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.
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.