Continuity mistake: The period of time this movie portrays about Merrick, was in real life a period of seven years. In real life, Merrick's deformations were not so 'big' at 21, and at the date of dying, they were larger than portrayed in the movie. In the movie his deformations never seem to enlarge.
The Elephant Man (1980)
Ending / spoiler
Directed by: David Lynch
Starring: Anthony Hopkins, John Hurt, Anne Bancroft, John Gielgud
Merrick's former owner breaks into the hospital, and kidnaps him, taking him back to the circus. The other freaks help Merrick to escape, and he makes it back to King's Cross station in London, where a bunch of kids unmask him. A crowd attacks him, intending to lynch him, but John retorts with his famous "I am not an animal - I am a human being" speech. He is returned to the hospital by the police, and taken to the theatre by the Princess of Wales, where the actress he met earlier dedicates the show to him. That night, Merrick decides to go to sleep in a "normal" position, even though he knows it will cause him to suffocate.
Dave
More mistakes in The Elephant Man
John Merrick: No! I am not an animal! I am a human being! I. Am... A man!
Trivia: The "Best Make-Up" Academy Award was created after the outcry that this film didn't receive an award for make-up (which was a special award at the time).
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