Plot
Dr. Cory, with the help of his wife and an alcoholic colleague (who lives with him), carries out lab experiments exploring the possibility of keeping a brain alive outside of its body. Well-practiced in opening monkey skulls, the doctor decides to take the leap to experimenting on humans. He seizes on the opportunity provided by an airplane crash near his house to get his hands on the gray matter belonging to the fatally injured Mr. Donovan, a millionaire with a ruthless personality.
The experiment is successful in that Cory not only manages to keep his patient’s brain alive, but he also finds a way to convert the brain’s electrical impulses into sound waves, thus establishing a sort of communication channel with it. However, the signals sent by the brain quickly overpower Cory’s free will, taking control of his mind and forcing him to carry out despicable, even criminal actions.
It's something, kids. A brain without a body... alive.
Critique
6This second of three adaptations of the Curt Siodmak novel (1942) of the same name (the others are “The Lady and the Monster” from 1944 and “The Brain” from 1962) turns out to be an enjoyable example of classic sci-fi, focusing on the tried-and-true theme of the scientist who employs morally ambiguous experiments to play God with life and the laws of nature.
From a visual point of view, the crude depiction of the pulsing brain seems an unsophisticated solution, but an adequate one at the same time, and one imbued with that naive appeal typical of true B movies of the 1950s. On the whole, the director attempts to keep what shapes up to be an improbable plot, to say the least, within the realm of plausibility.
Scrupulous performances by a cast including Lew Ayers, who stands out in the role of a mechanistic, immanentist mad doctor (“I think it’s a matter of chemistry, how the brain thinks“), whose humanitarian ideals battle it out with an anything-but-irreproachable medical practice.
Not bad, once all is said and done.
More Info
- Based on the novel "Donovan's Brain" (1942) by Curt Siodmak
Quotes
- It's something, kids. A brain without a body... alive.
- The mind's a funny thing, Jan.
Trivia
- Years later, Curt Siodmak will reprise the character of Dr. Cory, writing two more novels based on his insane experiments: “Hauser’s Memory” was published in 1968 (becoming the basis for Boris Sagal’s TV adaptation of the same name in 1970), followed by “Gabriel’s Body” in 1986.
- Among other drive-in movies featuring rather questionable brains, we would cite “The Brain from Planet Arous” (1957) by Nathan Juran and “The Brain that Wouldn’t Die” (1962) by Joseph Green.
- Actress Nancy Davis is the wife of Ronald Reagan, future US president.
Products
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| Product name | Price | |
|---|---|---|
 | Donovan's Brain | |
 | Donovan's Brain | |
 | Il Cervello Di Donovan |
| Nome del prodotto | Prezzo | |
|---|---|---|
 | Donovan's Brain | |
| Il Cervello Di Donovan |
| Product name | Price | |
|---|---|---|
![Donovan's Brain [DVD]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51EYpivK7IL._SL75_.jpg) | Donovan's Brain [DVD] | |
![Donovan's Brain [DVD] [1953] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51N0WBH33EL._SL75_.jpg) | Donovan's Brain [DVD] [1953] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC] | |
| Il Cervello Di Donovan |
| Nombre del producto | Precio | |
|---|---|---|
| Il Cervello Di Donovan [Italia] [DVD] | |
| Donovan's Brain |
| Produktname | Preis | |
|---|---|---|
| Donovan's Brain [DVD] | |
![Donovan's Brain / Tales of Tomorrow: The Evil Within [DVD] Lew Ayres; Gene Evans](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/517GgN-SD0L._SL75_.jpg) | Donovan's Brain / Tales of Tomorrow: The Evil Within [DVD] Lew Ayres; Gene Evans | |
| Il cervello di Donovan [IT Import] |
| Nom du produit | Prix | |
|---|---|---|
| Donovans Brain [Edizione: Regno Unito] [Import] | |
| Il Cervello di Donovan [Import] | |
| Donovan's Brain | |
 | Donovan's Brain by Curt Siodmak(1999-07) |
| Product name | Price | |
|---|---|---|
| Donovan's Brain (Full Screen) (Sous-titres français) | |
| Il Cervello Di Donovan | |
 | Donovan's Brain by Curt Siodmak (1999-07-02) | |
| Donovan's Brain |