Kevin Smith’s films are known for their slacker humor, heartwarming sentimentality and sometimes disgusting elements (the donkey show in “Clerks II”, anyone?). He dabbled in horror with “Red State” and “Tusk,” but even then his brand of fear is far from the surreal nightmare that is David Lynch and Mark Frost’s “Twin Peaks.” However, the mind-blowing horror serial inspired Smith while he was making “Clerks” and looking for a name for his own View Askewniverse character, Silent Bob. As he told Rotten Tomatoes:
“I chose the name Silent Bob because I was a huge fan of ‘Twin Peaks’ and Bob was one of the characters.”
The comparisons between “Clerks” and “Twin Peaks” end there. Silent Bob is a lovable stoner who spends his days hanging out outside a convenience store in Smith’s first film. “Twin Peaks” Bob (Frank Silva), on the other hand, is a vicious supernatural entity who commits all manner of atrocities and feeds off the suffering of his victims. “Twin Peaks” has its share of humor, mind you, but Bob is associated with the show’s darker moments (and when “Twin Peaks” gets dark, it gets really dark).
Still, it’s interesting to learn that Smith finds inspiration in unexpected places and is a big fan of Lynch’s work as a whole. With that in mind, let’s find out what he has to say about the filmmaker.
Kevin Smith’s admiration for David Lynch and Twin Peaks
Kevin Smith grew up watching David Lynch movies and TV shows. Speaking to Blueprint Review, he revealed that “Wild at Heart” is his favorite because he relates to the characters and enjoys its coming-of-age elements. But he’s also a big fan of “Blue Velvet” and found “Eraserhead” terrifying when he first watched it. He even likes “Dune”, which is not considered Lynch’s finest moment. That said, Smith has a particular fondness for “Twin Peaks,” saying it was prestige television before the term was cool.
“He’s an absolutely wonderful filmmaker, and ‘Twin Peaks’ was my thing when it was on television, when it first aired. When it revolutionized television. David Lynch was making the kind of television that they make now on streaming and on HBO and on the fucking networks…Lynch and Frost are doing ‘Twin Peaks,’ and it has such an impact that 30 years later we’re still seeing shows like ‘Twin Peaks.’ He helped teach people that with the hour format, you can do so much.”
Smith’s assessment of the impact of “Twin Peaks” on television is one that many Lynch fans no doubt agree with. However, the series also has the distinction of having inspired Smith’s beloved View Askewniverse character, Silent Bob, and that’s awesome in its own right.
