Review – The Elephant Man

The tragic life of John Merrick has tremendous cinematic potential. Indeed, I recall seeing video of a stage production in which the actor playing The Elephant Man (I think it may have been John Hurt, as it is here) did so without the benefit of special effects makeup, and it still turned out to be fascinating stuff. Here the effect is even more powerful thanks to the recreation of Merrick’s condition. My only big objection to this movie is that every once in awhile – especially in scene transitions – it takes on a certain David-Lynch-iness that detracts from the story. Worth seeing