The Elephant Man

And this week's Friday night movie has been... The Elephant Man!

Original image located here. Accessed 12th December 2025

Earlier in the year, I watched The Straight Story as it was one I had been meaning to do for some time - and the passing of David Lynch was as good as any reason to get off my lazy arse and watch it. And here, we have a similar situation: This one has gone down as one of David Lynch's finest works, proving that, beyond the veil of his surrealist impulses, lies a deep interest in humanism.

And this is indeed a remarkable film: It's not just the humanist message throughout - keep in mind this was the first time it emerged in Lynch's filmography so many would think he didn't have it in him - but how Lynch coaxed compelling performances out of his leads. Anthony Hopkins is his reliable self but John Hurt does wonders - which is impressive given he's hiding behind a mountain of makeup and effects. Through in some truly staggering black and white imagery and its easy to see why this has gone down as one of Lynch's best. 

And speaking from an autistic perspective, the films most famous line - "I am not an animal! I am a human being!!" does indeed resonate.

The Straight Story

  And this week's Friday night movie has been... The Straight Story!

Original image located here. Accessed 6th June 2025

Once again, I face down a movie that I have been wanting to see for a long time. I suppose the recent passing of director David Lynch is as good a time as any.
Funnily enough, I hadn't seen any David Lynch movies but I knew of his works through reputation: Surrealist imagery, eccentric characters and an interest in dreamlike states. And he also made Mulholland Drive which baffled my father so much, I heard about it for weeks afterwards.
So it is unsurprising that my first David Lynch movie would be the one that has the reputation of being his most conventional one. Furthermore, the story of Alvin Straight and his journey of travelling a 390 kilometre journey atop a ride-on lawnmower sounds like one that would make for an interesting movie. 

For someone who is unfamiliar with Lynch's work, I can still tell that this is a breed apart from his oeuvre: None of the tropes I mentioned in the previous paragraph are present here. Instead, this is an empathetic look at Alvin and the journey he takes. We see the people he meets and interacts with on the way and we gain insight into his way of thinking, built up through years of experience. And we learn his belief in family. 
It may sound dull but it is absorbing, largely due to Lynch's directing and the committed performance of the late great Richard Farnsworth. Whatever gamble this movie may have initially appeared to be, ultimately paid off. 
Sometimes the most compelling movies can be the most deceptive, you know?