blog 3 - editing analysis in David Lynch's Blue Velvet

Find the scene I analyzed here, from 0:00 to 1:00.

This scene from David Lynch’s Blue Velvet jumpstarts the film’s narrative with an important and shocking moment: the main character discovering a human ear in the midst of a field. This scene is a prime example of continuity editing for both clarity and dramatic effect. First, we see a wide shot of Kyle MacLachlan’s character, the camera tilting with him as he stoops to toss stones. This cuts to closeup of a rock hitting some garbage in the field, to show what MacLachlan aimed at, then back to the wide, tilting down one more as he kneels and examines something in the grasses. We then see the first closeup of the disembodied ear in the grass, then cutting to a reaction shot before coming back to the ear, zoomed in closer so we can see ants and other signs of decomposition. This cuts again to the low-angle medium reaction shot, and an awkward cut takes place. MacLachlan begins to stand, and the camera tilts up to follow him. Midway through the tilt, we cut back to the wide and watch him finish standing up. The cut feels out of place because the motion in the wide isn’t perfectly aligned with the medium tilt, so it appears as if the actor stands up twice.

From there, we get another cut to a view of the ear (from farther away this time) before returning to the wide and following the character continuously with tilts as he picks up a bag and feels around in the grass for something. We then cut to a new medium shot as he picks up the ear and places it gently in the bag before cutting one last time to the wide and following him as he walks away from camera. In one minute-long sequence, there are eleven cuts.

These shots also exemplify eyeline matching in continuity editing. Every time the audience sees the ear, it’s from a new angle, depending on how close the actor gets to it. Even in the final shot, the ear appears farther from camera because MacLachlan looks at it while standing. This places the audience in his shoes, observing the end result of a mystery and taking it in for the first time.