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Pivotal and groundbreaking horror movies came out in the 1990s. "The Blair Witch Project" kickstarted the found footage subgenre, "The Silence of the Lambs" rebranded what it meant to be a psychological horror film, and an entirely new franchise began with 1996's "Scream." However, the era is also home to plenty of obscure genre entries, like "Brain Dead," a movie about a neurosurgeon trying to extract data from a mathematician's brain with a top-notch cast. Bill Pullman is Dr. Rex Martin, the lead surgeon, working with information provided by Bill Paxton's Jim Reston, an old friend and employee of the company who wants said data.
"Brain Dead" follows Dr. Martin as he not only tries to help the mathematician remember his work, but also takes a journey into his own mind after a car accident. The movie has roots in "The Twilight Zone," with the plot reportedly based on a story by series writer Charles Beaumont, who was given a writing credit on the film. There is one major twist at the end, and it will make you question everything you've watched up to that point and whether you can trust your own mind.
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Brain Dead is received divisive reviews
Critics and audiences disagree when it comes to opinions on "Brain Dead." The former didn't enjoy the film, earning it a rotten score of 17% on Rotten Tomatoes. Critic Dennis Schwartz felt that, despite the movie having "an intelligent approach to its horror," the payoff wasn't worth it and the cast fell flat. As a whole, "Brain Dead" flew under the radar upon its release, bringing in just $1.6 million at the box office. When combined with negative critic reviews, it's unsurprising that it fell into obscurity.
However, audiences were more forgiving, awarding the movie a 68%. Many fans argue "Brain Dead" is truly underrated, and that Bill Paxton and Bill Pullman had strong performances in it. While critics didn't enjoy the final act, audiences thought it worked, with a Letterboxd user writing that they "really like how the last act of the film is done, it's confusing and chaotic but not an overwhelming amount."
Even today, "Brain Dead" isn't really talked about, despite being a solid horror project from the '90s. One user on Reddit calls it their "favorite movie that no one has heard of," while others argue that the Peter Jackson flick "Braindead," which came out in 1992, overshadowed it due to their similar names. Either way, "Brain Dead" is worth the watch, even if it's just to see Paxton and Pullman's dynamic in an interesting narrative.
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