Evil Brain from Outer Space (1966)

Powerful

Beautiful, moving film.

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

This Japanese sci-fi movie was seemingly edited together from a TV serial. There appear to have been others of the same ilk such as Invaders from Space (1965). In this one a man of steel from a distant planet called Starman is sent to Earth by an intergalactic council to save it from a series of monsters and villains under the control of the being known as the evil brain from outer space.This film is quite poor overall but with aspects that elevate it somewhat. While Starman is a somewhat dull hero, luckily there are some decidedly interesting monsters and minions. There is a sprite-like demon that makes weird jarring sounds and an ominous silent witch-like woman with long nails and a beak-like nose. These characters appear from out of nowhere throughout the story and always enliven events when they do. In addition, the space council is populated by an assortment of very odd looking alien creatures and a large planet seen in the background clearly appears to be swinging on a bit of string. For the most part though, the events in the story are not terribly engaging or interesting and it's only the aforementioned weird aspects that keep it from being a snooze-fest. Certainly okay for a watch though if you like the particular strangely specific forms of sci-fi that came out of Japan in the 60's.

(my 13 year old son wrote this) I was watching this movie on Retro TV (dont ask me why) and when the monster multiplied on the bridge and flew away i was like hey wait where have i seen that i know that wait Testify by Rage Against the Machine which is a video about how similar Bush and Gore where its funny to see how amazingly bad this movie was when you see it decades later.Here is the link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JSBhI_0at0the video also contains other obscure alien movies.The movie has everything you'd want in a cheesy 1960s era Japenese scifi movie; bad guys in matching outfits, kabuki dancing evil doers with jazz hands, really bad special effects, dubbing by emotionless actors, and a hero - Starman - in tights effortless fighting off all manner of threats.

This is a bad film, but enjoyable in a childish sort of way; I'm certainly willing to waste time on it after a hard night's work.Most of the other comments on the film so far have been dead-on; it does look like a re-edited serial or TV show, it is a Japanese variant on the Capt. Marvel type serials of the '30s, it does include some of the same tonality as the later Kaiju films, and it is not very well made. But, as I say, it goes along at a pretty good clip, so its never really dull, and can be watched without using much mental muscle.Historically, the most important thing about this movie is that it's right now the earliest example we have widely available in America of the choreography of martial arts in Asian cinema. (The IMDb date is clearly that of its American release, everything else says this was made in the early-mid-'50s.) The fight scenes are important - Capt. Marvel essentially brawls and wrassles when he fights, like every other Hollywood hero of his era; the fight scenes in "Evil Brain" are brief, well-choreographed dances; this actually makes it more advanced than similar American films of the period, and for this reason worth seeing at least once for all Martial arts fans.

This movie seems to be edited together from episodes of a serial -- it jumps from sub-plot to sub-plot, and introduces a whole raft of new characters without developing any of them. It's Shin-Toho Studio's entry in the Superheroes from Space genre, which puts it side-by-side with those MST3K staples, "Invasion of the Neptune Men" and "Prince of Space".Like those other movies, this one is frequently laughable. Jump cuts are used to make it seem as though the hero, Starman, and his monster opponent are jumping great distances... but the effect only works if you're under the age of ten and in a very forgiving mood. The meandering plot is juvenile; and the opening scene features an interplanetary council of some of the most hilariously unlikely aliens you'll ever see. Worst of all, I find Starman an uncharismatic and slightly stuffy hero.What distinguishes "Evil Brain", though, is its monsters, which are genuinely disturbing: one is a swift, chattering beast, with glaring eyes (one of which is on its stomach), huge fangs and long "cobalt nails". It also has two filigreed crests on its head (like bizarre Mickey Mouse ears), breathes smoky radioactive fumes, and has the ability to turn invisible... The other mutant is a silent woman whose face resembles a beaked bird of prey. She also has special skills: she can turn invisible, and she kills with one touch from her fingertips. In fact, she kills a young mother while her two small daughters are playing (a scene which probably explains why this movie doesn't turn up on TV any more!).Finally, as I write this, I note that IMDB recommends I might also enjoy "Tanin no Kao/The Face of Another". Hmmm... I'm afraid if I followed "Evil Brain" with Kobo Abe's intense, disturbing, and very mature fantasy, my head would explode.