Blue Velvet

David Lynch couldn't resist some of his own extravagances, but that’s probably par for the course when it comes to him. Overall, this film felt like a combination of L.A. Confidential, Chinatown, and Wild at Heart. However, formally speaking, Lynch is once again completely unique. (29/05/2005)

When all-encompassing love watches over the battle between good and evil, Frank Booth won’t get to stab anymore. Laura Dern doesn’t yet look like a skeleton from the biology teacher's cabinet, Kyle MacLachlan is one shade less green than Data’s brother, the brute Hopper, overusing “that word,” is very unstable, and when Isabella Rossellini spreads her legs during the rape scene and, to the surprise of actor Dennis, is going full-frontal, one can’t be surprised that an oxygen mask is used (I assume it belonged to him and wasn’t originally in the script). Extensive symbolism, red curtains, and curiosity that brings the vision of things that were always hidden. I know well that David Lynch can pull you in with captivating audiovisuals and thrilling oddities, but it’s the lack of charisma that prepares this velvet neo-noir tale for a loss of impact in my eyes. (23/08/2018)

To me, this crime drama was quite average and didn't hide much. Throughout the whole time, I hardly encountered anything Lynchian, except for a few distinctive scenes. Most of the actors were unsympathetic, especially that singer who really got on my nerves. However, I definitely don't want to throw too much criticism at it. (04/06/2013)

"It's a strange world, isn’t it?" Not even Mike Tyson and his sudden urge to chew on something during his fight with Holyfield could conjure up such a great film about one ownerless ear. Because Blue Velvet is basically a regular thriller. It’s just processed by Lynch’s bizarre imagination hemisphere, more moderate than usual, considerably sedated by pills. This gave rise to the most viewer-friendly Lynch movie (more than Dune and Alvin). Which doesn’t mean for a minute that it makes any sense at all. Like this review. And now who can tell me what the poet wanted to say? Maybe just that blue is simply good, in spite of the irritating over-acting from Laura Dern and Dennis Hopper. So in the end Lynch has mainly himself to thank, and Badalamenti too. I’m almost tempted to declare that the latter deserves most thanks. (22/04/2008)

Blue Velvet is somewhere between a normal film and a normal work by Lynch. If you are looking for deeper meaning, you won’t find it, because the only big thesis isn’t hidden but clearly shown, and it’s almost surprisingly banal at that. However, this banality doesn’t correspond to the film itself, which wants to look nicely perverted and weird, though, unlike Lost Highway, for instance, it’s not weird at all. A major reason for the four-star rating is Dennis Hopper in the role of a maniacal freak, he plays a non-small part in making the film as interesting as it is. (06/03/2009)