<![CDATA[ilianFilm - The Elephant Man]]>

The Elephant Man, is a touching story that left me with mixed feelings. I not only felt empathy and emptiness, but also an anger with the world. Human cruelty is always present, and the hunger for entertainment often sacrifices morals and values. This type of entertainment profits off of weakness and misfortune to satisfy the masses.

The film is shot in black and white, and the music is typical of the time in history. It made me believe that everything in the story was true. A little research shows that John Merrick did exist and was exhibited as an attraction in street fairs. The rumor that an elephant struck his mother is false. The deformation of his skull and body was a result of an extremely rare disease called neurofibromatosis. “But whoever goes to the films for historical truth is crazy,” says Phil Solomon, a film professor at CU Boulder.

The Elephant man touches you with the increasing humanity of some of its characters, or with the repulsive cruelty and greed of others. The most touching being exposed to the quiet suffering of a human being damned by nature. The film is one of those purifying stories that make the viewer a better person at the end.

4 / 5

Director: David Lynch
Staring: Anthony Hopkins, John Hurt, Anne Bancroft