The Brain That Wouldn't Die (1962)

The history of B-movies is an interesting one. It was between 1950 and 1960 that this film niche got the attention of the general public. There was also a decisive split between the styles of low-budget films being made. While some producers decided to take a more hammy, exploitation-based approach (“The Wasp Woman,” “Plan 9 from Outer Space”), others approached the low-budget genre more seriously (“Attack of the Puppet People,” “The Incredible Melting Man”). In my experience, every 50's/60's B-movie strictly falls under the classification of either “Great” or “Awful.” Unfortunately, “The Brain that Wouldn't Die” falls under the latter classification for an endless number of reasons. This film is also notorious for having an incorrect title card at the end of the original print which read "The Head that Wouldn't Die;” This comes as no surprise to me, given the sheer lack of interest displayed by the entire cast of this film.

“The Brain that Wouldn't Die” follows the maniacal Dr. Bill Cortner (Jason Evers), a man who is infamous among his colleagues for his brilliant, unusual and borderline-unethical medical practices. When his fiancée (Virginia Leath) is decapitated in a horrific car accident, Cortner eschews the Hippocratic Oath to keep her alive. It is at this point - a mere 20 minutes in - that “The Brain that Wouldn't Die” markedly fails in every conceivable department.

After spending 20 solid minutes of screen time searching for a woman to transplant Jan's head onto, Bill finally comes across Doris (Adele Lamont), a childhood friend turned misanthropic supermodel. The woman must have been transplanted from an entirely different movie. Adele delivers an enjoyable, emotional and over-the-top performance, accentuated by prolonged tangents about how much she hates her life and humanity in general.

When making a movie of any kind, a vital aspect is to hook and reel in the audience's interest, and “The Brain that Wouldn't Die” is inundated by a host of boring and underacted characters. Jason Evers' performance doesn't remotely fit the “mad scientist” stereotype. Instead, he's a quiet, monotone man who spends the majority of the movie eying women from afar with that hackneyed “oh, look at what a bad guy I am” face. Even when speaking directly to his wife's head, Cortner has the conviction of a man who is only mildly irritated. Jan is also surprisingly boring in her role as a disembodied head. If there's a single reason to go batshit insane, finding yourself as a head in a vat would qualify. In stark contrast, the woman never emotes accordingly. She opts to go on monotone tangents that amount to nothing more than: “I'm complex. I'm tortured. I never expected that Bill would be capable of such evil. I should be dead. Instead, I now exist in this horrific form. There is nothing more horrific than what I am in this moment.” Boring. Why on Earth did none of the actors take a cue from Adele?

This is Film Making 101. If your characters are not engaging in the slightest, your movie will likely reflect this. “The Brain that Wouldn't Die” contains multiple scenes that invite a certain sense of dread. A scene where Cortner is carrying Jan's head across a field towards his laboratory; a scene where a mutant monster kills in a psychotic rage; scenes where Jan gets into philosophical arguments with Cortner's lab assistant. All of these scenes fail to deliver on that sense of dread because of both boring characters and boring direction.

Considering what they could have done with this movie, it is a shame that “The Brain that Wouldn't Die” came out the way it did. The film is all but devoid of character development and effective storytelling. The sheer amount of “What-ifs” in this
movie render it completely incorrigible.

It is my firm belief that imagery as vivid
and well-done as this belongs in a much,
much better film.

Throughout 2013, we are certainly going to be covering several movies that I dislike more passionately than “The Brain that Wouldn't Die.” However, when I think “Movies that deserved to be covered on 'Mystery Science Theater 3000'” or “Movies that may as well have never existed,” this film comes to mind immediately.

Most importantly, “The Brain that Wouldn't Die” is a prime example of the kind of B-movies that discourage people from getting into B-movies. Speaking from experience, I can say that it's a challenge to get people into B-movies. You have to introduce them to films that are unique, creative experiences; you have challenge their very definition of cinematic reality. Any newbie B-viewer is bound to walk away from this thinking, “Well, that was a waste of 80 minutes of my life.”