'You got a big kick out of taking your clothes off in front of those slobs don't ya?'
Welcome back to my Dark Corner of this Sick World
'Is anything wrong?'
From the outset, German horror The Head has more artistic pretensions than most mad scientist films
in its warning shadows...
and symbolic turtles.
My first reaction was that it seems to have been made by someone who saw The Brain that Wouldn't Die,
'Let me die.'
and decided to do an art house version.
'Kill me'
something like Eyes Without a Face.
But here's the thing; The Head pre-dates both those movies.
'That's absolutely sensational'
It may have influenced Eyes Without a Face.
'Yes you're perfectly right, theoretically it's possible'
But The Brain that Wouldn't Die is practically a remake,
from the severed head kept alive against its will
an effect achieved much better here than in the US film,
to the scientist searching strip clubs for a sexy body.
'If you want to make me a better offer, go ahead. I'm sick of standing around being the model for you.'
Here the films do diverge because obviously that body is not intended for the severed head,
but for hunchbacked nurse, Irene.
This hints at the film's main issue, alongside Irene, and the original scientist who ends up bodiless,
there is a bad guy scientist with oddly painted eyebrows who does the severing...
'I was the only survivor of a shipwreck, both my parents died when I was a few months old.'
A taciturn assistant.
'He's a little strange, the result of brain operation'
And a stripper with a past.
'Lily, you poisoned your husband'
That's a lot of backstory going on, but it's nothing compared to the front story, pay attention...
'I'll give you the facts'
Bad guy Dr Ood - the shipwreck survivor - is hired by Professor Abel to perform the his heart transplant.
'Give this man here a new heart right away'
but he instead decapitates the professor.
and uses this position of power to blackmail him.
'You must tell me the formula for serum Z'
which the professor used to keep a dog's head alive and which Ood wants.
'You have made one monster already, isn't that enough?'
Prior to the operation, Ood was forced to kill another of the professor's assistants,
who had promised to fix Irene's hunchback.
'I'll be able to stand straight at last and nobody will stare at me'
Now Ood wants to have a go but needs the professor's help to get Irene onboard.
'Give me your word of honour you'll try no experiments of any kind on her'
'You have nothing to fear'
Well that's good enough for me, just because you cut off my head rather than replacing my heart I see no reason not to trust you.
'Dr Brandt'
'No please; Dr Ood'
Ood seduces stripper Lily with whom he has a history,
'You still have a beautiful body'
so he can give her body to the unsuspecting, and pretty unsuspicious Irene.
'She is a dancer. She has a fabulous body, doesn't she'
Who wakes up confused.
'As if my whole body were changed'
Is that not what you wanted?
'My shoes will be too big for me'
No pleasing some people. '
You have a lovely body Irene.
'He says that a lot, and it's backed up by Lily's boyfriend who is missing his girl.
'Well she did have a beautiful body'
and he likes it on Irene just as much.
'But when I close my eyes and feel your body moving, I'm sure we've met before.'
'So asks her to model for him.
'I want you to loosen your blouse and hold still a while. I want to do a head of you'
I'm sculpting your face, take your top off.
'Is anything wrong?'
Irene now discovers the truth.
'I gave you her entire body'
'NO!'
So, why has Dr Ood done this?
'He's completely insane.'
And there doesn't seem to be any more explanation that that.
'I'm not mad!'
He yelled at his pet severed head.
At least we know why he decapitated the Professor; to get serum Z.
'You will go one living because I want you to. I can make serum Z without you, I analysed the formula'
This hasn't been so much a review as a recap of what happens.
'Now I'm completely confused'
But I think that's the best way to make the point;
there's a tremendous amount going on, most of it weird,
'Professor Harttman experimented on my brain'
Little of it motivated.
'Abel I will be ruthless to any man who stands in my way, I've no choice'
In your way of doing what?
'You have a poor imagination'
The Head is every bit as bad as The Brain that Wouldn't Die,
but give it it's due; it got there first.
'I don't want to go on living now.'
Thanks for watching, don't loose your head, subscribe today.
It's fair to call The Brain That Wouldn't die an uncfedit remake of The Head,
Do you know any other Unsung originals on which better known Horrors are based?
Let us know in the comments below
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