The Grandmother: Analysis

 THE GRANDMOTHER 

DAVID LYNCH

How does David Lynch turn these ordinary aspects of life into surreal nightmares?

Being born:

- Jittery and twitchy movements in a stop motion manner

- The parents come in straight up while the child comes in sideways, which could symbolise him being born in the wrong place and may not fit in

- Aggressive and violent movements may be foreshadowing how the boy's parents will treat him during the film

- We only hear animal noises, which makes the film seem animalistic. It may also be a representation of how newborn children perceive the world and are still unable to comprehend words

- Barking and crawling, which is inhumane

Growing up:

- The boy is mostly been neglected by his parents

- Sorrowful and isolating atmosphere

- Grey undertones with an overall dark ambience, which makes the environment seem cold

- Pasty white colour that consumes their faces made vivid by the high contrast film making the boy seem sickly. Also, the red lipstick suggests that dialogue is forbidden, as the colour red has negative connotations of danger and threat.

Trying to please your parents:

- His existence displeases the parents

- The boy avoids direct eye contact with them which conveys how he's not comfortable around them 

- The jarring nature of frequent cuts when the parents are on the screen makes them seem unpredictable and unfamiliar to the audience. This adds to the tension but also makes the audience feel uneasy and frightened, which would be a projection of how the boy is feeling

- The parents keep ignoring the child and view him as a 'mutt' which is what they keep saying to him

- They are violent with him when he does something his parents aren't happy with, although he isn't to blame as he was not taught right from wrong from the beginning

Finding comfort in a grandparent:

- The grandmother hands him flowers, which could symbolise how she's his hope for growth and happiness, which is what the parents aren't giving him 

- Very close up zooms of the grandmother, which could symbolise warmth and trust, which contradicts the ambience he's in

- The boy smiles and the grandmother smiles back. These emotions being captured are only seen in the presence of his grandmother, which encapsulate the fact that he feels secure and comfortable when he's with her

Family dinners:

- Close up shots of the parents eating, however, the child doesn't look at the food, juxtaposing the scene with his grandmother where he was able to eat comfortably around her

- Colours make everything look sickly, which could be a reflection of how the boy currently feels when around the parents, discomfort