Brain Dead

Brain Dead is many things, including a mess, but with an ambitious story which is enough to hide the idiocy (mostly), it becomes a fairly enjoyable mess.

Dr. Rex Martin is a renowned brain surgeon who is approached one day by a representative of the Eunice corporation. One of the corporation's best mathematicians has gone Brain Dead, but there are still some numerical data locked in the back of his mind which Eunice wants. Dr. Martin is asked to operate, but as he manages to tap into the patient's mind, he triggers something in his own. He starts behaving strangely. What follows is a seemingly endless series of dreams and illusions that follows the old rhetorical 'what is fantasy and what is reality' question.

As messy as Brain Dead is, it's not dull. The question is whether you enjoy being confused. Making do with a fragmented budget, first time director Adam Simon has constructed the film with a kind of post-modern sci-fi approach. There are times when it resembles some of David Cronenberg's early work, which shows that the film has intellectual potential, but I would'nt call Brain Dead an intelligent film. Then again, next to Carnosaur (simon's proceeding feature) This is actually pretty brilliant.

If I am interpreting correctly, it looks as if Brain Dead is trying to say that the brain is not merely a vital organ, it is a living thing. Whether I am right or not, means nothing. You can interpret this film any way you want.

Brain Dead...where do I begin? One could easily go crazy thinking about this movie. Brain Dead was written by the late Charles Beaumont (the man responsible for some of my favorite Twilight Zone episodes) and was directed by Adam Simon (The American Nightmare). It's basically one long chaotic nightmare and, at the same time, one of my favorite films. It's a real head trip where one is constantly questioning the sanity of the main characters. Is Bill Pullman crazy, is Bill Paxton out to get Bill Pullman, should the two Bills be taken seriously? In this movie, yes. The Bills are excellent and so is the rest of the cast. This is the film that really made me take notice of Bud Cort. He's hilarious as Halsey. If you're up for some serious insanity, give Brain Dead a spin. I give this movie a 10 on the psychological mind bender scale. It ranks up there with Cronenberg's Videodrome.

Note for genre buffs: Miskatonic University is mentioned by Dr. Martin in the film. That is the same school Dr. West attends in Re-Animator and is mentioned in many films based on the works of H.P. Lovecraft.

Dr. Rex Martin (Bill Pullman) is a leading neurosurgeon specializing in the cerebral malfunctions that cause mental illnesses, whose expertise is called up by an old school chum, Jim Reston (Bill Paxton), who is now part of the mega-corporation Eunice.

If you happen to be one of those people who cannot tell Pullman and Paxton apart, this might not be the film for you... they spend a fair amount of time on screen together. If you happen to be a fan of H. P. Lovecraft, this might be the film for you. While the writer is known for his work with "The Twilight Zone", there are at least two Lovecraft references in this story. Can you catch them?

I was already intrigued from the beginning with the wall of brains in jars and the face that could be remote-controlled. But I was in hook, line and sinker when Jack Halsey (Bud Cort) showed up -- he is the epitome of insane genius. The phrases, the mannerisms... even his appearance. Thank you, casting director. You aced a hole in one. The homeless guy is a nice touch, too.

Bonus: Kyle Gass of Tenacious D appears as an anesthesiologist.

Bill Pullman and Bill Paxton star in this ambitious sci-fi thriller from director Adam Simon ("Carnosaur") and the late, great writer Charles Beaumont (known for his work on 'The Twilight Zone' and Roger Corman films). Pullman stars as Rex Martin, a brilliant young scientist who becomes involved in a plan to pry vital information from the mind of Jack Halsey (Bud Cort), an equally brilliant mathematician. Also worked into the plot is the idea of erasing unpleasant memories from peoples' brains, or otherwise changing their personalities.

It's all quite an intriguing set-up by Beaumont, although the film doesn't really reach its full potential due to ultimately telling a rather routine story. And it's a story that falls back on the time-honoured theme of forcing the lead character and audience to figure out what is fantasy and what is reality. As this tale progresses, Rex suffers from visions and hallucinations that may well be the product of a deteriorating mind. Eventually, it resolves itself in a way that isn't exactly unpredictable.

Still, the ride taken here is interesting. "Brain Dead" is certainly a notch above most product created by Concorde, the company formed by Corman after his departure from New World. It's played as well as it can be played by a top cast, with Pullman and Paxton in fine form. (One of the questions posed is whether or not Paxton, as Pullmans' friend, is a smarmy, self-serving jerk just out for himself.) George Kennedy does not get to do much as a corporation head, but sexy Patricia Charbonneau is easy to watch as Pullmans' wife, and character actor Nicholas Pryor has a field day in a trio of inter-related roles. Other familiar faces include Lee Arenberg, Willie Garson, Brent Hinkley, and Kyle Gass. Paxtons' father John has a bit as a board member. But it's Cort, a longtime specialist in quirky and offbeat parts, who tends to steal the show much of the time.

"Brain Dead" is, overall, adequately filmed, and it shows its audience a pretty good time. Some gore here and there, decent makeup effects (especially the "experimental face"), and a fine score by Peter Rotter help to keep it watchable.

Produced by Cormans' wife Julie.

Seven out of 10.

The first act is a little slow, and once the plot does pick up it quickly becomes so deliberately scattered that the disparity is glaring. Even at that, we can readily make guesses as to where the plot is going - yet it's to the credit of screenwriter Charles Beaumont, and in turn filmmaker Adam Simon, that where exactly it will all end up remains shrouded in mystery. Why, I rather wonder if Beaumont hadn't fashioned his screenplay so that even he didn't know what the ending was going to be until he found it; alternatively, multiple endings could have been written. That is the tenor of psychological thrillers generally, yes, but this one seems particularly adept at shifting between broken realities and making one seem just as plausible as the next. This makes it all the more surprising, perhaps, that it was accordingly originally written for Roger Corman in the 60s, only to be rediscovered and updated; one can easily imagine how this might have looked if it had been produced 20-30 years earlier.

There's nothing specifically revelatory about 'Brain dead,' yet I'm pleased with just how good it is. It has no illusions about being something it's not; it's evident the budget was comparatively modest, and production values hover somewhere in the unremarkable middle ground. Yet the sets and filming locations are swell nonetheless, plus those stunts, effects, and props that are employed. There are some noteworthy names appearing here, given to some measure of recognition even in 1990, and in the very least Bill Paxton and Bill Pullman were no small get. Pullman is a solid lead, for that matter, ably navigating the spaces between all that is required of him at various points. Meanwhile, strong scene writing is extra important when the material deals with fractured perspectives, and the screenplay serves up a rich cornucopia of ideas while fashioning a compelling, satisfying narrative. I'm not saying that the title doesn't still leave a bit to be desired, especially as some themes and ideas rise and recede in accordance with the hops of the story, but overall the result is admirable.

Some spicier flavors of science fiction and horror likewise come and go throughout as this mystery thriller advances, though by and large the tone is such that, again, we can handily envisage it in Roger Corman's hands twenty or so years before. One way or another, the feature ably keeps us watching for the ultimate reveal, and the ride along the way is a fun one. Simon's direction is splendid in shaping the whole, and I think editor Carol Oblath deserves distinct credit for helping to shape the jumble into its final form. At length there's nothing so singular and grabbing about this as to demand viewership, but if one happens to come across it it's a good time, and worth checking out. It's neither as striking or as complex as some similar pictures, but 'Brain dead' stands quite sturdily on its own feet, and if you do have the opportunity to watch then I think it's worth checking out.