David Lynch adapts Sir Frederick Treves' writings about his personal experiences with Joseph Merrick (curiously renamed John Merrick) in the beautiful black & white bio-pic The Elephant Man.
It's a deeply absorbing story where a smile or the smallest of compliments mean the world to someone who lives in such an ugly world. Lynch wisely hides Merrick's face for a large portion of the film and when we finally do see it, he's developed the story enough so it hardly even startles the viewer. It occasionally dips into the surreal soundscapes and bizarre "dream sequences" Lynch is well known for but it never takes away from the dramatic impact of the film. A personal all-time favorite of mine.
5 human beings and not animals out of 5
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