Mit 1000 Volt in den Tod

In Charles Eric Maine's excellent (for its day) novel, a scientist invents a mind-tape-recorder (helmet on the head, bazillion-track tape), hoping to use it for Good, like studying mental disorders. A movie mogul gets hold of it and soon billions of people waste their lives and their savings in tanks "experiencing" recorded porn or schmaltz (ultraslow replay intensifies the sensations). The scientist decides to take drastic measures, batters the mogul to death and plays the recording to the billions, hoping to scare them back to reality. Instead they die and the book ends as he's about to be sentenced for the death of the mogul, raising the ethical question of the collateral damage.

Bear in mind that when Maine wrote this, brain waves were novel, magnetic sound recording was only about a decade old and video recording was still in the future.

In the Z-grade film, the WHOLE story is ripped out (daren't offend Hollywood) and we're left with an ordinary quarter-inch reel-to-reel recorder and a squawking electronic soundtrack that has nothing to do with the action on screen. I've completely forgotten the new plot, but vaguely remember people in leotards writhing around some cheesy gauzes to hint at forbidden pleasures.

I'd give it an award for Worst Adaptation ever.

One of my sci-fi/horror/fantasy reviews written 50 years ago: Directed by Montgomery Tully; Produced by Alec Snowden; Associate Producer: Jim O'Connolly for Anglo-Guild Productions (England), released in America as "The Electronic Monster" by Columbia Pictures. Screenplay by Charles Eric Maine, from his novel; Photography by Bert Mason; Edited by Geoffrey Muller; Music by Richard Taylor. Starring: Rod Cameron, Mary Murphy, Meredith Edwards, Peter Illing, Carl Jaffe and Kay Callard.

British science-fiction movie about unethical scientists experimenting with electronic machines for manipulating their subjects' dreams until Rod Cameron disposes of the baddies in a slambang finish.

British made - with scarcely a British accent evident, Escapement is an extremely corny B-Film yet somehow gripping. Rod Cameron's wooden all-american hero chews the scenery while Mary Murphy's natural beauty makes that scenery glow. This film would certainly not have won any awards for sound design as the soundtrack of primitive electronic 'music' is overdone and jarring, at times competing with the dialogue.

After a film star is killed in a car crash, insurance investigator Jeff Keenan (Rod Cameron) is dispatched to get to the bottom of the death. Upon arrival in the south of France, Keenan discovers that others have died, and may be linked to his company's client. This might have something to do with a certain psychiatric clinic.

THE ELECTRONIC MONSTER has no "monsters" in the literal sense. Instead, it has psychiatrists / scientists messing around with the human brain in order to relieve patients of their anxiety. Oddly, this has something to do with implanting images of semi-erotic, modern dance routines!

Of course, this isn't a good idea, and leads to horrific results. In addition, a nefarious cabal is at work behind the scenes with an unsavory agenda.

This isn't a bad movie, and it's a shame it's been almost totally forgotten. The plot is interesting, and the movie could be remade. It's the sort of raw material that would make for a tremendous David Cronenberg film. Until then, it's enjoyable enough...

Dull, dull, cliche ridden film . Brainwashing has been used as a topic for many interesting films(IPCRESS FILE for one). This 1950s British film is not one of them. Instead we get a very basic storyline with no punches whatsoever. Rod Cameron sleepwalks throughout, looking like he would much rather be in a Western. There is an annoying love angle thrown in and some two dimensional characters(mad scientist, caring scientist, power hungry industrialist, rock jawed hero,psycho etc.). The result is a very boring film with no delivery whatsoever. Only the poor viewer is brainwashed.