Brain Damage

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Brain Damage

R

Released Apr 22, 1988

1h 34m

Horror

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Popcornmeter

69%

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16 Reviews

64%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

A boy (Rick Herbst) grows addicted to psychedelic jolts from an eel-like brain-eating monster called Elmer.

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Walter Goodman

New York Times

Written and directed by Frank Henenlotter, this oozer specializes in unspecial effects and unspeakable acting.

May 21, 2003

Full Review

Trace Thurman

Horror Queers Podcast

An ooey gooey exploitation film injected with enough dark humor to keep things entertaining amidst the deathly serious drug addiction allegory.

Rated: 4/5

Jan 27, 2025

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Joe Lipsett

Horror Queers Podcast

An absolutely delightful (and exceedingly gay!) exploitation film about a boy, the girl who won't abandon him, and the parasite that wants to suck him dry. For a first foray into Frank Henenlotter's oeuvre, this one has the juice.

Rated: 4/5

Jan 22, 2025

Full Review

Josh Goller

Spectrum Culture

The amusing stop-motion creature animation and practical gore effects imbue Brain Damage with an icky quaintness that makes it a compelling midnight movie.

Jul 15, 2022

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Richard Propes

TheIndependentCritic.com

Brain Damage is rather joyfully tasteless.

Rated: 3.5/4.0

Sep 4, 2020

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Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

Gruesomeness finds its way into this drug-fueled trip, utilizing puppetry, stop-motion animation, and buckets of blood as the wrinkled gastropod feasts on brains.

Rated: 3/10

Aug 31, 2020

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Zack D

One of the wildest movies I've seen. A fair amount of camp and some of the acting leaves a bit to be desired, but you haven't seen another movie like this.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/07/25

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Teddy B

Frank Henenlotter makes this interesting plot watchable with just the right amount of camp, overacting, and bad taste. 'Brain Damage' is definitely a good watch amongst the fodder of 80's brain rot horror movies.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/23/24

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thom g

An above average 80's psychedelic horror film with a parasitic monster and a metaphor about the addictive power of drugs and their changing perception of reality. Very enjoyable.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Audience Member

No spoilers - I just saw this for the first time on Tubi TV, I was surprised with the horror Easter Egg they added in near the end of the movie! A movie that had me laughing as well as wincing! Splatter, inventive FX makeup and creature creation, an obscure story line that the audience had to put together, beginning from the well-executed beginning scenes! The little song is still stuck in my head!

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/16/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A nice hidden gem from the past. Brain Damage is fun and innovative. Watch it! It'll blow your mind, pun intended.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/14/23

Full Review

justin t

This film is totally insane. It is so crazy that it is amazing. Everything is so extreme. This is like David Cronenberg on acid. Not that I've done acid but I think that I have a good idea what it is like after watching this movie. This had everything that I like in a film. It is just so over-the-top. This is made with zero-budget but that is what is so good about it - they didn't try anything that they couldn't. Perfect insane movie. Utterly nuts. It is so funny because it is so insane. Seriously entertaining.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

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Frank Henenlotter

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Rick Herbst

Brian

Gordon MacDonald

Mike

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Barbara

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Morris

Lucille Saint-Peter

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Synopsis

A boy (Rick Herbst) grows addicted to psychedelic jolts from an eel-like brain-eating monster called Elmer.

Director: Frank Henenlotter
Producer: Edgar Ievins
Screenwriter: Frank Henenlotter
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Paramount Pictures
Rating: R
Genre: Horror
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 22, 1988, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 25, 2019
Runtime: 1h 34m

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