Matrixston Wow! Such a good movie.

Palaest recommended

Cortechba Overrated

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

crystallogic ...not that I ever felt it was flagging, but sometimes, I guess I just need to be reminded how grim and dull life would be without these films. While I suppose the 70s might be the decade I gravitate to most when it comes to horror- and related pictures, when 80s horror is on, it's pretty goddamn on. I think it's because there is an increasing amount of self-awareness and conscious use of tropes in the films, but it's done in a way that isn't often smug or irritating, as brought about by Scream and its ilk in the '90s.What we have here is a classic in 80s horror cinema with a really dark and disturbing undercurrent, but also elements of humour and fun. The two work together in a way that's ingenious and sometimes leaves you not quite sure if you should be laughing or disgusted. I think that's the sign of a job well done. What's more, the lead character, a boy named Brian (check out the cool posters on his wall!), is really identifiable to some of us. Specifically, anyone who's got an addictive personality or spent time battling an addiction will probably feel twinges of sympathy and connection with this film and its unfortunate protagonist. Of course, there ain't no drug on earth that can produce these results, and we should probably be thankful for that. It's like LSD, cocaine and heroin all in one, somehow. The downward spiral of Brian, a real innocent when the film starts, is frightening to behold. It all happens rather quickly and i can say that not a second of time in this film is wasted. The drug itself is produced by a parasitic creature that eats brains. Its' intelligent, devious, and -- very possibly trapped in its own cycle of something similar to the addiction of its human host. It also has the voice of a friendly grandpa, or maybe a teddy bear, and looks like a disgusting, diseased penis or something. The juxtaposition of the appearance of the thing along with that warm, bubbly voice is one of the film's most disconcerting, and, I must say, genius, elements. As my girlfriend said when we were watching this, "that thing has no right to talk with a voice like that!" And just wait til it starts singing! Oi!Don't show this to people who are tripping. They might lose their minds. The visuals can be quite psychedelic, though, and again, juxtaposed with some pretty vile imagery that will make certain people feel queasy and uncomfortable. Our poor man Brian is mostly oblivious to the mayhem he is causing. When he finally realises that people are dying horibly to feed his addiction, he vows to take control, to "call the shots" from now on, but of course, in the end it's too much for him. This conversation with Aylmer (the creature) was eerily familiar to me, as I've heard people make the same sort of vows to themselves, and others, over the years. Tragic.And of course, it's not at all wall-to-wall grimness; there is quite a bit of humour here and I must say that it all works pretty well. The scene in the Hell club is priceless; like a twisted scene from a bad porn film. Cool 80s new-wave music, too. Unfortunately the score itself is kind of bad, but hey, I won't knock it for that. I guess the acting is also a bit spotty in places. I didn't care for the girlfriend character much or the actor, and I can't say I was sorry to see her meet a grisly feat at the ... "hands?" ... of the creature.This is a great movie that basically does everything right. Even though the underlying subject is more serious in a way, I could place this alongside Return of the Living Dead in a category of gruesome but fun 80s horror films with lots of personality. Give it a try. Come on! What've you got to lose! It'll feel great!

jefuab Brain Damage 1988 Frank Henenlotter9/10"Hi," "Brain Damage" is widely regarded as Henenlotter's best film. Whilst I believe rating films in best to worst order is too transitory to be my focus I must say that this film's reputation is deserved. As this film seems to be considered too low-brow to be art I want to wax lyrical about this superlative piece of late 80's horror and argue that it is in fact high-art. "Brain Damage" is a well-executed allegory of drug addiction (and, more broadly, desire and control) as well as other social issues. Hosting this journey into depravity are Brian and Aylmer, an average handsome young lad with a normal life and a charming, well-spoken worm-like creature with a biology for drug-dealing and an insatiable appetite for human brains. Henenlotter's film depicts the tenderness, the violence, the fun and the heartache of their exploitative relationship. Henenlotter's script weaves us through the chaotic time Brian and Aylmer spend together and their onscreen relationship is deepened by their interactions with characters such as Morris & Martha, Barbara, and Mike. Aylmer's injections are a great distraction from reality but they come at an enormous price; a fact Morris & Martha are testament to: anyone who Aylmer befriends needs him in their life or a hysterical frenzy ensues. The depth Henenlotter reaches to in his imagery is astounding. A room feels like a room, a corridor like a corridor, and a street feels like a street. The colours zing, the waters are deep, the lights thicken and sharpen the air; cracks cobweb throughout the dank settings and thick red blood is sprayed over it all with gay abandon. The absorbing kaleidoscopic trips Brian is medicated with are made of neon rainbows pulsing in a broken city whilst a euphonious score of lush synthesiser drifts in and out with gentle ease. As the electric high peaks Brian's humanity is washed away by these transcendent experiences. The lights and sounds inevitably extinguish as Aylmer's juice burns out and the addicted youngster's prancing slows to a trudge back into the dissonant city. It isn't good enough for Brian but, now that he's hooked, he must do his new master's bidding. Aylmer has a deliberately honeyed voice to give it the sophisticated charm of a conman. No matter what it does one cannot simply dislike it. And that's the point. It demonstrates how easily someone can wriggle their way out of blame and trouble with simple mannerisms; even if, in this case, that someone is a murderer and a manipulator. I will not describe the ending however I do feel that the film draws to a triumphant close after exploring in great detail the stages of addiction. The loss of sense, the loss of others and the loss of the self, the willing deconstruction of the mind, body and soul of an individual. A devastating loss it is for all societies suffering from the decay that drugs can bring. You should also watch "Basket Case" (1982) and "Frankenhooker" (1990). Together with "Brain Damage" they make an inspired trilogy by Frank Henenlotter.

Jake Lamotta What a hilarious film this is. There are basically 2 main characters in the film. One is Aylmer, a 12 inch worm who needs to feed on brains (preferably human) to survive. The other is Brian, a young man who becomes addicted to a drug that Aylmer injects into his brain. During this drugged state, Aylmer uses Brian as a host to find victims so that he can consume their brains.The special effects are decent, especially during the kill scenes. Unfortunately, most of the death scenes are very repetitive. They consist of Aylmer leaping from some hidden location and attaching himself to a victim's forehead, where he munches through their skull into their brain whilst they flop about in agony. There is one notable exception however: In the film's best sequence, Brian has just been drugged by Aylmer. He stumbles into a club suitably named "Hell". There he meets a pretty but incautious hooker. They dance for a while. Brian, stoned out of his mind, is lured by the girl into the club's basement. Brian begins to pass out and the hooker leans him up against a wall. She grabs Brian's crotch and remarks "feels like you got a real monster in there" not knowing of course that the "monster" is in fact Aylmer hiding in Brian's crotch area. Excited, the girl decides to perform oral sex on Brian. She soon gets more than she bargains for. She gets down on her knees, unzips Brian's pants, and just as she opens her mouth, Aylmer burst from the pants and into the girl's mouth. Aylmer forces himself down the girl's throat, and she basically chokes to death as Aylmer burrows through the back of her throat into her skull.After that the rest of the film is a bit of a let down (how could it not be?) but there are still some good sequences, including one scene where Brian pulls his own brains out through one of his ears (very gory). The acting throughout the film is quite campy, and the music is actually very good.The ending is rather down beat as virtually every character in the film dies, with the exception of Brian's room mate brother. There are also very few like-able characters in the film. Vicki Darnell, who plays the hooker, is one of the few sympathetic (!) characters in the film. Props to her for putting up with this perverted director's crap, as I've heard shooting the scene mentioned above was a nightmare for the actors involved.Overall it is an enjoyable, although at times unpleasant, little movie. I prefer it over Basket Case, and it is miles ahead of anything Frank H. has done lately.

chrisward46 I can't believe I missed this one first time around. Having been introduced to Frank Henenlotter via 'Basket Case' in the late eighties, and then being compelled to watch 'Basket Case 2' and the excellent 'Frankenhooker', I must have fallen into a coma at some point because I don't recall having seen or heard of 'Brain Damage' at all.The one thing that is slightly annoying about writing about movies like this is that when you write down what the movie is about, it looks complete nonsense. If I was to tell you that this is about a small monster that looks like a burnt penis, but can speak perfect English, and that it attatches itself to the back of your neck, injects a drug into your brain that gets you high as a kite while the monster sucks people's brains out, then...well, it doesn't sound like a BAFTA winner, does it? But that is what the movie is about. The monster, or Aylmer as it is known, attatches itself to Brian, a normal young man who has a girlfriend and lives with his brother in the same apartment block as Aylmer's previous owners, and soon gets Brian under his control by injecting him through the back of his neck and into his brain with a blue substance that sends Brian into a psychedelic haze as he staggers around finding victims for Aylmer to feed on. Sounds crazy? Well, it is - and wonderfully so. Anyone familiar with Frank Henenlotter's other works will know what to expect, and anyone not familiar will be in for a shock.Had I seen this in 1988 when it came out, I probably could have given it an extra mark - for nostalgia's sake. But as I'm watching it with 2009 eyes, it does look very dated. The effects are pretty good for such a low-budget movie, and if it was made now it would all be CGI so I guess we should be thankful for that. The acting is poor, but then I think that adds to the charm of the movie. It is a very entertaining movie, as all of Henenlotter's are, but unless you are a genre fan, and not just a casual window shopper, it may not appeal as much.