Rocky Dennis (Stoltz) is trying to make the most of his teenage years while living with a bone disorder that causes deformities to his skull. Rocky’s strength comes from the love and encouragement that he gets from his high-energy mother, Rusty (Cher), though she could use some confidence building of her own. This touching drama based on the lives of real people was the first modest box office success after five flops in a row for Bogdanovich. The director’s career stalled again, however, when he complained about studio meddling to what became the original release version of Mask. This Director’s Cut restores about seven minutes worth of scenes and several songs by Bruce Springsteen, the real Rocky Dennis’ favorite musician.
