Wild at Heart

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.
It's like an old Elvis Presley movie done by David Lynch!

A 1990 film directed by David Lynch, Wild at Heart follows Sailor (Nicolas Cage), a recently released convict, and his lover Lula (Laura Dern) going on a road trip from North Carolina to California in order to escape the clutches of Lula's extremely overbearing mother Marletta (Diane Ladd). As they travel and come across Lynchian situations, Marletta has both of her boyfriends (Harry Dean Stanton and J.E. Freeman) try to track down Lula and dispose of Sailor. Hilarity, Elvis Numbers and Oz Allusions Ensue.

Tropes used in Wild at Heart include:
  • Adaptational Attractiveness: mob lady Perdita Durango was supposed to be "a hairy, ugly woman", and the actress who played her was quoted as being "overjoyed" at the chance of grunging it up; as a result, "ugliness" comes down to a cheap blond dye job with visible dark roots. Oh, and the actress? Isabella Rossellini.
  • All Women Are Lustful
  • Arc Words: More like Arc References, as many characters allude to The Wizard of Oz throughout the film.
  • Bar Brawl: very narrowly avoided.
  • Berserk Button: Whatever you do, don't insult Sailor's snakeskin jacket.
  • Black Dude Dies First: The very first casualty on the movie is an unnamed black assassin sent by Marletta to kill Sailor.
  • Big No: The whimpiest one ever captured on screen.
  • Dysfunction Junction: Sailor's childhood is only alluded to via dialogue, but that's what we discover:

Lula: When'd you start smoking, Sail?
Sailor: I guess I started smoking when I was about... four. My momma was already dead then from lung cancer.

Sailor: Did I ever tell ya that this here jacket represents a symbol of my individuality, and my belief in personal freedom?
Lula: About fifty thousand times.

  • Infant Immortality: Played with, since Lula finds out she's pregnant midway.
  • Large Ham: It's not hard to see that Nic Cage is having the time of his life.
  • Mrs. Robinson: played with, as Marietta tries - and fails - to seduce Sailor early on- her actual goals are debatable, though, since it may as well be a ploy to drive the couple apart, and she's soon revealed to be a Complete Monster.
  • No Kill Like Overkill: The reason Sailor gets sent to prison despite legitimate defence is that he goes way overboard trying to defend himself from Marletta's first assassin, smashing the guy's skull until pieces of the brain fly out, getting him charged with manslaughter.
  • One-Scene Wonder: Crispin Glover and Jack Nance; to a lesser extent, Sherilyn Fenn as the car crash victim.
  • Outlaw Couple: Sailor and Lula become one, since they decide to head off to California violating Sailor's parole, and later they get mixed up with Bobby Peru's gang, who Sailor joins in a robbery.
  • Rape as Backstory: Lula was attacked at a very young age by a family friend; upon learning that, Marietta arranged for him to be murdered.
  • Star-Crossed Lovers: Sailor and Lula seem to be heading towards that, right up until the very end.
  • Sudden Musical Ending: Although Sailor does have one musical number earlier in the movie.
  • Title Drop: "This whole world's wild at heart and weird on top."
  • Troubled Backstory Flashback: Lots and lots.
  • Your Head Asplode: Bobby Peru after the robbery.
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