A Victorian surgeon rescues a heavily disfigured man being mistreated by his "owner" as a side-show freak. Behind his monstrous façade, there is revealed a person of great intelligence and sensitivity. Based on the true story of Joseph Merrick (called John Merrick in the film), a severely deformed man in 19th century London.
L'homme éléphant, Sloní muz, 엘리펀트 맨, Elefantmannen, El hombre elefante, Փիղ Մարդը, Der Elefantenmensch, Elephant Man, O Homem Elefante, Человек-слон, 象人, エレファント・マン, Sloní muž, Człowiek słoń, Ο Άνθρωπος Ελέφαντας, Az elefántember, Fil Adam, Elefantmanden, Omul elefant, איש הפיל, Людина-слон, Човекът-слон, Elefanttimies, El Hombre Elefante, L’home elefant, ადამიანი-სპილო, Drambliažmogis, مرد فیلنما, มนุษย์ช้าง, Elevantmees
USAPG New York City 
China Beijing International Film Festival 
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Taiwan Golden Horse Fantastic Film Festival 
UKPG 
Spain Spain 
Czechia12+ 
JapanG 
Peru 
Chile UK12A Spain Czechia12+ 
RomaniaAP 
Brazil10 
Canada14A USAPG UKPG 
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Argentina+13 Brazil10 
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AustraliaM 
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12 
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David Lynch didn't fuck with my mind this time...he fucked with my heart 💔
There's a stretch of a few minutes near the end of this where "my friend" is uttered by four different people with four very different contexts and meanings and I was very moved by it. Simplicity I guess is what you would call this but I think the way Lynch opts for grace and patience is not as easy as it looks, there's real meditative poetry in these images and performances that I think others would've missed even if given the same material.
"My life is full, because I know that I am loved"
What a powerful quote from an extra powerful piece of film making.
I'm blown away by this. The feelings it envoked within me alone deserve 5 stars, respectively.
Hopkins was absolutely impeccable. His eyes ...... oh my HIS EYES, his eyes on their own just portrayed such intensity & emotion. I felt glued to them & couldn't look away. I wanted to wrap my arms around him & hug him tight.
John Merrick was one of the most beautiful people, the way he spoke, his nature. So much genuine love for everything. He made my heart so so happy. Even more so knowing it's a true story. After so much hate from human beings... So heart felt & true to life. Real emotion. Awwww.... I love this so so much I could cry... cry more.
I'm impressed & so glad I watched this. Thank you Letterboxd. You're a true true friend xox
This film asks its viewers a difficult question. Can you truly look beyond the physical? See someone for who they are, not what they look like.
In maybe his most accessible film, Lynch manages to tackle this subject with great skill, skirting the melodramatic here and there, but never getting preachy. He manages to get stunning performances out of Hopkins and, especially, Hurt. His performance is incredible. The humanity he manages to portray underneath those enormous amounts of make-up is breath taking.
Lynch keeps everything sober, emphasised by the gorgeous black and white cinematography and allows his two leads to unfold a brilliant story about friendship, love and the human soul.
It is a wonderful fairytale you should have seen at least once, in my humble opinion.
my heart...
the pain, sorrow, suffering, fear, and even joy that john hurt portrays with only his eyes is truly something to marvel at.
another lynch masterpiece.
"No! I am not an elephant! I am not an animal! I am a human being! I am a man!"
When I was a kid, my dad would occasionally say “I am not an animal!” in the John Merrick voice, if we were at the zoo or watching something about a person in confinement. My dad isn’t much of a cinephile and I doubt that he knows who David Lynch is. But he clearly saw this and took something from it. I should call him and ask.
Beautiful film, one of my favorites.
the only david lynch film i've seen that hasn't left me very confused after watching it, it just left me very sad
My life is full because I know that I am loved.
"My life is full because I know that I'm loved“
Real tears, and much of them. Every single time.
Eraserhead was Lynch's first major display of his penchant for surrealism, but this film introduced another important quality of his work: A keen understanding of the human condition, particularly in its reaction to the grotesque.
This is one of those movies you watch and it changes the way you view film, society, and yourself. The Elephant Man is a shocking, and depressing look at John Merrick’s life. It’s one of those movies that will impact everyone who watches it and I would consider it essential viewing. John Hurt is exceptional here, completely disappearing into his role, and bringing so much humanity to this character. John Merrick is a truly one of a kind person, and there will never be anyone like him again, even though we need more people like him. Just thinking about certain scenes while writing this chokes me up. The ending is perfect, the direction is flawless, the makeup and prosthetics are some of the best ever, and I wouldn’t change a second of this movie. It’s on YouTube to rent so do yourself a favour and watch this, because it’s incredible.
