Rating: 
Summary: A touching drama
Review: Elephant man, You could only see his eyes behind the layers of makeup, but those expressive orbs earned John Hurt a well-deserved Oscar nomination for his moving portrayal of John Merrick, the grotesquely deformed Victorian-era man better known as The Elephant Man. Inarticulate and abused, Merrick is the virtual slave of a carnival barker until dedicated London doctor Frederick Treves rescues him from the life and offers him an existence with dignity. Anne Bancroft costars as the actress whose visit to Merrick makes him a social curiosity, with John Gielgud and Wendy Hiller as dubious hospital staffers won over by Merrick. David Lynch earned his only Oscar nominations as director and cowriter of this somber drama, which he shot in a rich black-and-white palette, a sometimes stark, sometimes dreamy visual style that at times recalls the offbeat expressionism of his first film, Eraserhead. It remains a perfect marriage between traditional Hollywood historical drama and Lynch's unique cinematic eye, a compassionate human tale delivered in a gothic vein. See it.
Rating: 
Summary: emotionally shattering
Review: I rented this movie on a recommendation from a David Lynch fan. He said it wasn't as weird as his other films and is probably the best place to start to slowly ease into what he does. I rented it then on that recommendation and I must say I didn't expect to get as upset as I did. It's a very sad film throughout no matter how you look at it. Whether Merrick is being abused or treating with kindness it's almost hard to hold back tears a lot of the time. For me the parts that are most moving are when Merrick is treated with kindness unexpectedly and is emotionally moved. It's really just a very beautiful film I think. I don't really think this movie is for everyone due to the fact that it is so upsetting and sad, but people that enjoy those kinds of films should love this movie.
Rating:
Summary: Lynch' s masterpiece
Review: More than enough has been said about this film, so it seems redundant to say more. Yet, greatness can never have enough recommendation. And Lynch's Elephant Man is just that. Anyone wanting to delve into the sordid alleys of the human heart, could find no better place to start than with the pitiful tale of John Merrick.Gruesomely deformed at birth, John lives his first twenty years of abject, animal-like existence in a circus freak show. He is at the mercy of his savage 'owner,' who stores him out of sight in a dreary, undergound dungeon until the next 'show' calls. Rescued by the compassionate Dr. Frederick Treves, marvelously played by Anthony Hopkins, this creature begins his slow immersion into the human family. He slowly becomes a man. The Elephant Man. Dr. Trevor is convinced that beneath the deformed exterior lies a thinking and feeling human being. And by treating him as such, Dr. Treves restores John to the pale of humankind. Teaching him, nurturing him and instilling dignity within him, Treves saves his patient from the ignominious end that would have surely awaited him, had he, Dr. Treves, not shown compassion. Yet, what makes this film especially compelling is its refusal to placate us with simple answers and a happy ending. It is an acidic critique of how we humans seem incapable of seeing beyond appearence and of how truly unaccepting of difference we are. Treated like a freak in the circus, the Elephant Man becomes a 'celebrity freak' in the society of Dr. Treves. People want to see, touch and experience him, just because he is different. Yet, they are revolted just the same. The Elephant Man is denied true acceptance as a fellow human being with desires and emotions. Those around him just can't grasp that inside, he is no different from them. But alas, Lynch knows how to pull at our heartstrings as John finally joins humanity in his death......'to sleep like others do.' The ending is masterful. Painful, cathartic and magical. All in one. The film's message is spelled out here in all its simple glory, as John Merrick teaches us something about true happiness. 'Knowing I'm loved, I need nothing more.' Amen.
Rating:
Summary: A MASTERPIECE...pure and simple!
Review: I'm getting ready to order this DVD, and my recollections of experiencing this movie are sweeping over me. I first saw it at a 17 year old high-schooler at my local movie theater, late one evening. I had seen, and enjoyed, the Broadway play a few months earlier, and wanted to see how the movie compared. The play, I should say, was very moving and had a certain spareness in its production design that was very effective. I had left the theatre with a moist eye and an interest in learning more about John Merrick, The Elephant Man (who had neurofibromatosis, NOT elephantitis, as is so often attributed to him). Anyway, when the movie concluded, the ENTIRE audience of 150 or so sat in its seats, numbed and unmoving. It was one of those experiences where you fight back your tears, because you're worried if you let go, you'll start bawling like a baby! The film was so profoundly moving to me and so artistically brilliant, that I went again the very next day, dragging reluctant friends with me. They were all stunned. I watched it again later that week, and then the movie left the theatre. I've watched it on video a couple of times, but I have to admit, it's been 10 years since I've seen it. I can HARDLY wait!! True, it's been awhile, but images continue to haunt me to this day. (Note of caution: The movie does not follow John Merrick's life terribly accurately...neither did the play. When I read the biography of Merrick that his doctor, Treves, wrote, I got his "true" story, which is just as moving in its own way.) David Lynch, we all know, is a "difficult" director. This movie, however, is his most accessible. It tells a straightforward story...no dancing dwarfs, no little people behind radiators, no Wizard of Oz references, etc. etc. No Laura Palmer. However, the touches he brings to it are pure Lynch, and they serve the movie profoundly. For example, the movie takes place in the midst of the early Industrial Revolution, when science was becoming more "popular" or "glorified" by the masses. It was also a time when London was awash in factories, and all the noise and polution they wrought. If you've seen ERASERHEAD or DUNE, you know that Lynch likes to have lots of background noises of machinery. Often, those sounds are distracting. In ELEPHANT MAN, we are constantly aware, through these sounds, that we are in a very specific time and place, where the lifeblood of society was machinery, but big, dirty, unsubtle machinery. This, coupled with the glorious black and white photography, truly create a mood that is unequaled. Also, there are some brief dream sequences, particularly as John Merrick, the horribly disfigured hero of the movie, is remembering his mother. She flits in and out of his dreams in a manner only Lynch can evoke. No one has ever been better at capturing on film the elusive nature of dreaming...that dreams are a crazy combination of good things and bad things happening all at once. The dreams are not a "device" but a window into Merrick's soul. Those of us who remember when the film first came out remember the constant rehashing of the "I am not an animal, I am a human being, I am a MAN!!" line that Merrick yells out when cornered in a train station. This howl of despair is one of the most gripping moments EVER put to film. The makeup is incredible. Having seen photos of the real Merrick, I can state that the makeup crew got it right! And the black and white helps to mask any imperfections. And underneath the makeup... ...is John Hurt, a fabulous actor in the role of his lifetime. He brings a delicacy and gentleness to the part that has to bee seen to be believed. I guarantee you'll be moved. Hurt is ably assisted by Anthony Hopkins in a role which calls for restraint, and he delivers, which is unusual for Hopkins, who can overact at the drop of a hat...I love him, but sometimes he can overdo it, you must admit. I simply cannot recommend this film highly enough. Moviemaking doesn't get any more heartbreaking and effective than this masterpiece.
Rating:
Summary: Few movies will move you like this one.
Review: Beautifully made and powerfully moving. A dvd Definately worth owning. 1 flaw with the dvd though...No Scene Selections! the Entire movie is 1 BIG Chapter.
Rating:
Summary: Very sad and moving story
Review: This is a wonderful tribute to a man who recieved no love or understanding in life. And so in death we honor his memory. He was not retarded and had no metal defects of any kind. How can one possible imagine being born with a terrible birth defect then let alone today? Ask yourself how would you treat a person like this is you saw them on the street? Would you snicker or scream and run away? Or would you become their friend? This is a great movie and one of my very favorites! I still cannot see this movie and not cry because of the way this wonderful man was treated by a socitey that did not understand him and who did not dare to try. Watch it you'll love it!!!
Rating:
Summary: brace yourself
Review: This is one of the most intense movies I have ever seen. I must have cried throughout the entire movie. Totally moving!
Rating:
Summary: A Necessity.
Review: Absolutely wonderful! A must see film. The story of John Merrick is an incredibly touching and though provoking. Everybody is great in his or her roles. Beautifully shot and produced.
Rating:
Summary: Marvelous Performance & Inspiring !
Review: A sentimental, touching and inspiring movie. Marvelous performance by John Hart as the disfigured John Merrick - the Elephant Man and by Anthony Hopkins as Dr Fred Treves. The movie was shot in Black & White as determined by Director David Lynch, although it was produced in 1980. I guess it's to establish the mid 19th centuries atmosphere and to give it much impacts to the audiences. Imagine you're the Elephant Man and visualize how you survive in this cruel world !
Rating: 
Summary: He is not an animal.
Review: The magnificent visuals in *The Elephant Man* are rather less due to director David Lynch than they are to cinematographer and Hammer vet (and former director himself) Freddie Francis. On purely visual terms, this has to be one of the greatest black & white movies ever shot. Victorian Europe becomes Hell, here: gritty, damp sidewalks; plumes of smoke everywhere (light and dark, steam and coal); impenetrable shadows; nauseating grays; daguerreotype snapshots in hallucinogenic fogbanks. It is the work of no less than a genius. The photography all by itself raises this otherwise conventional drama to near art. Also worthy of praise are the set design and -- of course! -- the costuming. Only by the film's credits do you realize that it's John Hurt who's portraying the horribly deformed John Merrick, the famous personage in Victorian London who rose from sideshow degredation to national celebrity. Watching this movie again, I wished that Francois Truffaut had written and directed it. I was constantly reminded of that director's *The Wild Child*, in which he played the equivalent doctor-role that Anthony Hopkins plays here. Nothing wrong with Hopkins' performance, mind you; it's more the heavy-handed moralizing that his character is forced to personify. Lynch, that famous finger-waggling moralist, insists on putting Dr. Treves' ethical quandary into the character's own mouth, thereby making sure we "get" it. (Truffaut understood that the ethical quandary of bringing a wild child -- or an elephant man -- into normal society is already a given, without requiring sage speechifying, oratory, declamation.) Every time I hear about what a "daring" director David Lynch is, how he "thinks outside the box", how "revolutionary" he is, I recall this tear-jerking film. *The Elephant Man* is ultimately as sentimental as any Academy Award-bucking Hollywood product. Of course, that's exactly what the movie is. It's also as sentimental and moralistic as most of Lynch's other movies. It's definitely worth seeing, but let's not get carried away.
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