The Elephant Man (1980)

I couldn't watch The Elephant Man, a 1980 nominee for Best Picture, in one sitting. I kept turning it off and coming back to it after a break of a couple of hours or even a couple of days. This movie is just incredibly painful to watch. I think it's about the ways we are cruel to each other, and the depths of human cruelty displayed in this film are just too much for me to sit through for more than a few minutes at a time.

It's the story of John Merrick (played by John Hurt in award-worthy make-up), whose physical deformities have led to him being abandoned to a Victorian era freak show where he is put on display and frequently tortured and tormented by his "owner." He is rescued, at least temporarily, by a physician (played by a young Anthony Hopkins) who first wants to study him but who later befriends and tries to protect Merrick. The movie shows how, over the course of time, Merrick achieved a measure of notoriety among the elite of London society, who came to visit him at the hospital and talk with him about various subjects. He exhibited a nimble mind and a taste for artistic expression. I particularly enjoyed the scene depicting his first time watching a theatrical performance; it's a powerful, resonant moment of our collective ability to welcome others.

The first person other than the doctor to recognize the amazing soul inside the hideous figure of a man is an actress named Mrs. Kendal. She's played here by Anne Bancroft in what amounts to little more than a cameo, but what an impact her few minutes on the screen have. She manages to demonstrate both her initial revulsion over Merrick's appearance and how she overcomes that emotion, eventually becoming one of the so-called Elephant Man's closest friends. Bancroft was great in almost every part she played. Here she's so full of warmth and generosity; it's a joy to watch her. It made me realize just how much we lost when Bancroft passed away a few years ago.

It's the few heart-warming moments like the ones involving Mrs. Kendal that allow you to get through the rest of the film. I hope you don't misunderstand and think that I don't like The Elephant Man. This is truly a brilliant film in many ways, including its beautiful black-and-white cinematography, and it's perhaps one of the best films David Lynch ever directed (yes, I know, save your suggested alternatives). But what makes it so sharp (and challenging to experience) is its willingness to show us so much of the negative side of human nature: our greed, our willingness to abuse or take advantage of others, our tendency toward cruelty to and even hatred of those who are different from us. This is an emotionally wrenching film. If you didn't have a few moments of kindness and positivity now and then, I don't think you'd be able to watch it all the way through to the end. Thankfully, I did manage it. I don't think I will be able to watch The Elephant Man again for quite a while, but I'm grateful to have seen such an indictment of humanity coupled with a message about our capacity to love our fellow human beings.