Synopsis

Storyline:

Dr. Rex Martin is a leading neurosurgeon specializing in the cerebral misfunctions that cause mental illnesses, whose expertise is called up by an old school chum, Jim Reston, who is now part of the mega-corporation Eunice. Reston needs Dr. Martin’s help in extracting crucial data from the mind of John Halsey, once a top mathematician at Eunice, now a paranoid at the local asylum. Can Dr. Martin help both Halsey and his friend, or is he getting caught up in a corporate nightmare from which he may never escape?

Written by

EllenRipley112

User Reviews: Odd little movie, this "Brain Dead" but nonetheless interesting and worth a look in case you can appreciate imaginative low-budget movies. This ultra-cheap looking gem (produced by who else than the Roger Corman clan) might look like one of those numerous and repetitive dream/reality intrusion thrillers that were made in the late 80’s/early 90’s, but that’s only until you discover that the guy who wrote this film actually is Charles Beaumont, who died in 1967! So, this "Brain Dead" really is a trend-setter, when you come to think of it! This film teams Bill Paxton and Bill Pullman who’re both quite famous and respectable actors with many B-horror movies on their repertoires. Both men work in some sort of medical research center; Pullman as the brilliant but confused Dr. Martin and Paxton as the shifty board member Reston. The latter convinces Dr. Martin to perform brain surgery upon their former colleague Dr. Halsey, who went paranoid and butchered his family. Shortly after the operation, however, Dr. Martin himself begins to experience Halsey’s hallucinations. Pretty soon it becomes impossible to tell the difference between dreams and reality and Dr. Martin can’t trust his own pair of eyes anymore. The downfall of paranoia and despair Pullman’s character goes through is atmospherically illustrated with surreal landscapes (stormy clouds) and nightmarish visions (the doctor with his bloody white coat!). Too bad the very last sequences are overly misleading and you almost unwillingly stop to care. It feels like co-writer and director Adam Simon didn’t really know how to end his film and he inappropriately inserts poetry-elements and fake mystery. A lame climax to an overall decent movie.