Eraserhead (1977)

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

David Lynch

Writer:

David Lynch (writer)

Release Date:

7 September 1979 (West Germany)

Genre:

Fantasy | Horror | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

In Heaven Everything Is Fine.

Plot:

Henry Spencer tries to survive his industrial environment, his angry girlfriend, and the unbearable screams of his newly born mutant child.

Plot Keywords:

Factory | Radiator | Apartment | Imagery | Mutant Baby

Awards:

2 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Jack Nance	...	Henry Spencer (as John Nance)
Charlotte Stewart	...	Mary X
Allen Joseph	...	Mr. X
Jeanne Bates	...	Mrs. X
Judith Roberts	...	Beautiful Girl Across the Hall (as Judith Anna Roberts)
Laurel Near	...	Lady in the Radiator
V. Phipps-Wilson	...	Landlady (long version)
Jack Fisk	...	Man in the Planet
Jean Lange	...	Grandmother
Thomas Coulson	...	The Boy
John Monez	...	Bum
Darwin Joston	...	Paul
T. Max Graham	...	The Boss (as Neil Moran)
Hal Landon Jr.	...	Pencil Machine Operator
Jennifer Chambers Lynch	...	Little Girl (as Jennifer Lynch)

Also Known As:

Eraserhead 2000 (USA) (DVD box title)
Gardenback (USA) (original script title)

Runtime:

89 min | USA:108 min (approx.) (premiere version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby (re-release) | Mono (original release)

Certification:

Canada:R (Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Iceland:16 | Spain:13 | Singapore:PG | France:-16 | Netherlands:16 | Norway:15 | Denmark:7 | UK:15 (re-rating) (2008) | Portugal:M/16 | Chile:14 | UK:18 (video rating: 1986) | UK:X (original rating) | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Finland:K-14 | Ireland:18 | South Korea:15 | Sweden:15 | USA:Unrated | West Germany:18 | Canada:13+ (Québec)

Filming Locations:

Beverly Hills, California, USA

Company:

American Film Institute (AFI)

Trivia:

Sissy Spacek was brought on the set by Jack Fisk (the Man in the Planet), and held the slate during his scenes. They later married.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Camera shadow visible as it tracks in to the light towards the end of the film.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Beautiful Girl Across the Hall: Are you Henry?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Le son de Lynch (2007) (TV)

Soundtrack:

In Heaven

Open your eyes, if you dare

How frightening. How unnerving. What a spectacular piece of film-making. I saw the film for the first time with a tiresome former colleague who kept turning to me and whispering : "Please exhale" "Are you breathing?" "Please breathe" or "Please stop breathing" I wanted to run away but I couldn't I was glued, stacked, hooked. The world of David Lynch is made of kindly horrors, normal monsters, poetic nightmares. I wonder what planet is he from. I think it would important to know so we can all avoid it. That's what any average Joe may say because every average Joe, me included, finds something familiar in this fascinating, peculiar, horrifying vision of the world. You want to close your eyes, but you can't. Even if you could, you still can hear. the whimpering of the thing, the child, the figment of David Lynch's imagination. How can you recommend a nightmare to a friend? Well you must, if friendship involves sharing every possible experience. "Earserhead" will put you to the test in a way no other film has ever done. Go! I dare you.