The 1977 surrealist film about a man and his grotesque, alien-like baby is Eraserhead.
Written, directed, produced, edited, and partly scored by David Lynch, Eraserhead follows Henry Spencer, played by Jack Nance, as he struggles with parenthood in a bleak industrial world. Henry’s child is a swaddled, inhuman-looking creature that cries constantly and becomes the focus of the film’s disturbing imagery and emotional tension.
Eraserhead was Lynch’s feature-length directorial debut and grew out of his studies at the American Film Institute. Production lasted several years because of funding problems; Lynch, his crew, and supporters continued filming in stages. He and sound designer Alan Splet then spent about a year constructing the film’s dense, unsettling soundscape, which is as important as the black-and-white visuals.
The film is often described as horror, body horror, surrealism, or psychological science fiction, but it deliberately resists one fixed interpretation. The baby is not a conventional extraterrestrial character with an explained origin. It is better understood as a disturbing embodiment of anxiety about responsibility, intimacy, and parenthood. The Phantom of Liberty, El Topo, and The Holy Mountain share surreal elements but are different films.