El barón del terror

A lot of films have taken on the "cult film" mantle in the past couple of decades. Many of them (i.e. BATTLEFIELD EARTH) are not the joyous exercise in pure "so bad it's good" glee that its followers claim. But, let us stake a claim that THE BRAINIAC deserves a place in that hall of fame.

Torture, the Inquisition, Comets, Astronomers, Barons, falling meteorites, serial stalking, a head-pulsing 300 year-old demon, and brains! Yup, that's a brief overview of the topics covered in the deliriously entertaining THE BRAINIAC! I had a chance to actually witness the indescribable movie on the big screen yesterday, and the audicence went wild. And hey, we get to see an evil serial killer munching on a plate of fresh brains 4 DECADES before Anthony Hopkins had his hors d'oevres in HANNIBAL!

For once, the outrageous image displayed on the DVD-cover isn't an exaggeration, as the titular Terror-Baron for some reason really does occasionally mutate into a hideous creature with the long split tongue of a lizard, the big pointy ears of a bat and tiny trunks for hands! I don't know why the Mexican film crew opted for this peculiar monster-design, but it sure is original and a very welcome change from all the usual vampires, witches, werewolves and masked serial killers. The movie atmospherically opens in the year 1661, with the extended and relentless trial against Baron Vitelius d'Estera, who's condemned for sorcery, necromancy and a whole shopping list of other vile crimes against humanity. As a comet passes on the night of his execution, the Baron swears he'll reincarnate within 300 years and extract his bloody vengeance against the descendants of the Inquisitors who burned him alive at the stake. Punctually three centuries later, a comet falls onto earth and the Baron lives again. Introducing himself as a charming and eloquent man, he seeks contact with the kin of his executioners and ingeniously sucks the brains out of their skull whilst they're hypnotized. "Brainiac" doesn't play in the same quality league as some other contemporary Mexican horror films (like "Curse of the Crying Woman" and "The Black Pit of Dr. M"), but it's a tremendously entertaining and competently made black & white chiller. The film is fast-paced and obviously borrowing a lot of style-elements from fellow Gothic classics. The film is also stuffed with ludicrous twists and tacky special effects, yet for some reason the tone remains serious. Even when the screenplay reverts to dreadful clichés and stereotypes, the actors speak their lines straight faced and without blinking. The idea of vengeance against descendants isn't exactly groundbreaking either, but at least the film never gets dull or repetitive! Probably thanks to the incredibly cool-looking Baron, whose appearance is indescribably far-out! "Brainiac" is one bizarre horror film - albeit not THE most bizarre ever, like the tagline proudly announces – and the hardcore cult fanatics among us definitely should purchase it.

It turns out that all the word of mouth about the Mexican horror flick "The Brainiac" (1961) is absolutely correct: It IS one wild and loopy film experience! This picture tells the story of the necromancer Baron Vitelius Destera (played by the film's handsome producer, Abel Salazar), who is burned at the stake in 1661 by the Inquisition in Mexico City and swears vengeance on the descendants of his tormentors. Good to his word, the Baron falls to Earth in 1961 on a comet (the phoniest-looking comet ever shown on film, perhaps) to begin his homicidal agenda. Destera has the ability to transform himself into a giant-headed, pointy-nosed, fork-tongued monster, and his ability to hypnotize with a glance and bend others to his mental will makes his nefarious plans that much simpler. Oh...did I mention that the Baron uses his Gene Simmons-like tongue to suck his victims' brains out? Oh, man! Sounds pretty cool, right? Truth to tell, though, this film has been made on the cheap, with loads of ersatz-looking backdrops, lousy FX, and reams of unexplained happenings. Why, for example, does the Baron need to keep a stemmed dish of brains around for snacking purposes? How do the film's detectives ultimately crack the case of all these homicides? Why is fire able to harm the Baron in 1961 but not in 1661? Where DID that blasted comet disappear to? This movie has so many head-scratching moments, so many outrageous situations, so many admittedly cool murder scenes, such egregiously artificial backdrops and such strange humor (brain tacos, anyone?) that the net result is one of absolute lysergic surrealism. So yes, the movie is a hoot, and features a monster you won't soon forget. Unlike the Baron himself, the film is NOT a brain-drainer, but a genuinely exhilarating cult item. I, for one, was sufficiently impressed to check out director Chano Urueta's next effort, 1962's "The Witch's Mirror"...

What we have here is a bizarre mix of Gothic horror and Sci-Fi. Brainiac may not be the best Mexican horror film ever made, but it's a fun and interesting little flick, and I doubt that any fan of cult horror will regret watching it. The film takes influence from across the horror spectrum, with cult horror films such as Mario Bava's Black Sunday and I, Vampiri being mixed with any number of American Sci-Fi classics involving evil sprouting from a comet coming down to Earth. This hodgepodge of ideas has 'nice try' written all over it, but somehow director Chano Urueta manages to pull it all together into a somewhat fluid and invigorating film. The plot focuses on Baron Vitelius; a man put to death by fire in 1661 for a catalogue of anti-social crimes. He swears vengeance on his punisher's by stating that he will return the next time the comet passing over returns - and he does! 300 years later in 1961, Baron Vitelius comes back to Earth as 'The Brainiac', a monstrous brain-hungry creature that sucks the brain fluid out of the descendants of the people who killed him...

It's abundantly clear that the film was shot on a low budget as the special effects are very simple and mostly done with camera trickery, while the 'Brainiac' creature is so obviously just a man in a mask that it's almost painful. It's lucky, then, that the director manages to tell his story very well and this is often a big enough distraction from the film's shortcomings. The plot isn't particularly deep, but it has direction and flows well. The majority of the film is taken up by seeing the Baron turned Brainiac getting his revenge on the descendants of those that killed him, but somehow it doesn't get old too quickly. One of the most remarkable things about this film is the fact that it's all completely serious! With special effects this cheap and a plot so thin you've got to expect an ample dose of humour, but for some reason this film doesn't seem to have one! The atmosphere is good, however, and the black and white cinematography excellently compliments the central plot and style of the film. Overall, this is far from being brilliant - but it still comes highly recommended to avid cult collectors because it's so much fun to watch!

The Brainiac was one of the many monster and horror films to appear on Chiller Theater in New York in the early 60's. I also remember the photo of the "Brainiac" with that elongated tongue on Famous Monster trading cards of the same era. Poor special effects and cheesy dubbed dialog, but what the heck, this is one of those flicks you stayed up to watch for scares as a little kid and laughs as you got older. The Mexican horror/monster movie of this era is truly a lost film genre. Fun stuff!