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The Brain That Wouldn’t Die (1962)
(aka: The Head That Wouldn’t Die, The Black Door)
American science fiction horror film.
A doctor experimenting with transplant techniques keeps his girlfriend’s head alive when she is decapitated in a car crash, then goes hunting for a new body.
The film was shot independently around Tarrytown, New York, in 1959 under the working title The Black Door. The title was later changed to The Head That Wouldn’t Die. Some prints of the film use both the opening title The Brain That Wouldn’t Die and the closing title The Head That Wouldn’t Die.
The monster in the closet was played, in his first cinematic role, by Eddie Carmel, a well-known Mandatory Palestine-born circus performer, who worked under the name “The Jewish Giant”
The Brain That Wouldn’t Die has received mostly negative reviews from critics, with many criticizing the film for its excessive violence.
The film helped provide the inspiration for ’80s horror/comedy director Frank Henenlotter’s Frankenhooker and Basket Case 2. The former includes a decapitated woman restored to life by her lover, while the latter features both a cameo from Brain star Jason Evers and another character who looks like the twin brother of the monster under the stairs.
Although The Brain That Wouldn’t Die is considered “hokey, overwrought, and poorly paced, this venerable creature feature still commands a sizable following on the basis of its campy, low-grade special effects, its T&A exploitation, and its many pseudo-philosophical soliloquies.”
The Brain That Wouldn’t Die has obtained vintage cult horror film status.
| Directed by | Joseph Green |
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| Cinematography | Stephen Hajnal |
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Production
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Sterling Productions
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| Distributed by | American International Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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82 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $62,000 (estimated) |
