"Blue Velvet" Motifs

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the ambiance provided by David Lynch through sights and sounds in this bizarre glimpse at surreal suburbia. It looks at how "Blue Velvet" is packed with recurring motifs that enhance the overall quality of the film. These motifs are analyzed through multiple examples of how Lynch puts a spin on film noir techniques.

From the Paper:

"As the montage continues, the camera pans down from the sky to a white picket fence supporting a growth of American Beauty red roses; dissolve to a slow motion fire truck with a waving fireman on board; dissolve to another white picket fence with yellow tulips; dissolve to a traffic guard escorting children across the street; dissolve to a white house with a man watering the yard. Up to this point, the viewer is shown nothing less than a Norman Rockwell setting; a perfect suburbia with sunny skies and friendly people. At this point in the montage, Lynch gives us our first flicker of the unusual, from the shot of the man watering the lawn the scene cuts, instead of dissolves, to a woman inside the home watching television. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Dream Book. 17 Dec. 2006 <http://www.geocities.com/dreambooktidal.html>.
• Earle, William. A Surrealism of the Movies. Chicago: Precedent Publishing, 1987.
• Pfeil, Fred. "Revolting Yet Conserved: Family Noir in Blue Velvet and Terminator 2." Postmodern Culture 2.3 (1992):
• Ward, J. V. Virginia Woolf: A post-symbolist writer who relies on symbols? 14 Aug. 2003. 18 Dec. 2006 <http://www.english-literature-essays.com/woolf.htm>.
• Biography for David Lynch. Internet Movie Database. Retrieved on 2006-06-17.

More papers on "Blue Velvet" Motifs:

• Film Review # 49808 : "Blue Velvet" and Cinematography"
• Film Review # 52295 : "Blue Velvet"
• Analytical Essay # 259 : "Aurally Alarming: Use of Sound in the Film "Blue Velvet"

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