Elephant Man

Director: David Lynch David Lynch

Overview

John Hurt stars as John Merrick, the hideously deformed 19th century Londoner known as "The Elephant Man." Treated as a sideshow freak, Merrick is assumed to be retarded as well as misshapen because of his inability to speak coherently. In fact, he is highly intelligent and sensitive, a fact made public when one Dr. Frederick Treves (Anthony Hopkins) rescues Merrick from a carnival and brings him to a hospital for analysis. Alas, even after being recognized as a man of advanced intellect, Merrick is still treated like a freak; no matter his station in life, he will forever be a prisoner of his own malformed body. Unable to secure rights for the famous stage play The Elephant Man, producer Mel Brooks based his film on the memoirs of Frederick Treves and a much later account of Merrick's life by Ashley Montagu. The film is photographed in black and white by British master cinematographer Freddie Francis. Although nominated for eight Academy Awards -- including nods for Hurt and Lynch -- the film was ultimately shut out in every category. Across the Atlantic, it was recognized with a César Award in France as the Best Foreign-Language Film, and the BAFTA Award in England for Best Film.

Product Details

Release Date:	09/29/2020
UPC:	0715515251518
Original Release:	1980
Source:	Criterion Collection
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[B&W, Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Stereo]
Time:	2:03:00
Sales rank:	8,609

Special Features

New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed stereo soundtrack; Director David Lynch and critic Kristine McKenna reading from Room to Dream, a 2018 book they coauthored; Archival interviews with Lynch, actor John Hurt, producers Mel Brooks and Jonathan Sanger, director of photography Freddie Francis, stills photographer Frank Connor, and makeup artist Christopher Tucker; Audio recording from 1981 of an interview and Q&A with Lynch at the American Film Institute; The Terrible Elephant Man Revealed, a 2001 documentary about the film; Joseph Merrick: The Real Elephant Man, a 2005 program featuring archivist Jonathan Evans; Trailer and radio spots; English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Anthony Hopkins	Dr. Frederick Treves
John Hurt	John Merrick
Anne Bancroft	Mrs. Madge Kendal
John Gielgud	Carr Gomm
Wendy Hiller	Mothershead
Fred Jones	Bytes
Michael Elphick	Night Porter
Hannah Gordon	Mrs. Treves
Helen Ryan	Princess Alexandra
John Standing	Fox
Dexter Fletcher	Bytes' Boy
Lesley Dunlop	Nora
Phoebe Nicholls	Merrick's Mother
Robert Bush	Messenger
Maggie Cartier	Actor
Peter Davidson	Second Bobby
Roy Evans	Cabbie
Orla Pederson	Skeleton Man
Lisa & Teri Scobie	Siamese Twins
Bernadette Milnes	Actor
Carole Harrison	Tart
Pat Gorman	Fairground Bobby
Claire Davenport	Fat Lady
Patsy Smart	Distraught Woman
Frederick Treves	Alderman
Stromboli	Fire Eater
Richard Hunter	Hodges
Tony London	Porter
Hugh Manning	Broadneck
Fanny Carby	Mrs. Kendal's Dresser
Kathleen Byron	Lady Waddington
Gerald Case	Lord Waddington
David Ryall	Man with Whores
Dierdre Costello	1st Whore
Pauline Quirke	Whore
Kenny Baker	Plumed Dwarf
Chris Greener	Giant
Marcus Powell	Midget
Eiji Kusuhara	Japanese Bleeder
Robert Day	Little Jim
Patricia Hodge	Screaming Woman
John Rapley	King in Panto
Teresa Codling	Princess in Panto
William Morgan Sheppard	Man in Pub
Tommy Wright	First Bobby

Technical Credits

David Lynch

Eric Bergren

Christopher de Vore

David Lynch	Director,Musical Direction/Supervision,Screenwriter,Sound/Sound Designer
Eric Bergren	Screenwriter
Mel Brooks	Executive Producer
Maggie Cartier	Casting
Robert Cartwright	Art Director
Anne V. Coates	Editor
Stuart Cornfeld	Executive Producer
Stuart Craig	Production Designer
Christopher de Vore	Screenwriter
Graham Ford	Set Decoration/Design
Freddie Francis	Cinematographer
Robin Gregory	Sound/Sound Designer
Jack Hayes	Musical Arrangement
Graham Longhurst	Special Effects
John Morris	Score Composer
Pat Norris	Costumes/Costume Designer
Jonathan Sanger	Producer
Hugh Scaife	Set Decoration/Design
Wally Schneiderman	Makeup
Alan Splet	Sound/Sound Designer
Christopher Tucker	Makeup
Anthony Waye	Asst. Director

Editorial Reviews

Prior to this breakout film, director David Lynch was a cult figure, whose only previous film was the bizarre cult favorite Eraserhead. Elephant Man was in many respects a longer, more accessible, better plotted version of Eraserhead, underlining Lynch's fascination with physical freaks and sporting the same strange atmospherics, including the constant background noise of humming and hissing machinery. John Hurt sensitively plays the title role, based on a true story about a severely deformed man in late 19th century London who becomes the star of a freak show and the toast of society. Anthony Hopkins's role firmly established his career, and the film did the same for Lynch, who became a cultural hot property. Stark and unforgiving, Elephant Man promotes Lynch's vision of a society at odds with its members. The film received eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, though it won none of them.

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