March 17th, 2019
Written by: Frank Henenlotter
Starring: Rick Hearst, Gordon MacDonald, Jennifer Lowry
Budget: $900,000
Quote: "Then don't worry about it. You don't need to worry about anything ever again. I'll do all your thinking for you. Just put me on the back off your neck, and everything will be fine."
Trivia: During the fellatio scene the crew walked out of the production refusing to work on the scene. A similar incident happened during the shooting of Basket Case (1982).
My friend Andy told me about this flick a few months ago when we were heading to L.A. to see Nick Cave (show was awesome... but that's another story... I'm trying to avoid going off on tangents). I thought he was talking about Brain Dead (the one with Bill Pullman) which has a similar plot. No, he assured me, it's by the guy who did Basket Case. He said something about how it's about a parasite that causes people to hallucinate while it eats people's brains. He also said it was fucked up. Both of Andy's synopses are correct. The movie is fucked up.... particularly the fellatio scene... but I'll get to that later. The movie is the love child of Frank Henenlotter, the guy who brought us the Basket Case movies and Frankenhooker. True to his 42nd Street Grindhouse roots, Henenlotter delivers another bizarre and gore-filled movie. It is weird, violent, trippy, disgusting, and heartfelt. It is a brutal warning about drug addiction while simultaneously being a good movie to get high to (if that's you thing).
The movie begins with a couple frantically looking for something in their bathtub and their neighbor's bathtub. Later, we are introduced to our main character Brian (anagram for brain?) who comes into contact with a five or six inch long parasite named Aylmer. The two begin a symbiotic relationship where Aylmer secrets a fluid into Brian's brain which causes LSD-like hallucinations and euphoria erstwhile the drugged and unknowing Brian brings Aylmer into contact with other humans so he can eat their brains. Eventually Brian figures out what's up and tries to stop Aylmer but the allure of Aylmer's drug is too strong for him and he comes crawling back and the murders continue. There is also a love triangle subplot shoved into the movie that is both obvious and unnecessary.
Brain Damage is largely criticized for its shoddy special effects and the critics are not necessarily wrong. The special effects are amateurish involving coloring the negatives of the film and a cheesy puppet. This is not a Ridley Scott film. But this makes the film all the more enjoyable. Early in the film, the drugged Brian is enveloped in a blue liquid to show the hallucinatory and euphoric effects of the drug. Later he hallucinates that his meatballs have turned into brains. Henenlotter is able come up with some really cool effects despite the small budget (is 900K a small budget?). The cheesiness of the effects also adds to the fun of the film. A low budget drugsploitation film that is fun to goof on in the vein of the 1980s Grindhouse exploitation movies that Henenlotter no doubt ravenously consumed.
Alright, let's get right to it. The fellatio scene. If you haven't seen the movie, you might want to stop reading because this is a scene not to be ruined. You've been warned. During one scene as Brian is partying at club he meets a very busty girl who takes him into the alley to mess around. Of course, as she's unzips his pants, Aylmer comes out and she ends up fellating the parasite complete with a very disturbing profile view of the parasite going in and out of her throat as blood comes out of her mouth. The scene is goofy matching the tone of the film, but the sexual violence it represents lends it a mean spiritedness that separates it from the rest of the film. It certainly is the scene that will stick with the viewer throughout the film.
It's hard not to compare this movie to Henlotter's previous film Basket Case. There are numerous similarities (lonely character with a troubling secret that forces him to become complicit in murders in the streets of New York). The comparison, however, highlights some of the problems with the movie. First and foremost, the movie drags at certain points. For a horror movie, there is relatively little killing and instead a lot of Brian hanging out drugged or craving drugs. A few more killings would've been nice. Also, there are scenes that are recycled, most notably the scene where they show Aylmer drug Brian which is shown a few times uncut. Lastly, there is a forced love triangle that as I wrote earlier is unnecessary and obvious. Immediately upon meeting Brian's girlfriend and brother it is obvious that they are going to fuck later in the film so it is no surprise when they do. Also, since the characters are not developed, the viewer doesn't care when they do. They should've thrown in a couple gory killings instead.
Criticism aside, the film is a great exploitation film that does a surprisingly good job of demonstrating the dangers of drug addiction. It accurately shows both physical and psychological chemical dependency. Having a drug addict in the family, I can relate. However, the film is never preachy the way many other "drug scare" films can be. It is fun, silly, and (at times) disgusting! If you liked Basket Case (and chances are you do if you're reading this) give this one a shot! It's currently streaming on Shudder. Oh shit, I almost forgot, there is a great cameo of the guy from Basket Case who is seen on a subway carrying his basket (no doubt containing Belial). Watch it yo!
...what's your thoughts?
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