Ah, those unique low-budgeted Sci-Fi/horror movies from the glorious 1950s
If they were only half as great as their juicy titles and nasty film posters suggest, this would surely be my absolute favorite decade in cinematic history! Unfortunately, however, behind almost every awesome title or poster there's a mostly dull, forgettable and inept amateur film. Take "The Brain Eaters", for example
Do you really think it features any brain munching or purple glaze-eyed creatures with vampire fangs? No, of course not, and even the promising tagline "crawling, slimy things – terror bent on destroying the world" shouldn't be taken too seriously. But that doesn't mean that director Bruno VeSato (usually a second rate actor) delivered a film that is entirely without interest. "The Brain Eaters" is, in fact, an unauthorized adaptation of Robert A. Heinlein's novel "The Puppet Masters"; about an evil race of sluggish parasite aliens (?) that attach themselves to their hosts' nerves system at the back of the neck and then slowly take control over their body and minds. When two young love birds discover a cylinder-shaped vessel in the woods, their sleepy little Illinois town is quickly overrun by scientists, politicians and other kinds of nosy visitors. When a bunch of investigators witness how the usually conversational and amiable mayor suddenly transform into an aggressive maniac due to the unidentifiable thing in his neck, they realize that the entire planet is in danger! The plot and the screenplay of "The Brain Eaters" are actually quite good. I don't care if it's considered to be plagiarism or not, but the idea is original and the twist about the parasites origin is surprising as well. Good pacing and a fair amount of suspense are also present, but sadly only during the first half of the film. The second half is incredibly boring and it almost even seems like most of the cast and crew members lost interest to finish the film. It's also supposed to star Leonard Nimoy, but I guess I'm not enough Star Trek fan to have spotted him.
Review of The Brain Eaters
