Rejuvenator - Gib dem Teufel nie die Hand

So many 80's horror films that were made mostly for the video market have been unfairly thrown aside in the 30+ years since they were released and many of them have a lot of creativity that deserves to be seen by a new audience. The Rejuvenator is one of those lost films that still has the capacity to entertain.

A doctor has been working on an anti-aging serum forever, but he hasn't been working fast enough to please one of his biggest financial benefactors - an aging actress whose career could use a refreshing. Even though he's nervous about it, he agrees to shoot her up with the serum, telling her all the risks and that she'll need multiple doses of the serum or else the entire thing will reverse. The only problem is that he needs human brain tissue to make more serum and he's running out of cadavers.

The special makeup effects are top notch, the performances are spirited with just enough camp appeal given the subject matter, and the script is smarter and better written that other films of this type and budget. This is a film that could benefit from a new Blu-Ray release.

A scientist is tasked to create a 'rejuvenating' serum with a huge investment from a has-been star. When a break in the development was discovered, a youth obsessed star tries it without care AND discover a much more scarier after-effect AND pushed to insanity.

That was ok.

I really watched this simply because I want to watch see the comparison against the Substance. Its practically similar in that an aging star drinks a somewhat untested product that has out-of-this-world repercussion to its host. Its rife in similarity but fundamentally it differs in how it tells its story.

This film is very focused on the Monster of it all. Its more interested how awful she is as a monster and loses any kind of satire or commentary that the Substance really succeeds on. I mean this has a great make-up special effect too BUT the only characterization the star has is that she wants to be young again and work - which is fine but she uses her new found youth to be able to hang around the youth of time. Its quite a weird disjunct to her original position.

I also think that this solidly putting the blame towards her is sad. Initially, I posit the lack of a male antagonist is the reason I did not like how this story is told BUT the more I think about it, I just felt that there is something missing in how this film put blame. I felt that it was more complicated and there's no easy pass for everyone involved. I think it condemns the star far too much for my own liking.

And ultimately, i think it did not fully just developed certain characters to make us care for their plight. Its not bad AND I see where it succeeds but it clearly flawed.

Soft Recommendation.

Dr. Gregory Ashton (John MacKay) and his assistant, Dr. Stella Stone (Katell Pleven), are on the verge of finding a serum extracted from dead human brains that will restore youth. However, the envious and arrogant director Dr. Germaine (Marcus Powell) wants to jeopardize his research. The wealthy sponsor Ruth Warren (Jessica Dublin) is the main donor of the research fund that supports Dr. Aston's experiments. Ruth is an aging actress that wants to return to her glorious days and forces Dr. Ashton to use her as human guinea pig of his experiments. Dr. Ashton exposes that it would be unethical and dangerous to her since his trials are limited to rats and is not concluded, but Ruthe threats to call off her donations. Ruth's operation is successful and she rejuvenates, becoming a beautiful young woman. She names herself Elizabeth Warren (Vivian Lanko), who would be Ruth's niece, and rejoices to party every night. Dr. Ashton has not synthetized his serum yet and needs more cadavers to extract the fluid from the brain to inject Elizabeth. But soon there are side effects, and Elizabeth needs more and more serum when she turns into a monster. But soon she has the lust for human brains and begins a crime spree to get the brains.

"Rejuvenatrix", a.k.a. "The Rejuvenator" (1988), is a great horror B-movie about the side effects of a research to find the fountain of youth. The screenplay is well written and, despite the low-budget, has great make-up and special effects. Dr. Ashton is hurried in his experiment by the lead donor of his funds and is forced to test his serum in her, despite his warnings. The conclusion is gore and gruesome, with a hook for a sequence. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Rejuvenator"

A rich actress who has gotten too old for leading roles employs a scientist who is working on a formula for eternal youth. The formula involves withdrawing certain fluids from the human brain. She takes the serum, but its unforseen side effects turn her into a murderous monster. Brian Thomas Jone's "The rejuvenator" is a surprisingly gory and ambitious horror outing, with a ambitious plot and some excellent make-up effects. Granted, it lacked down-to-Earth characters, but if you liked films like "Society" and "Re-animator", the The Rejuvenator may be up your alley. The final transformation sequence is astounding!

Would you risk everything to be young again? Would you willingly be a guinea pig in an experiment to reverse ageing? Juvenatix's answer to this is yes. And the result is a Jekyll and Hyde type tale where the guinea pig in question keeps changing from a young female into a hideous monster with an urge to kill. The special effects in this movie are well worth seeing , especially the part were she transforms for the last time. Lowlight : Attractive lab assistant gets the top of her skull knocked off.