The movie opens with a guy named Edward, groaning in pain in his office, but it turns out the entire scene is just an act. Edward is actually suffering from a rare condition called neurofibromatosis, which has disfigured his face. He now relies on low-budget commercials to make a living.
Later, while returning home in the subway, Edward notices several passengers staring, and laughing at him. But he doesn’t react or say anything as he’s used to it. Shortly after, he reaches his building which is quite dingy and dirty.
He meets his landlord at the entrance, who suggests that he take up some martial art classes to defend himself. Edward then heads to his apartment, and it turns out a beautiful woman named Ingrid is relocating next to him. She is stunned for a moment upon seeing him, but quickly composes herself and greets him in a friendly manner.
Following this, he finally gets inside his room, which is so dilapidated that dirty water is leaking from the ceiling. Instead of fixing it right away, Edward simply places a bowl on the floor. That night, while he’s busy cutting onions in the kitchen, there’s a sudden knock on the door, and this startles Edward and he ends up injuring his finger.
He finds his new neighbor Ingrid, and when she notices that Edward is bleeding, she immediately brings in the first aid supplies. Following this, the two sit on the same couch, and Ingrid carefully tends to his wound while cracking some light jokes. It is evident that she doesn’t see Edward as a monster, and is really comfortable around him.
After patching him up, Ingrid spots a framed picture on the wall, where a completely normal baby Edward is with his mom. Throughout their conversation, Edward keeps giving one-word answers, as he’s not used to such social interactions, but Ingrid doesn’t seem to mind at all. She soon spots a typewriter in the room, where Edward has written an emotional quote about himself, and this impresses her.
And so, she reveals that she is a playwright by profession. Edward also opens up that he acts in small gigs here and there. Moments later, Ingrid finally discloses why she came here; she actually wanted some detergent.
Edward gladly gives some to her, marking the start of a new friendship. The scene then cuts to the next morning where we see Edward at the doctor’s for his routine check-up. He learns that while his tumors are slowly growing, he doesn’t have to worry for the time being.
The doctor then reveals that one of his colleagues named Eugene has developed a drug, which has the potential to cure neurofibromatosis completely. Eugene is currently looking for patients so he can test his new drug, so the doctor urges Edward to give it a thought, as the potential reward could change his life forever. Later, when Edward returns to his apartment, he notices that the water is leaking more vigorously, so he removes the tiny bowl and places a huge bucket.
Edward then grabs his typewriter, and presents it to Ingrid as a housewarming gift. Ingrid is delighted by the gesture, and Edward also feels happy that he’s finally getting the chance to interact with someone. But then, his mood quickly changes when her boyfriend comes over, and they close the door on him.
In the next scene, we see how difficult it is for Edward to find a gig. He goes for a local audition and puts up a wonderful performance, but it is still not enough to convince the judges. It is obvious that his acting is not the problem.
The only bright light in Edward’s otherwise dark life is his beautiful neighbor, Ingrid. When Edward shows her one of his commercials, she seems to be impressed by his acting. Here, Ingrid spots a blackhead on his nose and has the urge to remove it.
But just as she touches his face, Edward’s emotional instincts kick in and he ends up grabbing her hand. This creates an awkward moment between the two, so Ingrid makes up an excuse and departs. As a result, Edward is devastated that he blew the chance to get close to her, and he knows things would have turned out different had he been good-looking.
Therefore, the very next morning, he decides to gamble and try out Dr Eugene’s new drug. Edward is closely studied by a team of professionals, who start the procedure right away. They connect his face with several tubes, and inject the new drug.
Once everything is done, a prototype mask of Edward’s face is designed to measure the progress. He is also given some pills and other medicine which he has to consume on a regular basis. That evening, when Edward returns home, he finds a box of chocolate, face cream and detergent at his doorstep, along with a thank you note from Ingrid.
She claims that she typed it using the typewriter he gave him. Elated by the gesture, Edward tries to eat the chocolate, but immediately spits it out as he feels a sharp pain in his teeth. Edward now has to change the bandage from his hand as well, but he is shocked to discover that his knife wound has miraculously healed.
The scene then cuts to midnight where Edward is woken up by loud noises outside. He hastily opens it and discovers several cops as well as paramedics, and Edward is devastated to learn that his neighbor has unalived himself. Edward also spots a cat in the room, which he takes with himself.
Later, we see him and Ingrid at a diner. They talk about the dead guy, and then switch the topic to Ingrid’s line of work. By the time Edward reaches home, it is raining cats and dogs, and his ceiling’s condition has worsened.
Edward stands near it to have a proper look, when suddenly a large piece of debris falls on his face. He cleans up this new wound on his already complicated face. But as he scrubs it, small strands of skin start to peel out, indicating that the medicine might be taking effect.
The very next morning, Dr Eugene is astounded by how quickly the drugs are working, and reassures Edward that he’s healing. He also hands him the prototype face mask as a souvenir and a reminder, which Edward reluctantly accepts. Later, as our hero is on the way home, we see him in a very bad shape.
He is coughing vigorously, and can barely walk a few steps without getting short of breath. To cure this problem, he goes to a bar and heads straight to the washroom, and vomits to clear out his stomach. But while on the way back, the bartender insists that he have a drink, as only the customers are allowed to use the washroom.
Edward obliges and has some whiskey without any added water. But this turns out to be a huge mistake as he ends up vomiting again. That night at home, Edward cries uncontrollably as he cannot bear the excruciating pain of the drugs.
In his disillusioned state, he starts pulling the flesh off of his face, which is surprisingly elastic, revealing the face behind it. In a matter of seconds, he ends up scraping off all the excess flesh, leaving a near flawless face. A week later, we see Edward, now a completely transformed person.
The deformity on his face has vanished, and he has turned into a handsome young man. To celebrate this joyous occasion, Edward heads to a bar and orders some whiskey. The night goes from good to excellent as people treat him very different this time.
He even makes some friends, and also gets laid, probably for the first time in his life. When Edward reaches home the next morning, he is absolutely hungover and tired. But he doesn’t get the chance to rest as there’s a sudden knock on the door.
It’s the repairman who has finally come to take care of the ceiling problem. The man obviously doesn’t recognize Edward, and is enraged at how large the hole has become. Nonetheless, he gets straight to work.
Seconds later, a worried-looking DrEugene arrives at the door, asking for Edward. It turns out our hero hasn’t visited the medical lab nor answered their calls in the last week. But this transformed Edward clearly doesn’t want anything to do with them, so he lies that he’s a family friend named Guy.
He explains that Edward unalived himself recently, and his body has already been cremated. DrEugene is shocked by the revelation as he had worked really hard on the test subject. Unbeknownst to them, Ingrid is eavesdropping on their conversation from her room, and she is distraught.
The scene then cuts to an indefinite period of time where we see that Edward has completely changed his life around. He now lives in a lavish home, wears expensive suits, and is a successful real estate agent. Everyone at work respects Edward, and there are even posters of him on the subway.
But he still keeps his identity hidden, and now goes by the name Guy Moratz. Later, as Edward is walking down the street, his eyes suddenly fall on a woman who is none other than Ingrid. He still seems to have feelings for her, so he starts following her secretly.
After a while, Ingrid enters a theater, which is currently hosting the auditions for a play named ‘Edward’. It turns out she is arranging a play based on her neighbor, Edward, who she thinks is dead. Edward then comes across Ingrid and a bunch of other cast members who are auditioning a man.
They ask him if he’s here for the tryouts, but Edward fails to come up with a response. Nonetheless, they hand him the script and he reluctantly gets on stage. Edward is still confused and nervous, but he decides to give it a try and ends up delivering a decent performance.
Some days later, the theater is hosting another audition; this time for the role of the main character, Edward. Several people with facial deformities are seen waiting in line, and Edward also shows up as Guy Moratz. Upon inside, a confused Ingrid is surprised to see the mask, so Edward admits that he’s wearing this mask to feel like the character.
This time, he appears to be more confident, so using his acting skills, and the fact that he’s literally Edward himself, he puts on a spectacular performance. Ingrid is amazed by this. Later, we see the entire crew having dinner, during which Ingrid expresses her admiration for his acting.
Edward lies that he was inspired by his late friend, who also suffered from neurofibromatosis. After dinner, she takes him to her apartment, where Edward comes face to face with his old typewriter. He cheekily asks if she uses it, but Ingrid says she never used it and is not sure how it works, and even asks him to take it home if he wants to.
Edward is slightly disappointed by this, but his mood quickly changes when he spots his pet cat. It turns out Ingrid adopted the animal when he had disappeared months ago. Edward becomes even happier when he learns that Ingrid broke up with her boyfriend and is now ignoring him.
Following a bit of chit chat and some dancing, the two head to her bedroom where they end up making love. The next morning at the theater, as the group is busy with their rehearsals, a random stranger with neurofibromatosis shows up. He says he was here for the audition, but now that the role is filled up, he wishes everyone good luck and simply leaves.
In the next scene, we see Edward with his real estate mates, right when the same guy with neurofibromatosis shows up and addresses him by his real name. The others are stunned and ask who this ‘Edward’ is, and the guy ends up revealing that he’s currently working on a play. He then introduces himself as Oswald, and apologizes if he caused any inconvenience before leaving again.
As the days pass, Edward and Ingrid start to have differences over the play. She claims that she knows more about Edward because she wrote the script, but our hero is the actual person, although he doesn’t reveal it. Just then, the confident and charismatic Oswald shows up again, and he ends up revealing that Guy Moratz is also a real estate agent.
Ingrid is obviously stunned by the information, and she asks Oswald if he’d like to observe their play. He immediately says ‘yes,’ and the group continues with their practice sessions. That night, Oswald is also invited to dinner, and he manages to impress Ingrid and the others using his fancy talk.
He also begins to put ideas into her mind like the character Edward should talk with an accent. Ingrid absolutely likes the plan, and asks Edward to speak like a Brit, but the poor guy is horrible at it. Few more days pass, and Edward continues with his practice sessions, but he regularly forgets his lines, and his performance degrades.
Then one evening, Ingrid shockingly tells him that she has changed the script. Now, Oswald will be playing the lead role, as he resembles Edward the best, while Guy Moratz will become a side character. Our hero is livid with the decision and even argues for a while.
But Ingrid reveals that it was Oswald who forced her to change the script, but at the same time, he claims he didn’t want to take away the role permanently, whatever that means. This leaves poor Edward with no choice but to accept the decision. Weeks later, the play is finally released, and it is a critical success.
Although Edward becomes somewhat popular, he isn’t happy at all because Oswald has taken all the spotlight, and even Ingrid’s attention. Unfortunately, things go from bad to worse for Edward as a few days later, Ingrid tells him that he’s no longer required in the play. She simply says she’ll be in touch, and will cast him in another one of her works.
From that day onwards, Edward becomes paranoid, and starts spying on Oswald. He notices the guy playing with a woman and a little kid, arousing suspicion that he has a family. Edward then relays this information to Ingrid, but she doesn’t seem to be pleased by his presence at all.
Ingrid doesn’t even feel like she has to explain herself, yet she reveals that Oswald was just playing with his ex-wife, and his little daughter. She also discloses that Oswald will be moving to the next apartment, the same one where Edward stayed for so many years. Upon hearing this, Edward is so infuriated by the situation that he enters his previous apartment, and makes a hole in the ceiling once again.
His real estate life also takes a hit, as a delusional Edward starts dealing with his clients while wearing the deformed mask. If that’s not all, one day, he barges inside his office, and quits his job for good. He also makes sure to create a scene by making fun of all his colleagues, and destroying his computer.
After this, Edward goes straight to the theater and tries to attack Oswald, whom he blames for all his misfortune. But then, during the scuffle… A part of the set fell on Edward, breaking his arms and legs. Now that he’s unable to move, Edward moves in with Ingrid and Oswald in the same apartment.
To add to his disappointment, the latter 2 have now become a couple, and are making plans to make ‘Edward’ into a movie. Several months later, we see that Edward is still recovering from his injuries, while Ingrid is now pregnant. A physical therapist has been hired to help him walk, but this guy starts expressing his disgust about how a deformed man like Oswald could bag a beautiful Ingrid.
For some reason, the statement infuriates Edward. And so, when the therapist is distracted… He ends up stabbing the therapist with a knife. This is enough to land him in prison for a long long time.
The movie then cuts to many years later, where an aged Edward has finally been released. As he wanders around the streets, he runs into Oswald, who happily hugs him. They later catch up with Ingrid over dinner, and it turns out the couple have become highly successful, and are planning to relocate to a commune in Canada.
Shortly after, a waiter arrives to take their orders, but a visibly nervous Edward struggles to choose from the menu. Seeing this, the pesky Oswald jokes that Edward hasn't changed a bit.
