This plot of this film is really out there-an arrogant evil alien brain named Gor possesses the body of Steve March(here played with gusto by John Agar) and plans on using it to help her conquer the world!(and also get real friendly with Steve's girlfriend Sally-played by Joyce Meadows). A good alien brain named Val inhabits Sally's dog to try and stop the evil alien brain. It's amazing how entertaining and fun this film really is--watching it is always a good time.
66 Reviews
Gets off to a deceptively good start
joebergeron23 January 2006
Warning: Spoilers
The first few minutes of this film had me thinking maybe I was about to see an unappreciated gem. The science actually made some sense, and the banter between the leads was fairly sharp and believable. This all changed a few minutes into the movie when the most likable character, the scientist's assistant, is unceremoniously killed. After that, the once-promising movie degenerates into the usual 50s sci-fi silliness, still amusing and worth seeing through, yet sadly lacking the promise of those first few shining minutes.
I will say it was heartwarming to see how quickly the girlfriend and her father accept the presence of the second, good alien brain. They would be ideal emissaries to alien worlds in view of their great flexibility of mind. The desert settings used in this film are also attractive. Finally, I must hand it to the U.S. military for being so quick to deduce that an alien invasion of some sort was taking place.
I will say it was heartwarming to see how quickly the girlfriend and her father accept the presence of the second, good alien brain. They would be ideal emissaries to alien worlds in view of their great flexibility of mind. The desert settings used in this film are also attractive. Finally, I must hand it to the U.S. military for being so quick to deduce that an alien invasion of some sort was taking place.
Truly silly one for any B-movie fan!
Stooovie14 August 2002
Now this is the ultimate in 50s low budget drive-in outer space silliness. A rogue Brain from planet Arous comes to Earth to overtake body of an good boy atomic scientist and (surprisingly) conquer the Earth! Later, second Brain arrives to stop him, overtaking the body of poor doggie. Special effects look like the ones from Attack of the 50ft Woman (see-through monsters etc.) and the plot is similarly goofy. John Agar´s performance as an atomic scientist turned fiend is overacted as ever, which but adds to whole goofiness of the film. Recommended to any 50s B-movie fan.
Ridiculously entertaining sci fi silliness!
Infofreak2 January 2003
'The Brain From Planet Arous' is a compelling tale of a scientist who becomes possessed by an alien with an attitude. The scientist is played by b-grade legend John Agar ('Attack Of The Puppet People' and dozens of other gems) and the alien is a giant floating brain with eyes. Did I mention that the alien is sex-starved and has the hots for Agar's fiancee good girl Joyce Meadows? Meadows and her Pop (Thomas Browne Henry) desperately plot to save Agar before he can a) jump her bones and b) enslave the world, their only help being another (good) alien who hides inside their faithful pooch. Yes, this is one ridiculously entertaining movie that will be enormously enjoyed by any bad movie buff. Highly recommended sci fi silliness!
No Brain Needed, Just A Sense Of Humor
Lechuguilla19 July 2003
This film gets off to a decent start. I like films set in the desert. And the acting of Robert Fuller is adequate. But too soon, we leave the desert, Fuller leaves the movie (to save his career no doubt). And we're left with a dimwitted plot, campy looking aliens that wouldn't scare a bird, and John Agar's "acting".
All suspense is lost early on when we see the evil alien, an uninspired floating ball with two sleepy eyes. And of course the ball speaks English, convenient for the film's characters --- and the intended audience. Near the end of the film, the alien makes a little speech (in English of course), rambling on about Caesar, Napoleon, and Hitler. Seems our alien is both talkative and well educated.
The film's plot is painfully anthropomorphic. The idea of a criminal "brain" hungry for power is hardly alien; it's all too human. And John Agar's performance has to be seen to be believed. His facial expression right before he kills the sheriff is true camp. The abrupt ending of the film gives the impression that it ended simply because the producer ran out of money.
This campy, 1950's sci-fi flick is a lot of fun. I get more laughs out of it than I do out of some contemporary comedies.
All suspense is lost early on when we see the evil alien, an uninspired floating ball with two sleepy eyes. And of course the ball speaks English, convenient for the film's characters --- and the intended audience. Near the end of the film, the alien makes a little speech (in English of course), rambling on about Caesar, Napoleon, and Hitler. Seems our alien is both talkative and well educated.
The film's plot is painfully anthropomorphic. The idea of a criminal "brain" hungry for power is hardly alien; it's all too human. And John Agar's performance has to be seen to be believed. His facial expression right before he kills the sheriff is true camp. The abrupt ending of the film gives the impression that it ended simply because the producer ran out of money.
This campy, 1950's sci-fi flick is a lot of fun. I get more laughs out of it than I do out of some contemporary comedies.
John Agar's Best Sci-Fi Movie?
Widget-510 February 1999
That's right--"The Brain From Planet Arous" is _indeed_ John Agar's best science-fiction movie...but that's not saying very much. While it is undoubtedly _cheap_ (the giant alien brains in their natural form look a lot like balloons!), and while the storyline is sheer goofiness bordering on surrealism (one of the brains inhabits the body of a dog!), it _is_ somehow fun to watch, in spite of (or more likely because of) its low-budget limitations. And John Agar IS fun to watch; you can tell that he's doing his best here--in the scenes where he's possessed by the evil brain, he had to wear some very uncomfortable silver contact lenses--but the odd, yet by-the-numbers script doesn't give him much to work with. Still, if you're willing to put your own brain on hold for a little while, you might get a kick out this movie.
The very first movie broadcast on Pittsburgh's Chiller Theater in 1963
kevinolzak30 December 2019
For Pittsburgh viewers, 1957's "The Brain from Planet Arous" has become known as the very first movie broadcast on Chiller Theater on a Saturday afternoon, Sept. 14, 1963, kicking off 20 years of Chilly Billy until its inevitable end on New Years Day 1984. It was a production of Howco International Pictures, serving theaters throughout the South from Arkansas to North Carolina, an obviously Poverty Row outfit below even American International or Allied Artists, on par with Lippert ("King Dinosaur") or Astor ("Frankenstein's Daughter"). The same filmmakers went on to greater cult glory with Allied Artists' 1958 "Attack of the 50 Foot Woman," director Nathan Juran, using the pseudonym Hertz, and producer/cinematographer Jacques R. Marquette, the star a game John Agar, just one year removed from the Universal days of "Revenge of the Creature," "Tarantula," and "The Mole People," still stuck in the science fiction rut he'd hoped to escape. As nuclear scientist Steve March, Agar and his assistant (Robert Fuller) are based in the Mojave Desert to examine odd bursts of radiation at desolate Mystery Mountain, represented by Bronson Caverns, the ubiquitous outdoor location not just for Westerns but all low budget genre producers since 1933's "The Vampire Bat." His assistant ends up dead and poor Steve is then possessed by disembodied criminal alien brain Gor, from the distant planet Arous (air-us), which causes consternation for Steve's pretty fiancée Sally (Joyce Meadows), not expecting her intended to return a crazed sex fiend with mad desires. Fortunately, she soon learns everything from benign lawman brain Vol, keeping close tabs on Gor/Steve from inside the family dog, one victim after another becoming a burnt corpse behind Steve's glare, the thick contact lenses quite painful for the actor, who nevertheless relishes the rare opportunity to go against type as a villain. On a reported budget of $58,000 the acting could have been a lot worse, the outlandish premise and outsized props featuring in a climax that leaves poor Steve literally brainless (a more sober treatment of the same plot was done in 1966's small scale British entry "Invasion").
so bad it's good (or at least not complete horrible) ...
yortsnave7 January 2000
My friend, who's a John Agar fan, clued me in on this. I saw it on video the other night. It's one of those movies that is so bad, that it's pretty good (or at least not a complete waste of time). I especially like the scene where Agar's character, while driving a jeep through the desert, crashes into a huge rock that he couldn't possibly have missed, then says something like "well, I guess we walk from here." The ending is completely beyond belief; you have to see it to believe anyone would end a movie like that.
A tale of two brains
samhill521531 March 2009
This is a surprisingly entertaining sci-fi flick from the 50s despite some very obvious shortcomings such as the actors walking off camera leaving us with no action or the brain suspended with visible filament. It's also refreshing when the military and politicians readily accept extra-terrestrial causes for some unexplained events. And with scant evidence to boot! All this is laughable but in a way charming in an innocent way, as if a child's imagination had been allowed to run wild.
The main actors were rather enjoyable as well. John Agar plays his part with gusto and his evil genius laugh is classic. But it is the shapely Joyce Meadows who raises this movie above the pack. Her scenes with Agar exude sensuality, especially while Agar is inhabited by the evil brain. In the first one Agar becomes so passionate that Meadows wonders what has possessed him. This of course begs the question as to how he could have helped been passionate before. Meadows is not a classic beauty but she is hot! This is definitely a fun movie. It doesn't take itself seriously and when one comes into it with no expectations it proves to be a surprise find.
The main actors were rather enjoyable as well. John Agar plays his part with gusto and his evil genius laugh is classic. But it is the shapely Joyce Meadows who raises this movie above the pack. Her scenes with Agar exude sensuality, especially while Agar is inhabited by the evil brain. In the first one Agar becomes so passionate that Meadows wonders what has possessed him. This of course begs the question as to how he could have helped been passionate before. Meadows is not a classic beauty but she is hot! This is definitely a fun movie. It doesn't take itself seriously and when one comes into it with no expectations it proves to be a surprise find.
Meet Gor! He's a real pain in the brain.
Coventry31 December 2010
Generally speaking there are two types of Sci-Fi movies from the 1950's. First and foremost you have the timeless and indisputable classics. These are the highly influential milestones that everybody knows and appreciates, like "The Day The Earth Stood Still", "Forbidden Planet", "This Island Earth" and a selected few others. Secondly you have the massive overload of low-budgeted, insignificant but tremendously amusing campy B-movies. These movies handle about the weirdest and most grotesque alien invasion stories and feature the craziest monster designs and special effects. The majority of those films are long forgotten and very obscure by now, but if you happen to stumble upon a cheap DVD version, you're guaranteed to have a great time! "The Brain from Planet Arous" is such an irresistible camp oldie. The plot is preposterous, the titular monster is a ludicrous creation and the script is chock-full of slightly perverted undertones and insinuations. Dig this: the eminent scientist Steve March and his assistant head out to the remote area of Mystery Mountain because there are unusual fluctuations in the radioactivity measurements. Once there, they run into an evil alien from the planet Arous that goes by the name of Gor. Gor is in fact a gigantic floating brain with a pair of evil penetrating eyes who promptly kills the assistant and possesses the body of Steve. Gor wants to do very sexist things to Steve's fiancée Sally, but his main objective nevertheless remains dominating the entire universe. His hobbies include burning people's faces and causing planes to explode in open air. Luckily, for our planet's sake, Arous also sent a good alien named Vol to prevent Gor from executing his fiendish plans. In order to stay close to Gor, Vol possesses the body of Steve's loyal dog George! Now, through this brief plot description it's probably clear already why "The Brain from Planet Arous" isn't ranked amongst the biggest Sci-Fi classics of the 50's decade, but it's definitely great entertainment. The film is fast-paced and doesn't suffer from dullness at all. Genre expert Nathan Juran ("The 7th Voyage of Sinbad", "20 Million Miles to Earth") assures a tight direction and John Agar is the B-movie veteran actor at your service. There are numerous memorable highlights to be found here, like watching how Agar painfully struggles with his black contact lenses or the meeting of the world leaders gathered in a small office in Indian Springs; Nevada. The abrupt ending leaves many questions unanswered (like how is Steve every going to talk his way out of what happened) and the whole thing only gets sillier if you think about it, but "The Brain from Planet Arous" definitely comes warmly recommended to all tolerant fans of Sci-Fi nonsense.
Size Does Matter!
BaronBl00d25 December 2005
What happens to a scientist and his assistant when they check out atypical radiation levels in a cave blasted from the heart of a desert? The answer lies behind the story of The Brain from Planet Arous as a huge renegade alien brain has come to our world from Arous to be the all-powerful force in the world. John Agar becomes his human vessel who demands world dominion from the major nations of the world. Who or what can stop him? Yeah, okay - you get the general premise of this somewhat cheap, very campy, oft times lamentable science fiction offering from the golden era of science fiction - the 1950s. Director Nathan Juran( a good director of such films as The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, etc...)shows a bit of flair here and there but really does a flat job directing this film in many ways. The script certainly offers little help, and the budget is minuscule. The brains look like super-imposed "ghosts" that look like they are not there but are suppose to be. I laughed at the meeting with the leaders of the world in a small little office. Apart from that there are really no special effects to mention. The acting is okay. Agar really hams it up whilst having the alien use him, but the rest of the cast is very dull(excluding the dog). The love interest for Agar is Joyce Meadows and she is very wooden. The Brain from Planet Arous just does not seem to pack the punch of so many low-budget science fiction offerings from the same decade. Why? I don't really know. It has the components for a pretty decent film with Juran, Agar, and a weird, absurd premise but comes off rather stilted and dull for the most part.
Very Entertaining..surprisingly
marbleann9 August 2009
Next to the movies that come out today this is 2001 A Space Odyssey. Actually it is pretty good if you can get past the hilarity of brains floating around with two eyes. The eyes were very expressive. I call them phony Disney eyes. You know the eyes all the Walt Disney cartoon characters have had since the 80's.
John Agar who married a very young Shirley Temple years ago is the star of this movie along with the pet pooch. I understand he had a little drinking problem and that did not help his career. Still he was skilled enough not to make this into a over acted mess like most of actors who portray superhuman aliens that can destroy the universe. He acted like a regular guy most of the time.
I am not going to give away the whole movie other then to say it looks like Gor a alien from this planet escaped the police and landed in John Agar's brain. We know this because Vol is another alien from Arous but he is cop looking for the elusive Gor. Vol is also a floating brain but he decides the family dog is the best place for him to hide out. In the meantime John Agar kills his colleague because he is a rival for Joyce Meadows affection. Vol let's Joyce and her father know that her boyfriend is acting strange because Gor has taken over his body.
Gor/Agar can blow up airplanes just by looking at them and he does. There is a Atomic Age sub story. Gor shows his might by demanding a meeting by all the superpowers take place so he can show them he is even more powerful then the A Bomb. This is all very entertaining. I like the idea that the Joyce Meadows character is not your typical blithering idiot girlfriend. Gor/Agar becomes a little frisky with Joyce but the dog is not going for it, The Alien in the dog is a good idea because the dog can hang out with Gor/Agar without any suspicion being cast. So as silly as it seems, it works. It it much better the Vol hiding outing in a human whose presence has to be explained.
The end comes quickly and I am not going to give it away. But this was a nice little movie that is not as bad as the title makes it seem.
John Agar who married a very young Shirley Temple years ago is the star of this movie along with the pet pooch. I understand he had a little drinking problem and that did not help his career. Still he was skilled enough not to make this into a over acted mess like most of actors who portray superhuman aliens that can destroy the universe. He acted like a regular guy most of the time.
I am not going to give away the whole movie other then to say it looks like Gor a alien from this planet escaped the police and landed in John Agar's brain. We know this because Vol is another alien from Arous but he is cop looking for the elusive Gor. Vol is also a floating brain but he decides the family dog is the best place for him to hide out. In the meantime John Agar kills his colleague because he is a rival for Joyce Meadows affection. Vol let's Joyce and her father know that her boyfriend is acting strange because Gor has taken over his body.
Gor/Agar can blow up airplanes just by looking at them and he does. There is a Atomic Age sub story. Gor shows his might by demanding a meeting by all the superpowers take place so he can show them he is even more powerful then the A Bomb. This is all very entertaining. I like the idea that the Joyce Meadows character is not your typical blithering idiot girlfriend. Gor/Agar becomes a little frisky with Joyce but the dog is not going for it, The Alien in the dog is a good idea because the dog can hang out with Gor/Agar without any suspicion being cast. So as silly as it seems, it works. It it much better the Vol hiding outing in a human whose presence has to be explained.
The end comes quickly and I am not going to give it away. But this was a nice little movie that is not as bad as the title makes it seem.
Quite Possibly the Silliest Sci-Fi Movie of All Time
mrb198015 January 2006
Warning: Spoilers
If you watch 1950s sci-fi much, then you're familiar with John Agar. Using a flashlight, he conquered an entire civilization in "The Mole People"; he saved a small Arizona town from destruction in "Tarantula"; but here, he really excelsAgar saves the entire universe! When scientist Steve (Agar) and his assistant Dan (Robert Fuller) notice a "blast of radiation" from Mystery Mountain, they decide to investigate. In a nearby cave, they're attacked by a giant floating brain with eyes, which kills Dan with a bright light and then (in a very inept special effect) hides in Agar's body.
Back at the lab, the brain emerges from Steve, introduces himself as "Gor" from the Planet Arous, and tells Steve he'd better cooperateor else. Since Gor is so powerful, he can control everything Steve does, and pretty soon Steve starts getting quite lecherous with his fiancée Sally (Joyce Meadows). This has to be some sort of cinema first a sex-starved floating brain! Later, Sally and her dad John (Thomas Browne Henry) are visited by yet another floating brain, this one's named "Vol" and is a law-enforcement brain from Arous. Vol announces that he also needs a body to hide out in, and after thinking it over, decides to hide in Agar's dog, George. Not silly enough yet? Just wait .
When he's not pawing Sally or tormenting Steve, Gor blows up a passenger plane, kills the local sheriff, burns up an Army colonel, and sets off a nuclear explosion. He then assembles representatives from all the world's countries and tells them that they must help him construct a fleet of spaceships so he can conquer Arous, then the universe! (At least Gor doesn't think small.)
Things are looking pretty bleak, so Sally has a chat with Vol. He tells her that Gor could conceivably be killed by a direct blow to the top of his, uh, cerebrum in the area of the "Fissure of Rolando". She leaves a note to Steve telling him about Gor's weakness, so when Gor emerges again, Steve grabs a convenient ax, and beats the offending brain to death in a bravura climax.
Probably the most fascinating thing about this movie is that the cast keeps perfectly straight faces throughout the whole film. If you're in for vintage entertainment with the most outrageously silly sci-fi plot of all time, you should watch this.
Back at the lab, the brain emerges from Steve, introduces himself as "Gor" from the Planet Arous, and tells Steve he'd better cooperateor else. Since Gor is so powerful, he can control everything Steve does, and pretty soon Steve starts getting quite lecherous with his fiancée Sally (Joyce Meadows). This has to be some sort of cinema first a sex-starved floating brain! Later, Sally and her dad John (Thomas Browne Henry) are visited by yet another floating brain, this one's named "Vol" and is a law-enforcement brain from Arous. Vol announces that he also needs a body to hide out in, and after thinking it over, decides to hide in Agar's dog, George. Not silly enough yet? Just wait .
When he's not pawing Sally or tormenting Steve, Gor blows up a passenger plane, kills the local sheriff, burns up an Army colonel, and sets off a nuclear explosion. He then assembles representatives from all the world's countries and tells them that they must help him construct a fleet of spaceships so he can conquer Arous, then the universe! (At least Gor doesn't think small.)
Things are looking pretty bleak, so Sally has a chat with Vol. He tells her that Gor could conceivably be killed by a direct blow to the top of his, uh, cerebrum in the area of the "Fissure of Rolando". She leaves a note to Steve telling him about Gor's weakness, so when Gor emerges again, Steve grabs a convenient ax, and beats the offending brain to death in a bravura climax.
Probably the most fascinating thing about this movie is that the cast keeps perfectly straight faces throughout the whole film. If you're in for vintage entertainment with the most outrageously silly sci-fi plot of all time, you should watch this.
Agar's at it again
Andy Sandfoss21 January 2000
This movie is probably the only place where John Agar's natural talent for cackling like a demented chicken and mugging the camera with a goofy, forced-looking grin is actually appropriate for the role. Otherwise, the film has little to recommend it. The thin, conventional plot is stretched way beyond its limits. Scenes end up being repeated in slightly altered form simply to pad the film out to the requisite hour and ten minutes. The only talented actor in the film, Robert Fuller, plays a character that gets killed five minutes into the film, which coincides with the disappearance of anything mysterious, tense, or mildly interesting from the movie. The female lead, Joyce Meadows, plays her role in a depressing monotone, and always seems like she's just about to throw up. The rest of the cast is even flatter and more non-descript than that. The special effects are crude (toy airplanes on visible strings, the brain obviously nothing but a painted balloon) and descend into the ludicrous at the end, when they are most needed. And, once again, for the umpteenth time in a 50's horror film, the monster is radioactive for no reason whatsoever. If there is an archetype for a lousy 50's horror film, "Brain from Planet Arous" is it.
This film could have been better if....
youroldpaljim3 December 2001
The first time I ever saw or heard of BRAIN FROM PLANET AROUS, I was twelve and it was shown on "Creature Features." When I first saw it, I thought it was kind of cheap, but I enjoyed it. Years later I heard of its bad reputation but I had my memories of it not being all that bad. Seeing it again as an adult, I actually found much the films ludicrousness entertaining. Not just that, I was surprised by the films slightly unusual premise: the alien brain named Gor bent on taking over the Earth is a criminal. The rest of the Arousians are like Vol- a policeman from Arous sent to arrest the evil Gor - basically peaceful. It's slightly unusual for a film from this period for the alien invader to be portrayed as not representative of his race. The idea of alien police man stalking an alien criminal (as a previous commentator in this forum has noted) has turned up in few science fiction novels. This plot also shows up in the excellent 1987 thriller THE HIDDEN.
While the films special effects are cheap, they are no better or worse than those in most other programmer films made on this budget from the same period. The film does has some really ludicrous moments already mention by previous reviewers. Some complaints mentioned in this forum are unjustified and seem to be the result of straining. Like the commentator who complained about bodies not decaying. It's absurd, but it is the kind of mistake that turns up all the time even in "good" movies.
One of the films main problems is John Agar. As film historian and 50's science fiction expert Bill Warren has pointed out, John Agar tries, but he can't pull it off. When he becomes possessed and tries to be evil, he comes across more as comical than menacing. If a much better actor was cast, perhaps this film might be more highly regarded. I think a good example would be to compare Agar's performance to that of Lew Ayers in DONOVAN'S BRAIN (See my entry on that film). DONOVAN'S BRAIN has a similar theme: evil disembodied brain bent on world conquest takes over the body of a scientist. Ayers was convincing, Agar is not.
Perhaps the strangest thing about this film is that when it first came out, reviewers dismissed it as a "routine programmer" "conventional science fiction" and "just another double bill shocker." Regardless of what you think of this film, I'm sure you will agree those words certainly don't apply to BRAIN FROM PLANET AROUS.
Till next time...Your Old Pal Jim.
While the films special effects are cheap, they are no better or worse than those in most other programmer films made on this budget from the same period. The film does has some really ludicrous moments already mention by previous reviewers. Some complaints mentioned in this forum are unjustified and seem to be the result of straining. Like the commentator who complained about bodies not decaying. It's absurd, but it is the kind of mistake that turns up all the time even in "good" movies.
One of the films main problems is John Agar. As film historian and 50's science fiction expert Bill Warren has pointed out, John Agar tries, but he can't pull it off. When he becomes possessed and tries to be evil, he comes across more as comical than menacing. If a much better actor was cast, perhaps this film might be more highly regarded. I think a good example would be to compare Agar's performance to that of Lew Ayers in DONOVAN'S BRAIN (See my entry on that film). DONOVAN'S BRAIN has a similar theme: evil disembodied brain bent on world conquest takes over the body of a scientist. Ayers was convincing, Agar is not.
Perhaps the strangest thing about this film is that when it first came out, reviewers dismissed it as a "routine programmer" "conventional science fiction" and "just another double bill shocker." Regardless of what you think of this film, I'm sure you will agree those words certainly don't apply to BRAIN FROM PLANET AROUS.
Till next time...Your Old Pal Jim.
An Arousian Arrousal
bkoganbing10 November 2012
This film is one of the great camp science fiction classics of those paranoid years of the Fifties. Though I will say that the Russians do come somewhat together with the free world to combine forces against a greater threat.
The threat is this criminal brain from the planet Arous wherever in the Universe that is. It may only be a floating brain but this brain has powers and abilities way beyond those of man. Including the power to take over human bodies like that of scientist John Agar. These folks are kind of like the Organians in that classic Star Trek episode. But the Organians are happy incorporeal beings who just want these lower creatures to leave them alone. These Arousian brains occasionally want some earthly pleasures as the brain remarks he'd love to have some pleasure with Agar's fiancé Joyce Meadows. Since they're just brains just how does an Arousian arousal manifest itself?
Anyway a good brain from Arous comes to fight the bad one, but it can only be done when the brain has to leave its corporeal host for a breather. The good brain to keep an eye on the situation inhabits Joyce Meadows dog. Can this get sillier? Yes it can, but I don't want to give too much away.
The Brain From Planet Arous or maybe the two brains is a cinematic hoot from start to finish. If you live science fiction camp, this is your film. See John Agar almost take over the world.
The threat is this criminal brain from the planet Arous wherever in the Universe that is. It may only be a floating brain but this brain has powers and abilities way beyond those of man. Including the power to take over human bodies like that of scientist John Agar. These folks are kind of like the Organians in that classic Star Trek episode. But the Organians are happy incorporeal beings who just want these lower creatures to leave them alone. These Arousian brains occasionally want some earthly pleasures as the brain remarks he'd love to have some pleasure with Agar's fiancé Joyce Meadows. Since they're just brains just how does an Arousian arousal manifest itself?
Anyway a good brain from Arous comes to fight the bad one, but it can only be done when the brain has to leave its corporeal host for a breather. The good brain to keep an eye on the situation inhabits Joyce Meadows dog. Can this get sillier? Yes it can, but I don't want to give too much away.
The Brain From Planet Arous or maybe the two brains is a cinematic hoot from start to finish. If you live science fiction camp, this is your film. See John Agar almost take over the world.
John Agar solidifies his place in B-movie land.
bergma15@msu.edu3 April 2006
The 1950s was a great era for making low budget monster movies in California. All you needed was a camera, a cheap monster, and Bronson Canyon, and boom, you've got a monster movie. This film is no exception. It definitely has a place in there with "Teenagers from Outer Space," and "Robot Monster," but isn't quite so bad. Don't get me wrong it delivers the cheese, but somehow it isn't quite as bad, it's just kind of boring.
John Agar plays a nuclear scientist who works too much. He and his assistant discover radiation emitting from a mountain in the middle of nowhere and go out to investigate. They end up finding a brain from outer space that uses Agar as a host and kills his dorky assistant. The brain takes a hankering to Agar's fiancée and tries to woo her by making him act like an even bigger idiot than he already was. The alien brain has the power to unleash atomic explosions using Agar's eyes. The brain has a scheme to take over the world (every evil alien brain does) by blackmailing the governments of the world. Oh, and there's a good brain from the same planet that comes to help the fiancée and her father stop the bad brain by living in the family dog (I kid you not).
The special effects weren't that good (you could see the wire when the brain was "floating") and the special effect with Agar's eyes was pretty lame, but they needed to do something to show the change. The acting was alright (nothing to write home about) and the plot was the same old space monster thing.
If you need to see some cheesy space monster movie, this isn't that great.
John Agar plays a nuclear scientist who works too much. He and his assistant discover radiation emitting from a mountain in the middle of nowhere and go out to investigate. They end up finding a brain from outer space that uses Agar as a host and kills his dorky assistant. The brain takes a hankering to Agar's fiancée and tries to woo her by making him act like an even bigger idiot than he already was. The alien brain has the power to unleash atomic explosions using Agar's eyes. The brain has a scheme to take over the world (every evil alien brain does) by blackmailing the governments of the world. Oh, and there's a good brain from the same planet that comes to help the fiancée and her father stop the bad brain by living in the family dog (I kid you not).
The special effects weren't that good (you could see the wire when the brain was "floating") and the special effect with Agar's eyes was pretty lame, but they needed to do something to show the change. The acting was alright (nothing to write home about) and the plot was the same old space monster thing.
If you need to see some cheesy space monster movie, this isn't that great.
"Your feeling of helplessness is your best friend, savage."
Hey_Sweden9 November 2022
Warning: Spoilers
The title alien is a criminal otherwise known as Gor, and he comes to Earth, intending total world domination. In order to achieve his goal, he possesses the body of nuclear scientist Steve March (the iconic John Agar) and makes Steve do his bidding. Meanwhile, a *good guy* alien brain, Vol, comes in search of Gor, and as part of his big plan, possesses the body of a *dog* named George!
The wonderful thing about low, low budget, old genre movies like this is their penchant for wacky ideas. While "The Brain from Planet Arous" is hardly a "good" movie, that doesn't mean that it's not damn entertaining, especially whenever Gor (who chuckles maniacally, in the grand tradition of super-villains) or Vol are floating around.
It's to the cast members' credit that they take all of this nonsense seriously. Agar, in particular, just acts his heart out. The lovely Joyce Meadows plays Steves' loving girlfriend Sally (one can not really blame Gor for having the hots for her), and Robert Fuller is fine in very limited screen time as Steves' assistant Dan. Fans of B movies from this era will recognize two other familiar faces, Ken Terrell and Thomas Browne Henry.
Gor is such a damn hoot as an antagonist. Totally arrogant and eager to flaunt his incredible powers, he takes full confidence in knowing that he is rarely in a truly vulnerable position.
The ending is amusing when you realize that, despite everything, Steve is still going to be in an awful lot of trouble!
Directed by busy genre pro Nathan Juran, whose other credits from this decade include "20 Million Miles to Earth" and "The 7th Voyage of Sinbad".
Five out of 10.
The wonderful thing about low, low budget, old genre movies like this is their penchant for wacky ideas. While "The Brain from Planet Arous" is hardly a "good" movie, that doesn't mean that it's not damn entertaining, especially whenever Gor (who chuckles maniacally, in the grand tradition of super-villains) or Vol are floating around.
It's to the cast members' credit that they take all of this nonsense seriously. Agar, in particular, just acts his heart out. The lovely Joyce Meadows plays Steves' loving girlfriend Sally (one can not really blame Gor for having the hots for her), and Robert Fuller is fine in very limited screen time as Steves' assistant Dan. Fans of B movies from this era will recognize two other familiar faces, Ken Terrell and Thomas Browne Henry.
Gor is such a damn hoot as an antagonist. Totally arrogant and eager to flaunt his incredible powers, he takes full confidence in knowing that he is rarely in a truly vulnerable position.
The ending is amusing when you realize that, despite everything, Steve is still going to be in an awful lot of trouble!
Directed by busy genre pro Nathan Juran, whose other credits from this decade include "20 Million Miles to Earth" and "The 7th Voyage of Sinbad".
Five out of 10.
This might as well have been titled "Pervert from PlanetArous"!
planktonrules25 July 2009
In the 1950s and 60s, John Agar made a ton of ultra-low budget horror films of varying quality (though most were pretty poor--at least when it came to the technical aspects of the films). While many would make fun of the films, I like them because of their campy qualities and sense of nostalgia. So, when I found THE BRAIN FROM PLANET AROUS, I was thrilled to see it. Oddly, however, the film is a combination of an excellent and rather original plot and super-duper cheese!
The film begins with some sort of light crashing in the nearby desert. Agar and an expendable friend go to investigate. It turns out that there is a giant translucent brain with eyeballs named Gor who is waiting to be "rescued"--because he plans on taking over a body and setting about taking over the Earth. You really have to see this stupid special effect to believe it--it's incredibly dumb. Also, having already seen the really bad Peter Graves sci-fi film, KILLERS FROM SPACE (1954), I knew that nothing good would be waiting for him in this cave!! Too bad Agar's character hadn't seen it--he would have known that only bad things are waiting inside!
Once back home, you know that the alien living within Agar is evil, as the dog doesn't like him and Agar is really interested in sex---reaaallly interested! This SHOULD have let his fiancée know that he was an alien or a Communist or something bad (as every clean and good American can only think of sex once legally married) and eventually she and her dad go to the cave themselves. This is an interesting point in the film, as ANOTHER floating eyeballed brain appears to them, but this is a good one. It seems that Gor is an evil being that escaped from his prison and he's come to help the Earth rid itself of this over-sexed alien.
Who will prevail? Will the evil Gor become our overlord? Is the nice alien really nice or able to defeat Gor? Will Gor get laid? Tune in and find out for yourself! Just be forewarned that the final scene with the inflatable brain suspended by wires is a sight you won't soon forget!! Overall, while silly and cheesy at times, the plot is interesting and it's fun to watch Agar, as he really does great in this sort of role. In other words, while a low-budget horror film, Agar puts a lot of energy into it and plays up the "evil Agar" to the hilt! While for years he's gotten a lot of ribbing for bad acting, in this film he was perfect for the role and I think that sometimes he's unfairly attacked. While certainly no thespian, what could you expect from Agar with the sort of parts he was offered in the years following his divorce from Shirley Temple? Plus, his antics as Gor were just darn funny--and were meant to be.
While not a film I'd recommend to the average person, for lovers of 50s sci-fi, this is an absolute must!
The film begins with some sort of light crashing in the nearby desert. Agar and an expendable friend go to investigate. It turns out that there is a giant translucent brain with eyeballs named Gor who is waiting to be "rescued"--because he plans on taking over a body and setting about taking over the Earth. You really have to see this stupid special effect to believe it--it's incredibly dumb. Also, having already seen the really bad Peter Graves sci-fi film, KILLERS FROM SPACE (1954), I knew that nothing good would be waiting for him in this cave!! Too bad Agar's character hadn't seen it--he would have known that only bad things are waiting inside!
Once back home, you know that the alien living within Agar is evil, as the dog doesn't like him and Agar is really interested in sex---reaaallly interested! This SHOULD have let his fiancée know that he was an alien or a Communist or something bad (as every clean and good American can only think of sex once legally married) and eventually she and her dad go to the cave themselves. This is an interesting point in the film, as ANOTHER floating eyeballed brain appears to them, but this is a good one. It seems that Gor is an evil being that escaped from his prison and he's come to help the Earth rid itself of this over-sexed alien.
Who will prevail? Will the evil Gor become our overlord? Is the nice alien really nice or able to defeat Gor? Will Gor get laid? Tune in and find out for yourself! Just be forewarned that the final scene with the inflatable brain suspended by wires is a sight you won't soon forget!! Overall, while silly and cheesy at times, the plot is interesting and it's fun to watch Agar, as he really does great in this sort of role. In other words, while a low-budget horror film, Agar puts a lot of energy into it and plays up the "evil Agar" to the hilt! While for years he's gotten a lot of ribbing for bad acting, in this film he was perfect for the role and I think that sometimes he's unfairly attacked. While certainly no thespian, what could you expect from Agar with the sort of parts he was offered in the years following his divorce from Shirley Temple? Plus, his antics as Gor were just darn funny--and were meant to be.
While not a film I'd recommend to the average person, for lovers of 50s sci-fi, this is an absolute must!
Enjoyable & silly alien brain from outer space sci-fi film.
poolandrews9 February 2012
Warning: Spoilers
The Brain from Planet Arous starts as nuclear physicist Dr. Steve Marsh (John Agar) & his friend Dan (Robert Fuller) detect blasts of radiation coming from the nearby Mystery Mountain, the two decide to drive out there & investigate the unusual phenomenon. Once there the two scientists discover a large floating alien brain from the planet Arous named Gor, the alien brain Gor is evil & kills Dan with a blast of radiation & possesses Steve's body & takes complete control of his mind. Gor becomes infatuated with Steve's fiancé Sally (Joyce Meadows) as he plans world domination, Gor causes a passenger plane to explode & crash before ordering representative's from all leading nation's to a summit meeting where he demands all of Earth's resources be handed over to him so he can build the most fearsome invasion fleet the Universe has ever seen. Gor is power mad & will stop at nothing to rule his home planet Arous & destroy any other that tries to stop him...
Directed by Nathan Juran under the name Nathan Hertz (Hertz was Juran's middle name) this is yet another ludicrous but entertaining sci-fi film that is silly, camp & unintentionally funny but also highly enjoyable in a cheesy & charming sort of way. I am sure most viewers will dismiss The Brain from Planet Arous as a cheap nonsense but if you have a fondness for infamously bad films such as Robot Monster (1954) & Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959) then you have to see this as it's on par with both of those. The script for The Brain from Planet Arous is ridiculous, a giant alien brain with glowing eyes arrives on Earth (it's never explained how he gets here since he seems to need a spaceship to get back to Arous which he has to build) & possesses a scientist & develops lurid & sexual desires towards Sally while another giant alien brain who is good & here to capture Gor also arrives & possesses Steve's dog George! It all sounds silly & it is but I found it infinitely entertaining, at only just over 70 minutes long it moves along like a rocket, the dialogue isn't as bad as some other sci-fi films from the same period & there are one or two effectives moments. The character's are alright even if Sally & her father seem rather relaxed, unshocked & unconcerned about the giant talking alien brain they meet! There are also a few other howlers here, the idea that a scientist can say with 100% accuracy that no force on Earth could have made the plane crash & that aliens are responsible is lazy while Steve seems to know a lot about Mystery Mountain if he can tell a pile of rocks at the base weren't there a year ago! I mean a rock fall might have happened & did he memorise every rock at the base the last time was there a year ago? Wouldn't a nuclear scientist have better things to do? The for some reason Sally knew that the bodies from the plane crash were burned like Dan yet she was not allowed to see the bodies & told to go away at the scene of the crash so how did she know?
The production values are alright, obviously a really low budget film the special effects aren't too bad considering. The giant brains look silly but because of what they are & the concept that they represent rather than because of bad special effects if you see what I mean. The only really bad effects shots are the planes exploding which are less than impressive. There's some stock footage of an atomic bomb going off & destroying a town & a wimpy crash at the start. The sexual advances & the way Gor talks about Sally must have been quite strong for it's day, he forces himself upon her a couple of times trying to rip open her top & take her bra off, George the dog comes to her rescue but get a kicking for it's trouble in yet another scene that seemed quite strong for it's day.
Filmed in black and white on a budget of about $58,000 the ever popular Bronson Canyon was used as a location (maybe Gor's cave was the one that the mighty Ro-Man from Robot Monster hung out in...). The acting varies, John Agar is alright as are most of the main cast but some of the smaller roles are filled with really bad actor's.
The Brain from Planet Arous is another highly entertaining film that I really liked, it's difficult to recommend it & give it more than five out of ten but I would rather watch this again than a lot of the crap that gets released these days. A top guilty pleasure.
Directed by Nathan Juran under the name Nathan Hertz (Hertz was Juran's middle name) this is yet another ludicrous but entertaining sci-fi film that is silly, camp & unintentionally funny but also highly enjoyable in a cheesy & charming sort of way. I am sure most viewers will dismiss The Brain from Planet Arous as a cheap nonsense but if you have a fondness for infamously bad films such as Robot Monster (1954) & Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959) then you have to see this as it's on par with both of those. The script for The Brain from Planet Arous is ridiculous, a giant alien brain with glowing eyes arrives on Earth (it's never explained how he gets here since he seems to need a spaceship to get back to Arous which he has to build) & possesses a scientist & develops lurid & sexual desires towards Sally while another giant alien brain who is good & here to capture Gor also arrives & possesses Steve's dog George! It all sounds silly & it is but I found it infinitely entertaining, at only just over 70 minutes long it moves along like a rocket, the dialogue isn't as bad as some other sci-fi films from the same period & there are one or two effectives moments. The character's are alright even if Sally & her father seem rather relaxed, unshocked & unconcerned about the giant talking alien brain they meet! There are also a few other howlers here, the idea that a scientist can say with 100% accuracy that no force on Earth could have made the plane crash & that aliens are responsible is lazy while Steve seems to know a lot about Mystery Mountain if he can tell a pile of rocks at the base weren't there a year ago! I mean a rock fall might have happened & did he memorise every rock at the base the last time was there a year ago? Wouldn't a nuclear scientist have better things to do? The for some reason Sally knew that the bodies from the plane crash were burned like Dan yet she was not allowed to see the bodies & told to go away at the scene of the crash so how did she know?
The production values are alright, obviously a really low budget film the special effects aren't too bad considering. The giant brains look silly but because of what they are & the concept that they represent rather than because of bad special effects if you see what I mean. The only really bad effects shots are the planes exploding which are less than impressive. There's some stock footage of an atomic bomb going off & destroying a town & a wimpy crash at the start. The sexual advances & the way Gor talks about Sally must have been quite strong for it's day, he forces himself upon her a couple of times trying to rip open her top & take her bra off, George the dog comes to her rescue but get a kicking for it's trouble in yet another scene that seemed quite strong for it's day.
Filmed in black and white on a budget of about $58,000 the ever popular Bronson Canyon was used as a location (maybe Gor's cave was the one that the mighty Ro-Man from Robot Monster hung out in...). The acting varies, John Agar is alright as are most of the main cast but some of the smaller roles are filled with really bad actor's.
The Brain from Planet Arous is another highly entertaining film that I really liked, it's difficult to recommend it & give it more than five out of ten but I would rather watch this again than a lot of the crap that gets released these days. A top guilty pleasure.
Just why did Shirley Temple's ex star in these kinds of movies?
lee_eisenberg4 January 2006
My 10/10 rating of course only applies because I assume that only '50s-B-movie fetishists would even take any interest in "The Brain from Planet Arous". But previous reviewers have noted that this movie takes a slightly different approach: criminal brain Gor comes to earth to inhabit a man's body and thereby rule the universe, while police brain Vol arrives in search of the criminal brain (meaning that most of the brains on Planet Arous are good guys). Therefore, even non-fetishists should take some interest in this movie.
The characters are pretty much what one would expect: the men are all hot-headed, while the one woman is desperate. The main character Steve March is played by John Agar, aka Shirley Temple's first husband. I also saw him in "Journey to the Seventh Planet" (although I paid slightly more attention to the hot babes in that one). Maybe he starred in '50s and '60s B-sci-fi movies because his reputation as Shirley Temple's ex limited his opportunities (actually, I don't know whether that limited his opportunities). Also starring are Joyce Meadows as Steve's hubby Sally Fallon, Thomas Brown Henry as her father John, and Dale Tate as the voices of Gor and Vol. If this had ever gotten shown on "MST3K", Mike or Servo or Crow probably would have said "If Planet Arous has a brain, why didn't the people behind this movie?" But I personally didn't think find this a bad movie. Like any '50s sci-fi flick, you have to accept it for what it is.
The characters are pretty much what one would expect: the men are all hot-headed, while the one woman is desperate. The main character Steve March is played by John Agar, aka Shirley Temple's first husband. I also saw him in "Journey to the Seventh Planet" (although I paid slightly more attention to the hot babes in that one). Maybe he starred in '50s and '60s B-sci-fi movies because his reputation as Shirley Temple's ex limited his opportunities (actually, I don't know whether that limited his opportunities). Also starring are Joyce Meadows as Steve's hubby Sally Fallon, Thomas Brown Henry as her father John, and Dale Tate as the voices of Gor and Vol. If this had ever gotten shown on "MST3K", Mike or Servo or Crow probably would have said "If Planet Arous has a brain, why didn't the people behind this movie?" But I personally didn't think find this a bad movie. Like any '50s sci-fi flick, you have to accept it for what it is.
wasn't this show on creature feature years ago..
smjm1982-124 January 2006
my gosh.. to me that was the scariest series. I would love to see creature feature come to the scifi channel, the best movies but most off, the scariest intro, scenes when returning to and leaving from show for commercials, both in sound and imagery. I clearly remember it in black and white as that was the TV I most watched creature feature on.
This was the 2nd or 3rd scariest show, especially when the brain w/eyes comes zooming in. Its creepy looking enough as it is. That alone makes it worth watching this film. The best was house on haunted hill, 2nd was some movie that maybe someone could put up here but all I remember was a china closet slowly spookily moving across the room in sort of an attack fashion but this is definitely either 2nd or 3rd best.
A definite must see, scary in a creepy sort of way, 7.0
This was the 2nd or 3rd scariest show, especially when the brain w/eyes comes zooming in. Its creepy looking enough as it is. That alone makes it worth watching this film. The best was house on haunted hill, 2nd was some movie that maybe someone could put up here but all I remember was a china closet slowly spookily moving across the room in sort of an attack fashion but this is definitely either 2nd or 3rd best.
A definite must see, scary in a creepy sort of way, 7.0
The Brain From Planet Arous
a_baron17 December 2021
Oh boy, who dreamed this one up? Sadly, this monstrosity is par for the course for 1950s science fiction films, though most are not as bad. An alien criminal who of course speaks flawless English has somehow dug out a cave in the desert, and after commandeering the body of a scientist, hopes to take over the planet, enslave a large workforce, and use this to create a fleet of starships to return to his own world to take that over. But this guy is so powerful, one wonders why he needed to come here instead of just do it. Fortunately, an alien lawman is in hot pursuit, he aims to stop Gor by enlisting the services of his victim's love interest. And her dog.
Can they stop this fiend before his dastardly plan comes to fruition? What do you think?
Can they stop this fiend before his dastardly plan comes to fruition? What do you think?
No brains were strained during the making or this motion picture.
Bruce_Cook4 November 2001
The concept, though not brilliant, could have worked -- but the amateurish treatment spoils the effort. While conducting field work in the desert, scientist John Agar encounters a huge floating brain which turns out to be a sadistic, power-hungry alien name Gor, a fugitive from it's home planet. The alien can become translucent and fade into Agar's body, controlling him while it uses its telekinetic powers and delights in the pleasures of human flesh. But it has to come out every twenty hours to `re-oxygenate' (?). Admittedly the alien is not badly designed (the brain has strange glowing eyes with no pupils).
Whenever Gor/Agar is using his telekinetic powers, Agar's eyes become shiny black orbs (an nice bit of makeup). Gor/Agar demonstrates his mental powers of destruction for a group of generals and diplomats by `willing' an atomic explosion to occur in the nearby desert (great stock footage of buildings being destroyed by shock waves and heat flashes). Then Gor/Agar orders them to put Earth's population to work creating a space fleet so he can return to his own planet and conquer it.
Meanwhile, a second alien name Vol comes to Earth to save it from Gor. To spy on Gor, Vol takes control of Agar's dog. Vol/dog elicits the aid of Agar's fiancé (lovely Joyce Meadows). She's glad to help, because she already knew SOMETHING was wrong with Agar after he turned kinky and tried to rape her on a lawn chair.
Beware: the finale is a short and unexciting struggle between Agar (armed with an ax) and the floating Gor brain. And Agar's closing line to his fiancé' is painfully stupid. When she tries to tell him that a good-guy alien has been in control of the dog, John doesn't believe her. He just laughs and says, `Oh, honey -- that imagination of yours!'
If you're absolutely desperate for a 1950s sci-fi flick you haven't already watched to death, this one might be worth watching -- but only to laugh at.
Whenever Gor/Agar is using his telekinetic powers, Agar's eyes become shiny black orbs (an nice bit of makeup). Gor/Agar demonstrates his mental powers of destruction for a group of generals and diplomats by `willing' an atomic explosion to occur in the nearby desert (great stock footage of buildings being destroyed by shock waves and heat flashes). Then Gor/Agar orders them to put Earth's population to work creating a space fleet so he can return to his own planet and conquer it.
Meanwhile, a second alien name Vol comes to Earth to save it from Gor. To spy on Gor, Vol takes control of Agar's dog. Vol/dog elicits the aid of Agar's fiancé (lovely Joyce Meadows). She's glad to help, because she already knew SOMETHING was wrong with Agar after he turned kinky and tried to rape her on a lawn chair.
Beware: the finale is a short and unexciting struggle between Agar (armed with an ax) and the floating Gor brain. And Agar's closing line to his fiancé' is painfully stupid. When she tries to tell him that a good-guy alien has been in control of the dog, John doesn't believe her. He just laughs and says, `Oh, honey -- that imagination of yours!'
If you're absolutely desperate for a 1950s sci-fi flick you haven't already watched to death, this one might be worth watching -- but only to laugh at.
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