ATLRetro

by John Michlig
Contributing Writer

Welcome to Apes on Film! This column exists to scratch your retro-film-in-high-definition itch. We’ll be reviewing new releases of vintage cinema and television on disc of all genres, finding gems and letting you know the skinny on what to avoid. Here at Apes on Film, our aim is to uncover the best in retro film. As we dig for artifacts, we’ll do our best not to bury our reputation. What will we find out here? Our destiny.

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THE BRAIN FROM PLANET AROUS – 1957
5 out of 5 Bananas
Starring: John Agar , Joyce Meadows , Robert Fuller
Director: Nathan Juran
Rated: Not rated
Studio: The Film Detective
Region: A
BRD Release Date: 6-21-2022
Audio Formats: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono
Video Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Resolution: 1080p
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen (1.85:1) and Full Frame (1.33:1)
Run Time: 71 min.
CLICK HERE TO ORDER

Independently produced, THE BRAIN FROM PLANET AROUS represents the all-too-common intersection of former A-level talent (in front of and behind the camera) making the most of a frugal situation. Still, there’s a lot to like here in terms of the original film and excellent added features.

The flick opens with a speck of light, under credits, moving over a still image of what we will soon learn is Mystery Mountain (sounds preordained, no?). Next, an indeterminate explosion; what happened? Fear not, because Steve March, a nuclear physicist played by John Agar (A man once married to Shirley Temple!) will soon provide narrative cover as he describes to his lackadaisical colleague, Dr. Dan Murphy (Robert Fuller), that there are indeed some mysterious radioactive readings coming from the area.

(Side note): For the first ten minutes or so of this film, you will swear there is a hamburger sponsorship involved. Steve’s fiancé Sally, as portrayed by Joyce Meadows, is rather firmly focused on making sure the men know how perfect the charcoal was glowing under the grill and how their lives will surely be diminished if they miss her patties. Once the burgers are ingested and properly appreciated, Steve and Dan head out for a “three or four-day” trek into the desert, alone, without notifying any authorities or organization ahead of time, of course. They’re just going to head out with some rifles and take care of business.

(Another side note): I think most sensible people would agree that any trip you take that involves firearms and possible radiation should be explicitly covered in the employee handbook as “Notification required before deployment,” particularly if you apparently work for a government entity.

Here, by the way, is where we are greeted by our first pith helmet.

We know it’s hot out in the desert because our heroes are sweating profusely (and exclusively) from their armpits. We also know that when they encounter a giant, levitating (and bored looking) brain named Gor, John Agar’s character will survive because as noted earlier, he was once married to Shirley Temple. Robert Fuller, on the other hand, went on to star in TV’s Emergency! – not enough to spare his character’s life, alas.

Gor now possesses Steve March, and a great deal of the visual appeal of the film (at substantial cost to Agar; we’ll learn via commentary and featurettes that his silver contacts were quite painful) lay in the periodic “transformations” when Gor takes over March’s body in order to put his Earth-conquering project in place (the prototype, perhaps, for Bill Bixby’s The Incredible Hulk contortions).

While we’re on the topic of silver contacts, the name Jack Pierce jumps out at you in the opening credits, but rest assured there is nothing in terms of interesting or effective makeup effects to be found in this film. There is, however, a fairly epic distortion of Agar’s face as viewed through a water dispenser that beats any and all other visual effects in the film.

One of the interesting wrinkles in The Brain is the fact that the bad-guy brain, Gor, is fairly horny and seems to very much appreciate Steve’s fiancé, Sally Fallon (I SAW WHAT YOU DID’s Joyce Meadows) on a level that seems…odd for a being that consists of brain matter and eyeballs. This, one supposes, ties in with the titular planet Arous sounding like “eros” and looking like “arouse.”

In terms of special features, The Film Detective’s presentation of THE BRAIN FROM PLANET AROUS is a marvelous buffet. Meadows contributes an enthusiastic introduction called Not the Same Old Brain, where she wanders the Bronson Canyon filming location while talking about her experiences making the flick. Tom Weaver ’s commentary track is chock-full of cerebral – and useful – observations, with worthwhile contributions from Larry Blamire and David Schecter. Also, there are two fact-filled featurettes included: The Man Before the Brain: Director Nathan Juran, and The Man Behind the Brain: The World of Nathan Juran. On top of all that, Weaver contributes a fact-filled essay booklet that explores the background of producer Jacques Marquette.

All in all, The Film Detective’s THE BRAIN FROM PLANET AROUS package is a multi-level delight – recommended without hesitation.

When he’s not hanging around the top of the Empire State Building, John Michlig spends his time writing books like It Came from Bob’s Basement, KONG: King Of Skull Island, and GI Joe: The Complete Story of America’s Favorite Man of Action. Read more at The Fully Articulated Newsletter and The Denham Restoration Project.

Ape caricature art by Richard Smith.