An excellent, thought-provoking and moving film about the triumph of the human spirit over adversity

Rating: Null/10 (31 December 2015)

Based in part on Frederick Treves' 1923 memoirs "The Elephant Man and Other Reminiscences", this is an excellent, thought-provoking and moving film about the triumph of the human spirit over adversity. I think that the film is reasonably historically accurate, with one of the bigger inaccuracies being that Merrick's first name was Joseph rather than John. For some odd reason that has never been explained, Treves always referred to him as "John" even though Merrick's name was recorded as "Joseph" and he referred to himself as such. The script by David Lynch, Christopher De Vore and Eric Bergren is wonderful and the same is true of Lynch's direction. The black-and-white cinematography of Freddie Francis, otherwise best known as a horror film director, is beautiful and greatly adds to the atmosphere of the film. Much of the film's success, however, lies in the fantastic make-up of Christopher Tucker, which led directly to the establishment of a long overdue Academy Award for Best Makeup, albeit too late for this film to benefit from it.
As the title character, John Hurt gives an absolutely brilliant performance. A sufferer from what is now believed to be either neurofibromatosis type I or Proteus syndrome, Merrick's severe deformities meant that he was exhibited in the freak show of the cruel Mr. Bytes, played very well and against type by Freddie Jones. It is not mentioned in the film but in reality he was in a workhouse for several years beforehand, which would have been a dreadful experience for anyone, let alone someone in his condition. Merrick is assumed to have limited mental capacities. However, he surprises everyone when it is revealed that he can not only read and write but is extremely intelligent. He is a kind, unfailingly polite and gentle soul who soon develops a passion for art and the theatre.
Merrick's good manners and easy charm mean that he is able to win over most people who are initially frightened or even disgusted by his appearance. My favourite scene in the film is the one in which he has tea with Treves and his wife Ann, played in a great cameo by Hannah Gordon, and she is deeply moved by his sensitive nature and his photograph of his beloved and beautiful mother. It is impossible for me to imagine what kind of life he led or how he felt but the film depicts him as a very brave man who lived his life with a quiet dignity once he was given the opportunity to do so. When I saw Hurt speak in UCD in 2009, he said that the make-up was so claustrophobic that he could only work on alternating days and it is easy to see why. This may also be the reason that Merrick does not appear until 14 minutes into the film and does not speak for the first 40 minutes. Hurt was deservedly nominated for Best Actor for his performance - for the only time, incidentally - but he lost to Robert De Niro in "Raging Bull".
Although Merrick is the focus of the film, the protagonist is arguably the renowned surgeon Frederick Treves, who rescues him from Bytes' freak show and admits him to the London Hospital. Anthony Hopkins, who is credited first and has more screen time than Hurt, is excellent in the role. At first, he is interested in Merrick merely as a medical curiosity and exhibits him before other members of his profession as such. In that sense, it is little different from Bytes exhibiting him in his freak show. It just has more of a veneer of sophistication. Over time, particularly after realising the extent of his intelligence, Treves grows genuinely fond of him and he becomes the first true friend that he ever had. After Merrick becomes the darling of London society, however, Treves begins to wonder whether he is really any better than Bytes as his reputation and career have profited significantly from showing the Elephant Man off to people. In reality, this is a criticism that has been levelled against Treves and I agree with it to some extent. However, I also think that he did more good than harm and gave Merrick a better quality of life than he would ever have had otherwise, even if his motives were not entirely altruistic.
As was his wont, John Gielgud gives a superb performance as Francis Carr-Gomm, the governor of the London Hospital who is initially opposed to Merrick's presence but eventually grows to care for him. The same is true of his fellow stalwart of the British stage and screen Wendy Hiller as the head nurse Mrs. Mothershead. I suppose that Anne Bancroft (whose husband Mel Brooks produced the film) is officially the female lead but she only has three scenes. In any event, she is excellent as the Victorian actress Madge Kendal. In real life, Mrs. Kendal was childhood friends with Kate and Ellen Terry, two other celebrated actresses of the day who just so happened to be Gielgud's grandmother and great-aunt. On a similar note, Frederick Treves' great-nephew of the same name makes a brief appearance at the beginning of the film as an alderman. Lesley Dunlop is very good as Merrick's loving nurse Nora and Michael Elphick is suitably vile as the night porter Jim who, in the most disturbing scene, leads a bunch of drunks and prostitutes into Merrick's hospital room to torment him. The film also features nice appearances in small roles from Helen Ryan (reprising her role as Princess Alexandra from the ITV serial "Edward the Seventh"), John Standing, W. Morgan Sheppard, Kenny Baker, David Ryall and a very young Dexter Fletcher.
Overall, this is a brilliant film which reminds the audience of the importance of not judging a book by its cover. The final scene in particular is very powerful.