Mask is a 1985 American biographical drama film directed by Peter Bogdanovich, starring Cher, Sam Elliott, and Eric Stoltz with supporting roles played by Dennis Burkley, Laura Dern, Estelle Getty, and Richard Dysart. Cher received the 1985 Cannes Film Festival award for Best Actress. The film is based on the life and early death of Roy L. "Rocky" Dennis, a boy who had craniodiaphyseal dysplasia, an extremely rare genetic disorder known commonly as lionitis due to the disfiguring cranial enlargements that it causes. Mask won the Academy Award for Best Makeup at the 58th ceremony, while Cher and Stoltz received Golden Globe Award nominations for their performances.

Plot

In 1978 Azusa, California, Rocky Dennis, a boy with craniodiaphyseal dysplasia, is accepted without question by his freewheeling biker mother's boyfriend, his "extended motorcycle family," and his maternal grandparents who share his love of baseball card collecting; but is treated with fear, pity, awkwardness, and teasing by those unaware of his humanity, humor, and intelligence. Rocky's mother, Florence "Rusty" Dennis, is determined to give Rocky as normal a life as possible, in spite of her own wild ways as a member of the Turks biker gang, as well as her strained relationship with her father. She fights for Rocky's inclusion in a mainstream junior high school, and confronts a principal who would rather classify Rocky as intellectually disabled and relegate him to a special education school, despite the fact that his condition has not affected his intelligence. At Rocky's semi-annual physical, Rocky claims to be feeling pretty well despite recurring headaches that his mother can remedy by simply singing to them. A young doctor tells Rusty that Rocky's life expectancy is limited to six more months, which Rusty scoffs at, exclaiming that many other doctors have made claims about Rocky's condition that were completely unfounded.

Awards