parent of a young girl he was disturbed by the idea of portraying a man who had murdered his daughter. Wise was called to a meeting with Lynch, Frost, Sheryl Lee and Richard Beymer, during which Lynch told those assembled that Leland Palmer was the killer: while addressing Wise, Lynch said "Ray, it was you, it was always you."[11] However, Wise felt the end result was "beautiful" and that it left him and his character "satisfied and redeemed".[11] Before this meeting, the only people to know the killer's identity were Frost, Lynch, and Lynch's daughter Jennifer, who had been given the information so she could author the 1990 tie-in novel The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer.[12]

Lynch has mentioned that he tried to avoid thinking about the morality of the narrative, or how it would be received by censors or critics, feeling that if he allowed that worry to affect him it would ultimately drive him to create something that made him uncomfortable, preferring instead to simply produce the episode he wanted to and be prepared to defend it if necessary.[13] He has also compared the search for Laura's killer to the central narrative of the 1960s television series The Fugitive, which featured an ongoing search for a one-armed man. Contrasting the two, Lynch stated "each week, you know, they [the writers for The Fugitive] hardly ever dealt with that. And that's the beautiful thing. You keep wondering, 'When will he find this guy and set everything straight?' But then you knew it would be the end."[14]

Cinematography

The climactic murder of Madeline Ferguson in the episode features extensive use of jump cuts to portray Leland Palmer's spirit possession, switching rapidly between actors Ray Wise and Frank Silva.[15] The scene is unusually long for a murder on television, lasting over four minutes.[16] Some of its elements, including the insertion of a paper letter under Ferguson's fingernail and the use of jump cuts to events in the Roadhouse bar, are intended to echo similar aspects of "Pilot".[17]

Erica Sheen and Annette Davison, in their book The Cinema of David Lynch: American Dreams, Nightmare Visions, have drawn attention to the use of mise en scène early in the episode. A scene featuring Ferguson, Leland and Sarah Palmer sitting in the Palmers' living room pans across the family's bric-a-brac. This technique draws attention to the painting with which Ferguson will be assaulted, and it highlights the similarity between Ferguson and Palmer by focusing on "the famous homecoming queen shot" of Palmer while Ferguson's face is visible.[18] Sheen and Davison argued that the scene highlights the "emotional claustrophobia" felt by Ferguson, and that the set surrounding her was deliberately assembled to create this feeling.[18]

Themes

The revelation scene, in which Bob is shown to have inhabited Leland Palmer, has been noted for its sense of duality, a common theme throughout Twin Peaks. In Full of Secrets: Critical Approaches to Twin Peaks, David Lavery wrote that upon The Giant's appearance to Dale Cooper, "The Giant has transmuted the public place into something private". Lavery added that the murder scene is "in the living room, the public within the private".[19] He summarized that the ambiguity between the public perception and the private perception—"the outer and the inner"—"reverberates" throughout the scene.[19] In his view, Maddy Ferguson was Laura Palmer's "double" and Leland is "doubled" by Bob. However, Lavery referred to the duality of Leland and Bob as a "subjective formation" and added that the use of jump cuts "could be Maddy's view of Leland just as much as Leland's view of himself".[20]

This scene has also been noted by critic Sue Lafky from the Journal of Film and Video as one of several in the series that suggest incest and necrophilia. She speculated that "Leland/Bob may have raped the dead or dying Maddie",[21] comparing this to the "necrophilic fantasies" that Laura Palmer's corpse evokes, and Ben Horne's unwitting brush with incest when he encounters his daughter Audrey at a brothel.[21][22] Earlier in the episode it is revealed that Laura had been subject to sexual abuse by BOB, and implicitly Leland, which was further explored in the 1992 prequel film, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me.

Broadcast and reception
"It's a promise of sorts that we've still got a reason to be with the show, and it sets us up for the middle portion of this cycle. This good will is carried through episodes 15 and 16, as the killer is finally unmasked, and as the Log Lady tells us in her intro, shifts the queries from who to why."

—DVD Talk's Jamie S. Rich on the episode's place in the series[23]

"Episode 14" first aired on the ABC network on November 10, 1990. The initial broadcast was viewed by 17.2 million households in the United States, making it the fifty-first most-viewed broadcast episode for the week. These viewing figures represented 20 percent of the available audience and 10.4 percent of all households in the country.[24] This represented a significant rise in viewing figures compared to the preceding episode, "Episode 13", which was seen by 11.3 million households.[25] However, the following episode, "Episode 15", suffered a drop in viewing figures, attracting 13.3 million households.[26]

The episode was well received critically. Writing for the Chicago Sun-Times, Richard Roeper noted that fans and critics had begun to lose interest in the series by this point, but he felt that "even at its most strained and obtuse, [Twin Peaks] displays more imagination and effort than almost everything else in TV land."[27] He added that viewers may have been put off by the series' frame of time, explaining that only two weeks of narrative time had elapsed since "Pilot", a slow pace contrasted with the "fast-forward, instant payoff philosophy of most television".[27] AllRovi's Andrea LeVasseur described the installment as "pivotal", noting that it "answers some of the series' long-running questions".[28]

Writing for The A.V. Club, Keith Phipps rated the episode an "A", adding "it's not like there's any shortage of action."[29] He felt the effects used in the episode were effective and frightening while still seeming low-key. In his view, the episode's blending of surrealism and horror was similar to scenes from Lynch's 2001 film Mulholland Drive. Phipps described the climactic murder as "one of the most disturbing moments in the Lynch filmography", adding that it was a recurring Lynchian theme to represent the end of innocence as an actual death.[29] IGN's Matt Fowler included the murder at number 16 in a list of the "Top 20 Creepiest Moments on TV", describing it as "nightmare fuel".[30] Fowler felt the depiction of the killing was "savage" and unusually long for a television scene; however, he added that the rampant speculation as to the identity of the killer meant the revelation would be "somewhat expected".[30]

Keith Uhlich, writing for Slant Magazine, described the episode as "quintessential Lynch, perhaps his finest work", noting that the climactic murder scene was more powerful because of its necessary use of implication and suggestion.[31] However, Uhlich felt the installment was "a tough act to follow", arguing that the only subsequent installments that competed with it were the series' finale and the 1992 psychological thriller film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, which is based on Twin Peaks.[31] DVD Talk's Jamie S. Rich described the installment as "a violent, disturbing revelation".[23] Rich felt the entry's supernatural elements assured the audience there was "a grander scheme to the Laura Palmer story", elevating the series' long-running murder plot beyond "just a random night partying with drug dealers gone wrong".[23]

Notes
  1. Although the series did not originally have episode titles, when it was broadcast in Germany, the episodes were given titles, which are now used by some fans and critics.[3]

References
  1. "Twin Peaks (a Titles & Air Dates Guide)". epguides. Archived from the original on September 10, 2012. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
  2. "Twin Peaks, Season 2". iTunes Store. Apple. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
  3. Riches 2011, p. 40.
  4. David Lynch (writer and director); Mark Frost (writer) (April 8, 1990). "Pilot". Twin Peaks. Season 1. Episode 1. ABC.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. David Lynch (writer & director); Mark Frost (writer) (September 30, 1990). "Episode 8". Twin Peaks. Season 2. Episode 1. ABC.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  6. Lesli Linka Glatter (director); Harley Peyton & Robert Engels (writers) (November 3, 1990). "Episode 13". Twin Peaks. Season 2. Episode 6. ABC.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. Lesli Linka Glatter (director); Robert Engels (writer) (October 13, 1990). "Episode 10". Twin Peaks. Season 2. Episode 3. ABC.
  8. "Mark Frost movies, photos, movie reviews, filmography, and biography". AllRovi. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  9. Ankeny, Jason. "David Lynch movies, photos, movie reviews, filmography, and biography". AllRovi. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  10. Rodley & Lynch 2005, p. 178.
  11. Hyden, Steven (December 4, 2008). "Ray Wise | TV | Random Roles". The A.V. Club. The Onion. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  12. Jennifer Lynch, 00:09–00:41
  13. Rodley & Lynch 2005, p. 179.
  14. Rodley & Lynch 2005, p. 180.
  15. Odell & Le Blanc 2007, p. 75.
  16. Odell & Le Blanc 2007, p. 76.
  17. Odell & Le Blanc 2007, pp. 75–76.
  18. Sheen & Davison 2004, p. 99.
  19. Lavery 1995, p. 75.
  20. Lavery 1995, p. 76.
  21. Lafky, Sue (October 1, 1999). "Gender, power, and culture in the televisual world of Twin Peaks: A feminist critique". Journal of Film and Video. University Film and Video Association. Retrieved August 9, 2012. (subscription required)
  22. Mark Frost (writer and director) (May 23, 1990). "Episode 7". Twin Peaks. Season 1. Episode 8. ABC.
  23. Rich, Jamie S (March 27, 2007). "Twin Peaks—The Second Season: DVD Talk Review of the DVD Video". DVD Talk. Internet Brands. Retrieved August 21, 2012.
  24. Donlon, Brian (November 14, 1990). "Nielsens: 'Cheers' Sweeps up for NBC". USA Today. Gannett Company. Retrieved August 10, 2012. (subscription required)
  25. Donlon, Brian (November 7, 1990). "Nielsens: NBC Wins with Fewer Viewers". USA Today. Gannett Company. Retrieved August 10, 2012. (subscription required)
  26. Donlon, Brian (November 21, 1990). "Nielsens: ABC Pulls Past CBS in Sweeps". USA Today. Gannett Company. Retrieved August 10, 2012. (subscription required)
  27. Roeper, Richard (November 15, 1990). "'Twin Peaks' still piques a devoted fan's interest". Chicago Sun-Times. Sun-Times Media Group. Archived from the original on March 9, 2016. Retrieved August 10, 2012. (subscription required)
  28. LeVasseur, Andrea. "Twin Peaks: Episode 14 (1990) Trailers, Reviews, Synopsis, Showtimes and Cast". AllRovi. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved August 10, 2012.
  29. Phipps, Keith (February 6, 2008). "'Episode 14' | Twin Peaks | TV Club". The A.V. Club. The Onion. Retrieved August 9, 2012.
  30. Fowler, Matt (October 29, 2009). "The Top 20 Creepiest Moments on TV". IGN. News Corporation. Retrieved September 12, 2012.
  31. Uhlich, Keith (April 3, 2007). "Twin Peaks: The Second Season | DVD Review". Slant Magazine. Retrieved August 10, 2012.

Sources
  • Lynch, Jennifer (2010). Interview with Jennifer Lynch (DVD). Los Angeles: Universal Home Entertainment.
  • Odell, Colin; Le Blanc, Michelle (2007). David Lynch. Harpenden: Kamera Books. ISBN 978-1-84243-225-9.
  • Riches, Simon (2011). "Intuition and Investigation into Another Place: The Epistemological Role of Dreaming in Twin Peaks and Beyond". In Devlin, William J.; Biderman, Shai (eds.). The Philosophy of David Lynch. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 978-0-8131-3396-6.
  • Rodley, Chris; Lynch, David (2005). Lynch on Lynch (2nd ed.). London: Macmillan. ISBN 0-571-22018-5.
  • Sheen, Erica; Davison, Annette (2004). The Cinema of David Lynch: American Dreams, Nightmare Visions. United States: Wallflower Press. ISBN 1-903364-85-X.
  • Lavery, David (1995). Full of Secrets: Critical Approaches to Twin Peaks. Detroit: Wayne State University Press. ISBN 0-8143-2506-8.

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