"I am a human being!"

Rating: 8/10 (28 July 2014)

In what may be the ultimate Hollywood film about dignity and triumph over all evil, David Lynch directs the story of a disfigured man who gets brutally tortured and sold for laughs. It is truly hard to believe this is partially based on a true story. But even in a story that seems to be far from a human tale, it's the closest thing to showing all of us how good people do exist.
I hadn't seen any of Lynch's previously work so I had only heard of his greatness. But I wasn't overly impressed with his style. I found too many scenes to be cut away far too soon. This story has several moments of great emotional impact, but when the scenes are cut to a different area it loses the gravitas. But Lynch did bring the most out of the actors involved and the devastating script. Some of the villains I found to be a bit too one note though, which wasn't a deal breaker, just more or less annoying.
Anthony Hopkins and John Hurt worked well together and overall will be what I remember this movie for. Well and of course the famous scene under the train station when John yells the line "I am not an animal, I AM A HUMAN BEING!". There aren't many movies that made me think more than The Elephant Man, even if I didn't feel the emotional weight that I had wanted to.
+Legendary performances
+Stunning makeup work
+More relatable than you may think
+Good always triumphs
-Wanted more emotional gravitas
-Too many scenes cut away too soon
8.3/10