Two converging plots about foreheads are at the center of "Trail of the Screaming Forehead" (2007). In one, two scientists out to prove that the forehead is the center of human intelligence experiment with foreheadezyne with disastrous consequences. In the other, alien foreheads attach themselves to the foreheads of earth's human population in order to take over the planet, and only two sailors and a librarian stand between them and world conquest.
Starring and made by many of the same people who made the fantastic "The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra" (2001), including the writer/director/star, Larry Blamire. "Trail of the Screaming Forehead" is highly enjoyable, but not nearly as successful as "Skeleton." "Skeleton" embraced all of the negative trappings of second and third rate science fiction movies of the late 1950s to great success, including stilted dialogue and awkward acting. "Forehead" employs a different, almost straight, acting style which works fine, but still embraces awkward sentence structure in it's dialogue to no purpose, other than to distract from the story and bring attention to itself. This isn't to say that all the lines fall flat. There are some really memorable and some very humorous lines of dialogue, but most of it is simply convoluted repetitions or malapropisms that don't improve the movie.
The movie has many great moments from the pill boxes with the veils, and the sheet of paper with the alien's goal mapped out on it, to the bells and pay phones, and especially the foreheads themselves, which actually have some pretty creepy sound effects, and a lead forehead with voice actor Michael McConnohie lending it a perfect Paul Frees voice. The movie also sports some great guest actors including Betty Garrett, Kevin McCarthy, James Karen, and my personal favorite, Dick Miller.
It's clear that everyone involved had a great time making this movie, and I had a lot of fun watching it, though I was nowhere near as elated as I was watching "The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra." This movie did not seen to take the extra step needed to make it a great movie. With so much intelligence increasing foreheadezyne on hand, I only wish the movie had been more smart in the thoughts that went into creating it.
2 comments:
I'm going to have to check out Cadavra, aren't I?
You must. It has more quotable lines than any other movie ever made.
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