The story of Blue Velvet introduces us to the character of Jeffrey Beaumont, played by Kyle Maclachlan. Jeffrey has come home to the quaint and peaceful town of Lumberton that looks like a area of suburbia straight out of an episode of Leave It To Beaver. Everyone is happy and knows each other in a place we may all perceive as a perfect place to live and raise a family. However, as with most of Lynch's films, there is always a dark side to everything. This is made apparent as soon as Jeffrey discovers a severed human ear in a field near his neighborhood. Soon we are given a lead thanks to help from Sandy, the sheriff's daughter, played by Laura Dern. Through clues we come to discover a disturbing underworld to this quaint town as we find a club singer held against her will by a psychopathic and drug addicted sadist. From then on, Jeffrey becomes intertwined in a mystery that is so shocking and terrifying that it could very much lead to him giving up his life to solve it.
First of all, the most amazing part about this film is how gorgeously it is filmed. The imagery of Blue Velvet is absolutely mesmerizing as each shot seems to have some soft glow added to it. This is especially seen in the shots of the neighborhood. The opening scene of this film portrays a suburban town that seems absolutely timeless. Speaking of which, though this film was made in the 1980's, it is very ambiguous as to what period the film is based. There is 80's music as well as music heard in the 50's and 60's. Meanwhile, the town itself, and the people in it seem to be from another time. This is apparent from the buildings to the clothes and makeup. In fact, one might simply call this film a glossy dream that changes straight into a pitch black and horror-infested nightmare. When we get into the truly dark and disturbing moments of the film, Lynch does not hold back in showing the beauty of shots. The coloring, dim lights, and shadows all seem to add to this gruesome portrait of the uncanny.
However, despite this beauty, it is important to know that moments of Blue Velvet are extremely hard to watch at times. There is moments of very intense atrocities that each character is sadly forced to suffer. The film is very much a film of emotional suffering. In addition, there are scenes that make viewers uncomfortable and uneasy. Although, these disturbing qualities easily add to the film's overall strength. By invoking emotional responses from its audience, this film is very capable of showing itself as powerful in its psychological horror as well as the beauty. There are moments that are realistically frightening to the point where you can literally taste the fear.
Meanwhile, the cast in the film is brilliant. Kyle Maclachlan is very believable as the curious neighbor who gets caught in something he never thought he would. His portrayal of Jeffrey as a normal curious person with flaws makes him very similar to the tragic Faustian man. Jeffrey's curiosity literally drags him into a Hell he never knew existed. When you hear the phrase, "It's a strange world." you can easily see why from what he suffers to see. Next there is the character of Dorothy Vallens played flawlessly by Isabella Rosselini. She is extremely believable as a suffering woman under the rule of a complete tyrant. She is very much like the tragic Gothic female figure who is forced to suffer enormous atrocities constantly. Meanwhile, she is also a disturbing character in how she is very mentally disturbed. In addition, these characters develop a very interesting relationship - one that is driven by both fascination, friendship, and lust. However, despite these characters, they are no where near the level of the character that acts solely as Lynch's brush in painting this gruesome portrait - Frank Booth.
The late Dennis Hopper is absolutely terrifying as the sadistic psycho, Frank Booth. His obsession with Dorothy and making her life Hell is absolutely horrifying. Meanwhile, we are never given a full explanation as to what his motives are making him much more frightening. Frank is much more terrifying; however, when he becomes a true monster by sucking on Amyl Nitrate gas from a mask. With each deep breath he degenerates further into an inhuman and unforgivable animal. In fact, the scenes with Frank are by far the darkest and most terrifying moments of the film making this film much more like a Horror film at times. Each line is like a knife coming closer to you as you want him to go away because he is so frightening. What's so ironic though is how Hopper was in rehab at the time he was working on the movie. With that knowledge we can see his sadism and drug addiction as much more horrifying and believable.
Overall, Blue Velvet is the most artistic mixture of Psychological Horror, Romance, and Drama. It beautifully portrays a quaint suburban town that has a Hellish underworld hidden and waiting for victims. The actors are brilliant in their roles, and each moment reflects a large amount of thought on Lynch's part as each scene has an enormous power over human emotion an thought. It is a film that is on its own level and should not be missed.
