Villains We Love: Leland Palmer
Filed under: Drama, Horror, Fandom

Pretty much everything about the world of Twin Peaks is magic. The stable of actors is amazing -- from the wonders of Jack Nance to the still chills of Sheryl Lee's smile, to the quirky post-West Side Story Richard Beymer and Russ Tamblyn. Angelo Badalamenti's score remains one of the most hauntingly beautiful pieces of music I've ever heard. David Lynch and Mark Frost made for a perfect mixture of continuity and insanity, while always knowing just how gently to pull at the strings of tension and chill the nerves.
But my true and refined appreciation rests with Ray Wise. One of my favorite severely underrated actors, Wise's performance in both the series and film is stunning. He's one of the rare actors who can pull off the most scary and convincing moments of sadisticness just as easily as the charming moments steeped in sweetness and charisma. His eyes can evoke the screaming of horror, the slyness of evil, the psychosis of possession. But before his guilt was revealed on the show and we learned that he raped and killed his own daughter, he seemed like the least likely suspect -- a loving father tormented over the death of his little girl. But then we see the slivers of evil in the show, and then the all-out horror in Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me.
He made Leland Palmer, and easily thrust him from a simply creepy and evilly possessed dad to one of the villains I love. Sure, it's not really him that does it, it's Bob, but it's all the magic of Wise that makes it worthy. After the jump, check out a mix of creepy scenes from the film, a lot of which show his excellent performance.










Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
10-18-2009 @ 2:17PM
Blair Mitchelmore said...
I know the show's almost twenty years old at this point, but dude, spoiler!
Seriously, thought 'Who Killed Laura Palmer' is one of the great mysteries of serialized television. To just blurt it out in a headline is totally uncool.
PS Leland Palmer didn't kill Laura, Bob did, while possessing Leland Palmer.
PPS Spoiler Alert.
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10-18-2009 @ 3:21PM
Bubbameister33 (Confused by Fanboyism) said...
Ray Wise is awesome. I miss Reaper.
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10-19-2009 @ 2:26AM
WTF? said...
Woa! What the heck man?!? I just finished the first season! Way to spoil the hell out of Season 2 for me. Jerk.
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10-19-2009 @ 11:15AM
Justin said...
This just in: Darth Vader is Luke's father.
When something is almost 20 years old, I think the need for "spoiler alert" has more or less gone away.
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10-19-2009 @ 12:01PM
Jaguar Paw said...
Monika,
Posting this article is such a fopa. Twin Peaks is one of the rare shows/movies where there is a stigma involving not giving away the ending. Why is keeping the secret so important? Because it ruins the show. Please be humble enough to realize you've made a mistake and remove this article. If you don't it means you just don't care that you're ruining one of the greatest shows for many people.
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10-19-2009 @ 3:12PM
Huh? said...
Furthermore, this show just recently became available on DVD so there are many who are just now getting to enjoy it for the first time.
Reply
10-19-2009 @ 5:57PM
buzzy79 said...
Oh, and the chick in the crying game is really a dude. Give me a break! Great post Monika, I totally agree with you.
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