Scenes From the Belcourt's 'Twin Peaks' Season 1 Finale

The energy at the Belcourt was electric on Wednesday as crowds gathered for the final two episodes of Season 1 of Twin Peaks. Outside, a group dressed as both Horne brothers and a Dr. Jacoby sat on the curb, dining on Pie Rewind hand pies. Inside, a packed crowd was already waiting for the sold-out theater to open 30 minutes before start time, sipping on Damn Fine Cherry Pie cocktails from Henrietta Red beverage mastermind Patrick Halloran, who also designs the theater’s drink specials for 12 Hours of Terror.

The Belcourt’s ongoing Twin Peaks screenings have felt like a more accessible version of the theater's annual Halloween marathon, and Wednesday was no different. Before the show started, Scene senior film critic Jason Shawhan urged the costume contest’s entrants to bring the same energy in October, and series programmer Quinn Hills hinted at the possibility of screening Twin Peaks: The Return after an abridged run of Season 2 in May and June.

“Don’t bribe me with breads! Don’t bribe me with cocaine!” Hills quipped as deliberations for the costume contest began.

There was a surprising lack of Log Ladies — you have to wonder if people assumed everyone would be dressing up as her — but Nashvillians showed out for the contest with detailed homages to their favorite characters. Some Laura Palmers were wrapped in plastic, while one opted to carry a gilded frame around and pose as Palmer's senior portrait. Eric Moorhead — yoked in a curtain rod and drapes — took home the first-place prize. His look was sewn by his costume partner Leigh Lowry, who dressed in a red wig and eyepatch as Nadine, naturally. As he was brought onstage, he silently passed a handful of cotton balls to Hills, and the crowd erupted in cheers.

Seeing Twin Peaks in a packed theater adds something new to the 36-year-old show, no matter how many times you’ve watched it. The camp humor shines: During intermission, Wilson Phillips’ “Hold On” played over clips of poor plaintive Donna Hayward, and as the finale geared up, the crowd burst into collective laughter watching the camera cut to James Hurley just after Laura calls him dumb. 

But what also shines is the show’s emotional core — that feeling Shawhan described in his introduction as the “sense that we cannot escape the nature of our selves.” As hilarious as it is, it’s hard to watch endearing men like Special Agent Dale Cooper waver while rebuking a teenager’s advances, or gleefully gamble with taxpayer dollars while undercover across the Canadian border. A collective experience helps put those contradictions into perspective, and sheds new light on the show’s nuanced considerations of good and evil — and why we’re inexorably drawn to the latter. 

As Shawhan declared, in a “moment of prophecy” for Season 2, “Windom Earle could get it.” Season passes for the series’ next installment, which begins screening on Wednesday, May 6, are still available online. After April 30, the remaining seats go on sale as individual tickets, so secure yours while you can.