On the Brain

source: On the Brain

This film essentially begins with a young police officer by the name of "Sheriff Kelly Jarvis" (Danny Hansen) going to the local grocery store one night to buy some ice cream. When he gets there, he notices that one of the local residents appears to be having a seizure of some kind and, as you might expect, attempts to help. To his horror, however, he is suddenly attacked by another man standing nearby and is forced to shoot him in self-defense. Although all of the evidence exonerates him, the town "Mayor" (played by Sharon Fredrickson) immediately blames him and as a result orders him to surrender his weapon in the process. Needless to say, this action has serious consequences when even more people suddenly go insane and start attacking other residents. Yet, rather than admit her mistake, the mayor becomes even more hostile to the sheriff and his girlfriend "Dr. Mariama" (Shenik Taylor). Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that Danny Hansen, Shenik Taylor and Amy Waller (as Sheriff Kelly's ex-girlfriend "Anne") performed rather well, all things considered. Unfortunately, what really dragged this film down was the poor acting on the part of Sharon Fredrickson who was not only badly miscast but had too much screen time as well. That being said, although this film had some good aspects, they weren't enough to overcome the obvious weakness just mentioned and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly below average.

Ostensibly a zombie movie but the real focus is on the fight for survival for the hero and heroine, complicated by an over-the-top bad guy. Good action, decent (but not great) acting, and good script. If you like zombie movies that are a bit out of the ordinary, you should like this one.

The setting Is the small California town of Golden Torch (looks a lot like San Jacinto). The Mayor (Sharon Fredrickson) is popular with everyone in town except for Sheriff Kelly Jarvis (Danny Hansen, Amazon film reviewer), the new guy in town. The first 10 minutes of the film introduces the characters and sets the scene before the first crazed outbreaks occurs as the town's people attack and kill with one claiming there is "something in his head" which apparently doesn't market as well as "On the Brain." The film does give an early clue as to the cause and is similar to real incurable disease. The film ends rather abruptly. The acting and script left something to be desired as exampled in the discussion scene between Amy Waller and Shenik Taylor. With only 12 days to shoot, no time for retakes. Looks like they had only one cloudy eye contact that everyone shared. I would have done the end differently with a big grand finale head explosion with blood splattered everywhere. Guide: F-word, brief sex/rape. No nudity I preferred "Impulse" (1984).

A true piece of garbage, bad acting, bad dialogue, absolutely stupid storyline, bad direction, special effects good, camera work & sound good. Probably been made as a "local content" stringer to get something else funded from overseas backers, but I kid you not, you'll want every second of your life back, after wasting any time on this turd. You've been warned, run away as fast as you can, and for everyone else but the above mentioned good standard of work - stay away from this type of business, you're hopeless. Have a really good look at the standard of work you turn in, and feel ashamed that you waste so much of other people's precious time waving such faeces around, & calling it a film.

Once the film gets going, the pacing and story really pick up. A movie worth a watch.

ON THE BRAIN is an independent horror film that's a little better than you might expect. The usual problems associated with this style of filmmaking are present throughout, including some bad camera-work that distracts from the story, but otherwise it works quite well and depicts small town life in a way comparable to Stephen King. The tale is one of parasitical invasion, in which tiny worms are burrowing into the brains of victims and turning them into cannibalistic killers. The special effects are limited as is the talent of the supporting cast, but the plotting isn't bad and the film feels quite professional in look and tone. Yes, it's hampered by the low budget, but it's far from the worst film you'll see, and some moments are quite disturbing.

On the Brain