The Man Without a Face (1993)

In 1968, Justin McLeod has been living an isolated existence as a reclusive painter for the past seven years, following a car accident that left him disfigured on the right side of his face and chest burns sustained in the post-crash fire. Chuck Nordstadt is a young boy who endures a dysfunctional relationship with his academically brilliant half-sisters and their oft-divorced mother. One day, Chuck meets McLeod on a ferry when McLeod witnesses Chuck in an act of vandalism born of escalating frustration. Chuck is both intrigued and slightly scared of him. Chuck needs a tutor to help him pass a military academy’s entrance exam that he’d failed earlier that year. Eventually, upon discovering that McLeod is a teacher, Chuck persuades him to become his tutor. While he is initially baffled by McLeod’s unorthodox methods, the two eventually develop a close friendship.

Chuck keeps his daily meetings with McLeod a secret in order to avoid being scorned for associating with a disfigured man whose past is shrouded in mystery. No one knows much about McLeod and few people have ever made an effort to know him. As a result, McLeod has become the object of gossip, speculation, and suspicion. “A proper troll,” McLeod notes with self-deprecating humour. “Tourist board oughta pay me”. Ultimately, Mrs. Nordstadt learns that her son has been visiting McLeod. She and the rest of the town convince themselves that McLeod is molesting Chuck, despite Chuck’s adamant denials. Chuck researches McLeod’s car accident, which involved the death of another boy, thus causing McLeod’s fear of another attachment. Chuck is forcibly taken to a psychiatrist, who Chuck correctly suspects is also biased against McLeod.