Press Release Criterion Press Release: The Elephant Man (1980) (Blu-ray) (1 Viewer)

[Robert Crawford]

With this poignant second feature, David Lynch brought his atmospheric visual and sonic palette to a notorious true story set in Victorian England. When the London surgeon Frederick Treves (Anthony Hopkins) meets the freak-show performer John Merrick (John Hurt), who has severe skeletal and soft tissue deformities, he assumes that he must be intellectually disabled as well. As the two men spend more time together, though, Merrick reveals the intelligence, gentle nature, and profound sense of dignity that lie beneath his shocking appearance, and he and Treves develop a friendship. Shot in gorgeous black and white and boasting a stellar supporting cast that includes Anne Bancroft, John Gielgud, and Wendy Hiller, The Elephant Man was nominated for eight Academy Awards, cementing Lynch’s reputation as one of American cinema’s most visionary talents.

FILM INFO

• David Lynch
• United States
• 1980
• 123 minutes
• Black & White
• 2.35:1
• English
• Spine #1051

DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES

• New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed stereo soundtrack on the Blu-ray
• Director David Lynch and critic Kristine McKenna reading from Room to Dream, a 2018 book they coauthored
• Archival interviews with Lynch, actor John Hurt, producers Mel Brooks and Jonathan Sanger, director of photography Freddie Francis, stills photographer Frank Connor, and makeup artist Christopher Tucker
• Audio recording from 1981 of an interview and Q&A with Lynch at the American Film Institute
• The Terrible Elephant Man Revealed, a 2001 documentary about the film
• Trailer and radio spots
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• More!
• PLUS: A booklet featuring excerpts from an interview with Lynch from the 2005 edition of filmmaker and writer Chris Rodley’s book Lynch on Lynch, and an 1886 letter to the editor of the London Times concerning Joseph Merrick, the “elephant man,” by Francis Culling Carr Gomm, chairman of the London Hospital at the time

New cover by Sister Hyde

September 29, 2020

 

[Robert Crawford]

Thank you for supporting HTF when you preorder using the link below. If you are using an adblocker you will not see link. As an Amazon Associate HTF earns from qualifying purchases

 

[darkrock17]

I've heard about this movie for quite some time, but was afraid of seeing it as I thought it was a horror movie for the longest time. The original VHS cover that I would see in Blockbusters backed my suspicion of why I thought it was horror as well.

 

[JohnRice]

I'm in!

 

[Kilgore]

Man, what an HD drought we've had to go through for just to get Elephant Man on Blu-ray in NA. And to get a Criterion release at that? Immediate purchase.

 

[TravisR]

Can't wait!

 

[dpippel]

Hmmm, this, or the 4K Studio Canal release...

 

[Tino]

Terrific film with a heartbreaking Oscar nominated title performance by John Hurt! From Mel Brooks company no less. I’m in!!

 

[Ronald Epstein]

If you have 4k, I would opt for the Studio Canal release. It is the most beautiful, drop-dead gorgeous B&W film I have ever seen.

I talked about it in the International thread.

 

[titch]

The StudioCanal 4K release is one of the best discs released - Criterion should have released this as their first 4K title. There are some decent extras on Criterion's release, so I'll have to double-dip, seeing as this is one of my favourite films.

 

[Robert Harris]

Beautifully cut by Anne Coates

 

[Matt Hough]

John Hurt gives a masterful performance, but I honestly thought Anthony Hopkins was his equal and deserving of some praise, too. That moment when he first sees what the man actually looks like features a majestic close-up of Hopkins as tears well in his eyes and begin to drop. That moment greatly affected me the first time I saw the film, and I remember it vividly to this day.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

John Hurt gives a masterful performance, but I honestly thought Anthony Hopkins was his equal and deserving of some praise, too. That moment when he first sees what the man actually looks like features a majestic close-up of Hopkins as tears well in his eyes and begin to drop. That moment greatly affected me the first time I saw the film, and I remember it vividly to this day.

Exactly! That is a very heartbreaking and terrifying sequence all rolled into one.

I was never a huge fan of The Elephant Man, but the more I see it, the more appreciate its brilliance in style and storytelling.

What caps it all off is the most amazing 4k transfer I have seen. It's the B&W equivalent of the color Lawrence of Arabia.

 

[Tino]

Where can I get the 4K? Link?

 

[Robert Crawford]

Where can I get the 4K? Link?

Turn off any ad-blocker to see the link below:

See on Amazon

 

[Tino]

52 pounds? Yikes. And the blu’s are region B right? Tempting but......

Is there a single 4K disc option?

 

[titch]

52 pounds? Yikes. And the blu’s are region B right? Tempting but......

Is there a single 4K disc option?

No. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm not aware of a single standalone 4K disc release without a blu-ray included. The French 4K steelbook is half the price but Amazon France doesn't seem to be shipping overseas.

See on Amazon

 

[Robert Harris]

The original Canal Blu had interesting packaging. A very thin heavy paper jacket, without a spindle. The disc was held in place by a circle of double stick tape. Which on my example is no longer sticking.

 

[bujaki]

The original Canal Blu had interesting packaging. A very thin heavy paper jacket, without a spindle. The disc was held in place by a circle of double stick tape. Which on my example is no longer sticking.

Ach! Must be just like the original packaging of the Criterion BD of All about Eve (which Criterion kindly replaced upon request).

 

[bugsy-pal]

The original Canal Blu had interesting packaging. A very thin heavy paper jacket, without a spindle. The disc was held in place by a circle of double stick tape. Which on my example is no longer sticking.

I have that version, and a bunch of other Studio Canal blurays in that series - Deer hunter, Contempt, The Graduate, Last Year at Marienbad, Delicatessan, the Lost Honour of Katarina Blum, The Go-Between, The Third Man, Le Cercle Rouge, 3 Days of the Condor. Many of these have been bettered in the intervening years since their release by better versions. I have the Elephant Man 4K on its way to me now