On M List of Movie Reviews

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Mask (1985)

Rate: 9
Viewed: 5/12, 7/21

Mask
5/12: Here's a great one from Peter Bogdanovich: Mask.

A beautiful, moving film with a sad ending, it's the story of Rocky Dennis and how craniodiaphyseal dysplasia has impacted his life. All performances are top-notch, and the true standouts are Eric Stoltz, Cher, and Sam Elliott.

Although Laura Dern has done an excellent job of playing a blind character, I find it insulting and don't see why the filmmakers couldn't get somebody else who's actually blind. By the way, the interview with Peter Bogdanovich is a must-see. He's an intelligent person and should be the main host of TCM after Robert Osborne.

All in all, Mask is an outstanding film by Peter Bogdanovich.

7/21: The best film of Cher's and Eric Stoltz's careers, Mask is a moving slice-of-life drama about Rocky Dennis.

The reason for the Director's Cut is to include Bruce Springsteen's songs finally for certain key scenes. Prior to it, Universal Pictures and Columbia Records couldn't come to an agreement, so Bob Seger's songs were used instead, violating Peter Bogdanovich's right of final cut.

Of course, Michael Westmore and Zoltan Elek won the Oscar for Best Makeup which feels like a make-up after what happened with The Elephant Man. It's unbelievable how Eric Stoltz was able to move his face without the mask crumbling apart. Apart from his performance, three outstanding aspects are: Cher's soulful eyes, Sam Elliott's classy presence, and the camaraderie among bikers. One negative is the movie runs too long; it just goes on and on. Therefore, making Mask shorter will be beneficial.

Interestingly, how it got made is that Dorothy Stratten, the subject of Star 80, showed keen interest in the story of Joseph "John" Merrick which became the basis of The Elephant Man and Peter Bogdanovich picked up on it. In spite of Cher's diva-like behavior, the director thought she should've gotten the Oscar, and I agree with him except...Whoopi Goldberg deserved it more for The Color Purple.

All in all, it's hard not to be inspired by Mask.