People like to hate remakes. And sometimes I can be one of those people. Other times, however? I absolutely love remakes. There’s David Cronenberg’s The Fly, John Carpenter’s The Thing, and an underrated favorite of mine, The Blob.
Unfortunately, it seems that most filmmakers don’t understand how to properly remake a film. It’s not about taking the biggest and most profitable name and making a half-hearted rehash because “the original can’t be beat.” It’s about taking a fantastic concept, one that never met its full potential, and making sure it does the next time around.
And it finally seems like we’ll be getting a film with that concept in mind: The Brain That Wouldn’t Die.
For those of you unfamiliar about The Brain That Wouldn’t Die, the original film from 1962 is an absolute blast. The basis of the film, as summarized by Wikipedia, “focuses upon a mad doctor who develops a means to keep human body parts alive. He keeps a woman’s severed head alive for days, and keeps a lumbering, misshapened brute (one of his earlier failed experiments) imprisoned in a closet.”
Some might also remember the film being parodied on Mystery Science Theater 3000.
As you can see, the basis for the film has endless potential. Much like my favorite remakes listed above, there’s room for new effects, new creatures, and enough horror to shock a new generation. That’s one of the reasons why I’m so excited for this upcoming iteration.
Now what other reasons are there? Quite a few, actually. The film, shot in Portland, Oregon, will be directed by Derek Carl and written by Hank Huffman, the duo behind the short Bad Seed (2015) and an upcoming web series titled Y2K 2000.
It also stars Rachael Fosket (Death on a Rock, Welcoming Departure, Grimm) as Jan Compton, the film’s villainous disembodied head. Starring alongside her is Patrick Green (The Texture of Falling, Crazy Right) and Jason Reynolds (Work Hard, The American Dream, Thirst) as Bill Cortner and Kurt, respectively. The film also stars Mia Allen and Robert Blanche.
Below is an exclusive behind-the-scenes image from the film, courtesy of photographer Lenny Gotter.
The project also happened to be quite successful during its funding stages on Kickstarter, having earned $70,599. That’s the second highest amount raised for a narrative film in Portland, Oregon. And now that it’s been funded and shot, the film is going through post-production stages. And if you’re interested in helping, there will be donation links for post-production costs at their website (which isn’t quite ready yet) in exchange for cool gifts! So be sure to check back at a later date for the proper links.
What do you think, are you excited to see a new version of The Brain That Wouldn’t Die? Let us know in the comments below!