THE MASK (1985)

Mask (1985) Directed by Peter Bogdanovich. Starring Cher, Eric Stoltz, Sam Elliott and Laura Dern. Cher received the 1985 Cannes Film Festival award for best actress.

Cher played her character's battle with drinking/drugs so believably. Also, this is the movie I fell in love with Sam Elliot. The film is a true story of the life and death of Roy L. "Rocky" Dennis a boy who suffered from Craniodiaphyseal dyslasia. The Son of a free spirit, drug addict, biker mom, Rocky Dennis.

My favorite scene in the movie is where Rocky's mother, confronts a principal who wants to put Rocky in a Special Education School. Rusty asks the principal, if they teach "Algebra, Science, English and History" at this school, if they do, these are "Rocky's needs".

Rocky goes on to thrive at school. In History class he shares a Greek myth about the Trojan Horse and it being the starting point of the Trojan Wars and gradually overcoming the fears of his classmates.

At the end of the school year the principal asks Rocky to accept a job as a counselor's aide at a summer camp for the junior blind. At camp Rocky falls in love with Diana Adams, a blind girl who cannot see his deformed face and is attracted by his kindness.

Near the end of the film, Rocky faces the sadness of his separation from his girlfriend and the end of his dream of his motorcycle trip through Europe, with his best friend.

Still fighting the disease, quietly goes to his room and dies in his sleep at age 16. Finding her son, Rusty re-pins Rocky's map of Europe and says, "Now you can go anywhere you want, Baby."

When Cher was cast in the film, she wanted her boyfriend at the time, Val Kilmer to play Gar. Producers thought he was too young for the part.

Rob Lowe was considered to play the part of Rocky Dennis.

Bruce Springsteen music was chosen because it was the real Rocky's favorite music.

A poem written by Rocky:

"These things are good:
ice cream and cake,
a ride on a Harley,
seeing monkeys in the trees,
the rain on my tongue,
and the sun shining on my face.

These things are a drag:
dust in my hair,
holes in my shoes,
no money in my pocket,
and the sun."

Sam Elliott began his career as a character actor and he perfectly suited for Westerns. One of his first film roles was as 'Card Player in, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969).

He has also starred in Road House (1989) with Patrick Swayze and played Virgil Earp in Tombstone (1993), which starred Kurt Russell and Val Kilmer.

Elliott co-starred in, We Were Soldiers, which is based on the book We Were Soldiers Once… And Young, portraying Sgt. Maj. Basil L. Plumley.

He also played General John Buford in the 1993 film Gettysburg, which is based on the book Killer Angels by Michael Shaara.

He also played "The Stranger", a character narrating the story of The Big Lebowski (1998).