The Elephant Man is a 1980 historical drama film loosely based on the life of Joseph Merrick (named "John" in the film), a severely deformed man who lived in London in the late 19th century. A co-production between the United Kingdom and the United States, the film was directed by David Lynch, produced by Jonathan Sanger, and executive produced by Mel Brooks (who was uncredited, to avoid audiences expecting the film to be like his usual comedic works, although his company Brooksfilms is in the opening credits). It stars John Hurt, Anthony Hopkins, Anne Bancroft, John Gielgud, Wendy Hiller, Michael Elphick, Hannah Gordon, and Freddie Jones.
The screenplay was adapted by Lynch, Christopher De Vore, and Eric Bergren from Frederick Treves' The Elephant Man and Other Reminiscences (1923) and Ashley Montagu's The Elephant Man: A Study in Human Dignity (1971), incorporating both historical and fictionalized aspects with Lynch's distinctive surrealist sequences, which is highly unusual for a biographical film. It was shot in black-and-white by Freddie Francis and featured make-up work by Christopher Tucker.
The Elephant Man was a critical and commercial success, with critics highlighting Lynch's direction and Hurt's performance. The film garnered several accolades including three BAFTA Awards (including Best Film), and nominations for eight Academy Awards and four Golden Globe Awards. After receiving widespread criticism for failing to honor the make-up effects, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was prompted to create a competitive award for Best Makeup the following year.
Plot
Frederick Treves, a surgeon at the London Hospital, finds John Merrick in a Victorian freak show in London's East End, where he is kept by Mr. Bytes, the brutish ringmaster. Merrick's head is kept hooded outside of shows, and Bytes, who views him as intellectually disabled due to his muteness, is paid by Treves to have him brought to the hospital for examination.
Treves presents Merrick to his colleagues and highlights his physical abnormalities; his deformed skull forces him to sleep with his head on his knees against a pile of pillows, since if he were to lie down, he would asphyxiate. On Merrick's return, he is beaten so badly by Bytes that his errand boy has to call Treves for medical help. Treves brings Merrick back to the hospital, where he is tended to by hospital matron Mrs. Mothershead, as the other nurses are too frightened of him. Mr. Carr Gomm, the hospital's Governor, is against housing Merrick, as the hospital does not accept "incurables". Treves encourages Merrick to speak, finding him to be intellectually competent.
To prove that Merrick can make progress, Treves trains him to say a few conversational sentences and part of the 23rd Psalm. Carr Gomm sees through this ruse but, as he is leaving, Merrick begins to recite the whole of the Psalm. Merrick tells the doctors that he knows how to read and has memorized the 23rd Psalm because it is his favourite. Carr Gomm permits him to stay, and Merrick spends his time building a model of a cathedral he can partially see from his window.
At tea with Treves and his wife, Ann, Merrick views photos of their family and in return shows them his mother's picture. He believes he must have been a disappointment to her, but hopes she would be proud to see him with friends. Merrick begins to take guests in his room, including the actress Madge Kendal, who gives him a copy of Romeo and Juliet; they play some lines from it and Kendal kisses Merrick.
Merrick quickly becomes an object of curiosity to high society, and Mrs. Mothershead expresses concerns that he is still being put on display as a freak for this audience. Treves begins to question the morality of his own actions. Meanwhile, a night porter named Jim starts selling tickets to locals who come at night to gawk at the "Elephant Man".
The issue of Merrick's residence is challenged at a hospital council meeting, but he is granted permanent residence after the governors' hospitality is commended by Queen Victoria, who sends word with her daughter-in-law Alexandra. However, during one of Jim's raucous late-night showings, Merrick is kidnapped by Bytes. Another night porter reports this to Treves, who confronts Jim about what he has done; Jim is then fired by Mothershead.
Bytes takes Merrick on the road as a circus attraction once again. During a show in Belgium, Merrick, who is weak and dying, collapses, causing a drunken Bytes to lock him in a cage at night and leave him to die. Merrick is released by his fellow freakshow attractions who are escaping Bytes. Upon returning to London, Merrick is harassed through Liverpool Street station by several young boys and accidentally knocks down a young girl. Merrick is chased, unmasked, and cornered by an angry mob. Before collapsing, he cries "I am not an elephant! I am not an animal! I am a human being! I am a man!"
Policemen return Merrick to the hospital. Treves apologises to Merrick for his ordeal, but Merrick says he is happy and his life fulfilled from all Treves has done. Treves and Mothershead take Merrick, accompanying Princess Alexandra, to see a pantomime. Kendal comes on stage afterwards and dedicates the performance to him, and a proud Merrick receives a standing ovation from the audience.
Back at the hospital, Merrick and Treves bid each other goodnight, and Merrick completes his cathedral model. He lies down on his back in bed, imitating a sleeping child in a picture on his wall, and dies. A vision of his mother quotes Lord Tennyson's "Nothing Will Die".
Cast John Hurt as John Merrick, an intelligent, friendly, kind-hearted man who is shunned by society due to his severe deformity. Anthony Hopkins as Frederick Treves, a surgeon who takes John from the freakshow to be his patient in the hospital. Hannah Gordon as Ann Treves, Frederick's wife and one of the few people who only knew Merrick as innocent, and treated him with kindness instead of being frightened over his deformity. Anne Bancroft as Madge Kendal, a Victorian-era actress. John Gielgud as Francis Carr Gomm, an administrator of London Hospital. Wendy Hiller as Mrs. Mothershead, a matron for the nurses alongside Merrick. Freddie Jones as Mr. Bytes, a ruthless, alcoholic showman who exploits his acts and savagely abuses Merrick for his freak show. Bytes was based on Tom Norman. Frederick Treves (grandnephew of Dr Frederick Treves) as Alderman. Michael Elphick as Jim Renshaw, an unscrupulous, disgraced night porter of the hospital. Dexter Fletcher as Bytes' boy Helen Ryan as Alexandra, Princess of Wales John Standing as Fox Lesley Dunlop as Nora, Merrick's nurse Phoebe Nicholls (picture) and Lydia Lisle (footage) as Mary Jane Merrick Morgan Sheppard as man in pub Kenny Baker as plumed dwarf Pat Gorman as Fairground Bobby Pauline Quirke as prostitute Nula Conwell as Nurse Kathleen, one of Merrick's nurses
Production
Development Producer Jonathan Sanger optioned the script from writers Christopher De Vore and Eric Bergren after receiving the script from his babysitter. Sanger had been working as Mel Brooks' assistant director on High Anxiety. Sanger showed Brooks the script, and Brooks said he "read it through at one sitting and cried. It was the first time something like that had moved me since The Miracle Worker."
Brooks decided to help finance via Brooksfilms, his new company, which had just made its first film, Fatso. Brooks' personal assistant, Stuart Cornfeld, suggested David Lynch to Sanger.
Sanger met Lynch, and they shared scripts they were working on (The Elephant Man and Lynch's unrealized Ronnie Rocket). Lynch told Sanger that he would love to direct the script after reading it, and Sanger endorsed him after hearing Lynch's ideas. However, Brooks had not heard of Lynch at the time. Sanger and Cornfeld set up an Eraserhead viewing at a 20th Century Fox screening room; Brooks loved it and enthusiastically agreed for Lynch to direct. "Eraserhead made me feel he could handle melancholy and freaks and could use black and white film," said Brooks. "We want Elephant Man in black and white to minimise the horrific deformity and also to help us capture the feel of Victorian England."
By his own request, Brooks was not credited as executive producer to ensure that audiences would not expect a comedy after seeing his name attached.
A stage play about Merrick called The Elephant Man by Bernard Pomerance had debuted in 1977 and enjoyed a successful run on Broadway in 1979. This play was adapted as a television movie in 1982. It was not used as a source for the film. The producers of the play sued Brooks over the use of the title and he counter sued claiming it was public property.
Casting Dustin Hoffman wanted the role of John Merrick, but Sanger rejected the idea, saying "We’re always going to be looking to see where the Elephant Man ends and Dustin Hoffman begins". Lynch considered his friend Jack Nance, who he worked with on Eraserhead, for the role, but he cast John Hurt in the role after seeing The Naked Civil Servant. At the time, Hurt was still making Heaven's Gate which had fallen badly behind schedule due to director Michael Cimino's perfectionism. Hurt spent so long waiting for something to do that he performed the role of Merrick in the interim before returning to Heaven's Gate to complete shooting.
Filming The budget was $5 million, $4 million of which was raised from Fred Silverman of NBC. Part of this deal involved Brooks doing a one-hour special for NBC. The remainder came from EMI Films.
For his second feature and first studio film, albeit one independently financed, Lynch provided the musical direction and sound design. Lynch also tried to design the make-up himself, but the design did not work. The makeup, now supervised by Christopher Tucker, was based on direct casts of Merrick's body, which had been kept in the Royal London Hospital's private museum. The makeup took seven to eight hours to apply each day and two hours to delicately remove. John Hurt would arrive on set at 5 am and shoot his scenes from noon until 10 pm. After his first experience of the inconvenience of having to apply the makeup and perform with it, he called his girlfriend, saying, "I think they have finally managed to make me hate acting." Because of the strain on the actor, he worked alternate days.
The film is bookended with surrealist sequences, which is highly unusual for a biographical film according to studio executives, centered around Merrick's mother and her death. Lynch used Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings to underline the climax and Merrick's own death. Composer John Morris argued against using the music, stating that "this piece is going to be used over and over and over again in the future... And every time it's used in a film it's going to diminish the effect of the scene."
Post-production Following their return from England with a print, Lynch and Sanger screened The Elephant Man for Brooks, who suggested some minor cuts but told them that the film would be released as they had made it.
Lawsuit A West End play of the same name was enjoying a successful Broadway run at the time of the film's production. The producers sued Brooksfilms over the use of the title.
Box office The Elephant Man was a box office hit, grossing $26 million in the United States. In Japan, it was the second highest-grossing foreign film of the year with theatrical rentals of ¥2.45 billion, behind only The Empire Strikes Back.
Reception