Brain Scan --Review--

[Zach]

[B]**THIS USER STEALS REVIEWS. THIS POST ONLY REMAINS INTACT FOR EVIDENCE PURPOSES. SORRY FOR THE INCONVENIENCE.** - Bojangles

Brain Scan

[/B]

Directed By: John Flynn

Cast:

Edward Furlong ... Michael
Frank Langella ... Detective Hayden
T. Ryder Smith ... The Trickster
Amy Hargreaves ... Kimberly
James Marsh ... Kyle (as Jamie Marsh)
Victor Ertmanis ... Martin
David Hemblen ... Dr. Fromberg
Vlasta Vrana ... Frank
Domenico Fiore ... Ken (as Dom Fiore)
Claire Riley ... News Anchor
Tod Fennell ... Young Michael (as Tod Fennel)
Michèle-Barbara Pelletier ... Stacie (as Michele-Barbara Pelletier)
Dean Hagopian ... Mr. Keller
Donna Baccala ... Mrs. Keller (as Donna Bacalla)
Jérôme Tiberghien ... Mr. Tebb (as Jerome Thiberghian)

Plot:

Michael is a major- league computer friend and the greatest supporter of scary movies who frequently rents videos and watches them with classmates. One day, introduces by his friend Billy, he phones a video game manufacturer to test their latest game "Brainscan". Michael Kilms alone oldster in the game. In shock, he decides against the game out the second disc of the game has been sent to his house when he gets home. A freak called Gail walks out from the screen and tells him to keep playing the game instead of letting the cat out of the bag and be known to the police.

Review:
Brain Scan is one of the most unique horror films I have had the pleasure to witness. The fact that characters may be just a little melodramatic doesn't necessarily come down to a bad script but it is in the essence of all horror films. I think this film is hugely under-rated and deserves more praise for a different perspective on the typical killer which it portrays. I think if people watch the film with an open mind they are less likely to be disappointed. I recommend this film to those of you without who can watch films and ignore any preconceptions that you may have. Michael Bower(Edward Furlong)is an alienated teenager who loves horror films, is still haunted by the car crash that left him with a limp & took his mother's life, and is in love with a girl named Kimberly(Amy Hargreaves), for whom he records with his camcorder. Michael is also bothered by a business father who stays away from home for long periods. He has a horror buddy named Kyle(James Marsh)who informs him of a brand new terror game for the computer which is supposed to be a state of the art virtual experience. He decides to give it a shot expecting it to simply disappoint like other games he has played along the line. This game is called "Brainscan" and it has four different stages with the first having the person playing actually committing a crime of brutal murder. When Mihael partakes of this the whole game becomes all to real when murders in reality begin taking place. When Michael discovers the death of a suburban man to be the one he killed in the video game, he wearily wishes to discontinue the experience altogether. This becomes difficult when a character within the game named Trickster(T. Ryder Smith really hamming it up)makes life unbearable telling him about messes he needs to clean up. Each stage Michael has to play in the game becomes more difficult and it seems more deaths are a result. Actually, the film can be quite fun mainly because our hero keeps sinking further and further into quicksand with every decision to play the next game. Frank Lagella plays Detective Hayden..a man is our source of tension for he keeps suspicion towards Michael always poking about. The film's special effects are hokey, but the idea works for me..this poor kid decides for the ultimate experience and is thrust into a macabre world of his own doing basically because he likes escape through the horror genre often criticized for displaying mindless violence in the way of entertainment. The scriptwriter's alien ideas about how computers and games work are indeed rather laughable, but if you can forgive those, the movie does an admirable job of pulling you into Michael Bower's world. Anyone who has ever done something wrong, and felt that queasiness that comes with the knowledge that yes, you are going to get caught, can relate to the situation Michael is in. The main theme, played several times throughout the movie, is very creepy and mood setting. Excellent cinematography, adequate direction, and weak performances from Frank Langella as the local homicide detective (why was he even IN this movie?!); James Marsh as Kyle, Michael's only friend; and Amy Hargreaves as the girl next door tend to drag down the decent performance given by Edward Furlong and the excellent and compelling talents of T. Ryder Smith as Trickster. That character was an odd combination of Keith Richards, Mick Jagger, and Hannibal Lecter, portrayed beautifully by Smith.

Rate: 3.5/10
:khead:

[Deadite]

Ive not yet watched this movie
btw nice review zach...

[FreddysFingers]

I haven't seen this in a loooooooooong time.