Rotten Tomatoes
Suggestions will appear as you start typing. Submit search Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

Blue Velvet

Play trailer Poster for Blue Velvet R 1986 2h 0m Mystery & Thriller Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
87% Tomatometer 174 Reviews 88% Popcornmeter 50,000+ Ratings
College student Jeffrey Beaumont (Kyle MacLachlan) returns home after his father has a stroke. When he discovers a severed ear in an abandoned field, Beaumont teams up with detective's daughter Sandy Williams (Laura Dern) to solve the mystery. They believe beautiful lounge singer Dorothy Vallens (Isabella Rossellini) may be connected with the case, and Beaumont finds himself becoming drawn into her dark, twisted world, where he encounters sexually depraved psychopath Frank Booth (Dennis Hopper).
Watch on Fandango Stream Now

Where to Watch

Blue Velvet

Blue Velvet

What to Know

Critics Consensus

If audiences walk away from this subversive, surreal shocker not fully understanding the story, they might also walk away with a deeper perception of the potential of film storytelling.

Read Critics Reviews

Critics Reviews

View More
Adam Kempenaar Filmspotting Oct 2, 2026
5/5
...where David Lynch becomes David Lynch. Go to Full Review Terri Minsky New York Daily News Sep 18, 2026
2/4
It plays like a very sick episode of "Leave it to Beaver." Go to Full Review Joe Kane New York Daily News Sep 18, 2026
David Lynch's "Blue Velvet" is an imaginative bizarre, consistently unpredictable, blackly funny sleaze nightmare. Go to Full Review Josh Larsen LarsenOnFilm Sep 28, 2026
3/4
A movie that seeped directly from its maker’s consciousness... Go to Full Review Codie Allen InSession Film Sep 21, 2026
A+
Blue Velvet doesn’t answer those questions neatly. It probably shouldn’t. Forty years later, its greatest power is still in that contradiction: it is horrifying and beautiful, tender and cruel, funny and deeply disturbing, dreamlike and painfully real. Go to Full Review Bill Brownstein Montreal Gazette Sep 18, 2026
This slickly stylized parody of small-town America is without question one of the most fascinating films to emerge from Hollywood in years. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View More
Andrew Mar 16, 2025 Film doesn’t get any better. Absolute stunner! See more Bruce F Mar 12, 2025 Masterpiece of modern cinema! See more Cognac Mar 9, 2025 Its David Lynch. A lovely story to watch unfold, just dont get hung up on it making sense. See more Ben Mar 9, 2025 IMO the best place to start with David Lynch’s filmography. See more Francine Mar 6, 2025 One of my favorite David Lynch films. I was so lovely to watch this on the big screen. I hope our little Regency theater brings more Lynch films for throwback nights. The movie is a great dreamy noir with a fun soundtrack and gorgeous cinematography. Plenty of "ear"-iness. Disturbing and unsettling at times. All in the right ways. See more Mate P @matepolcz Sep 29, 2026 Blue Velvet is my first David Lynch and I loved it! It has a story and plot, but I would absolutely call this a vibe film. The characters are interesting, but they don’t really have arcs. The story is engaging, I’m rarely this nervous watching a film at home. The directing is perfect. The cinematography, editing and soundtrack compliment each other and create the vibe I fell in love with. The lighting, the colours are impeccable. The cast is perfectly fitting and there’s obviously lots of talent there. The performances are spectacular. On an other note, is this where "okey-dokey" comes from in Fallout? Blue Velvet exceeds expectations. See more Read all reviews
Blue Velvet

My Rating

Read More Read Less WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW POST RATING

Cast & Crew

View All

David Lynch

Director

Kyle MacLachlan

Jeffrey Beaumont

Isabella Rossellini

Dorothy Vallens

Dennis Hopper

Frank Booth

Laura Dern

Sandy Williams

Hope Lange

Mrs. Williams

More Like This

View All
Sea of Love 76% 67% Sea of Love Watchlist Salvador 91% 85% Salvador Watchlist Fatal Attraction 74% 72% Fatal Attraction Watchlist TRAILER for Fatal Attraction Revenge 30% 54% Revenge Watchlist Track 29 63% 42% Track 29 Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More
View All

Blue Velvet

Blue Velvet (1986) Blue Velvet (1986) Blue Velvet (1986) Blue Velvet (1986) Blue Velvet (1986) Blue Velvet (1986) Blue Velvet (1986) Blue Velvet (1986) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis College student Jeffrey Beaumont (Kyle MacLachlan) returns home after his father has a stroke. When he discovers a severed ear in an abandoned field, Beaumont teams up with detective's daughter Sandy Williams (Laura Dern) to solve the mystery. They believe beautiful lounge singer Dorothy Vallens (Isabella Rossellini) may be connected with the case, and Beaumont finds himself becoming drawn into her dark, twisted world, where he encounters sexually depraved psychopath Frank Booth (Dennis Hopper).
Director
David Lynch
Producer
Fred C. Caruso
Screenwriter
David Lynch
Distributor
Warner Home Vídeo, MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc., Paramount Pictures
Production Co
De Laurentiis
Rating
R
Genre
Mystery & Thriller, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 19, 1986, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 3, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA)
$8.6M
Runtime
2h 0m
Sound Mix
Dolby, Surround
Join The Newsletter Join The Newsletter Cookie Settings