Kyle Maclachlan names his favourite Criterion movies
An iconic actor of underground American cinema, Kyle Maclachlan has made a name for himself as one of the most beloved and eclectic creatives currently working in Hollywood. Well-known for his collaborations with the experimental filmmaker David Lynch, Maclachlan became a recognisable face ever since his debut in the original Dune movie back in 1984, where he featured alongside Sting, Virginia Madsen and Patrick Stewart.
Several more Lynch collaborations followed, with Maclachlan starring in the director’s magnum opus Blue Velvet in 1986 as well as in the celebrated TV series Twin Peaks, where he starred as Special Agent Dale Bartholomew Cooper. Invigorated by a powerful obsession with cherry pie, doughnuts, and especially coffee, Maclachlan’s Cooper is a wise sage who seems to be able to make sense of the bizarre mystery of the show, piloting the investigation to find out who murdered young Laura Palmer.
Thanks to his popularity in fan circles, Maclachlan was invited by Criterion to select his picks from their iconic Blu-Ray closet, featuring the finest films from the collection of the prestigious distribution company.
Taking to the collection with fervent energy, the first film Maclachlan picks out is Steven Soderbergh’s Sex Lies and Videotape, starring Andie MacDowell and James Spader. Winning the Palme d’Or back in 1989, as well as a Best Actor win for Spader, the film allowed Soderbergh to create even bigger and better projects, becoming something of an experimenter in modern cinema.
Maclachlan also picks out the Jean-Pierre Melville movie Le Cercle Rouge as well as John Frankenheimer’s 1962 version of The Manchurian Candidate starring Laurence Harvey, Janet Leigh, Angela Lansbury and Frank Sinatra. Remade in 2004 with Denzel Washington, Meryl Streep, Jon Voight and Bruno Ganz, Frankenheimer’s original remains far superior.
Giving special mention to the Hal Ashby movie Being There, Maclachlan reveals that the performance of Peter Sellers in the 1979 movie helped to inform his character of Dale Cooper in Lynch’s modern series Twin Peaks: The Return. Telling the story of a sheltered gardener who becomes an unlikely trusted advisor to a powerful tycoon, Being There remains an arthouse favourite for many across the world.
Kyle Maclachlan’s favourite Criterion movies:
- Sex Lies and Videotape (Steven Soderbergh, 1989)
- Le Cercle Rouge (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1970)
- The Manchurian Candidate (John Frankenheimer, 1962)
- Being There (Hal Ashby, 1979)
- Roma (Alfonso Cuarón, 2018)
- The Elephant Man (David Lynch, 1980)
The last two slots on his list go to the Alfonso Cuarón awards-winner Roma, as well as Lynch’s Elephant Man, for which Maclachlan holds a particular love. Starring Anthony Hopkins and John Hurt, The Elephant Man demonstrates Lynch’s ability for straightforward narrative storytelling, telling a more linear tale than his usually experimental endeavours.
