Mask

Mask has built a devoted audience among viewers who want their drama to earn its emotional beats. A tight runtime that never overstays its welcome. A 7/10 rating says what the writing already makes obvious: this one works. Watch it for Cher — one of the stronger performances out there right now. Put it on tonight and see for yourself.

Mask is not trying to be everything to everyone, and that focus is exactly what makes it work. Mask trusts its audience to sit with discomfort instead of resolving it too quickly. A significantly deformed but highly intelligent teenage boy and his biker gang mother attempt to live as normal a life as possible under the circumstances. Cher and Sam Elliott lead a cast that brings real weight to the material. It was released in 1985. The performances in Mask do a lot of work in the silences between the dialogue. It knows exactly what it is, and does not try to be anything else.

Drama fans who appreciate slow-burn storytelling will feel right at home with Mask. It rewards viewers regardless of what else is in their watch history. Short enough to finish in one sitting, substantial enough to feel satisfying. Cher's work here is the kind that gets referenced in career retrospectives. It makes everything else feel thin by comparison.