The Elephant Man
Available on Philo, Prime Video, Tubi TV
This is the rare story of John Merrick, the Elephant Man, enslaved by his body, set free by his dream. Trapped inside the twisted, lesion-ridden grip of a terminally disfiguring disease, Merrick triumphs over his terrible affliction. It is a story of life and the affirmation of life; timeless, tragic, uplifting and heroic. Philip Anglim's exquisite portrayal of John Merrick is all the more exceptional because he does it without elaborate make-up. As Dr. Frederick Treves (Kevin Conway) describes Merrick's deformities to a lecture hall full of medical observers, Anglim contorts his body to match Treves' narrative until, finally, he achieves Merrick's crippled U-shape.
Starring Philip Anglim, Kevin Conway, Penny Fuller
Director Jack Hofsiss