Brain Damage | Blu-ray

There may be no director who benefitted more from the home video boom and the increased thirst for schlock cinema that came with it than Frank Henenlotter. Known for bad-taste classics like the Basket Case trilogy, and Frankenhooker, Henenlotter thrived as part of Troma’s growing distribution footprint of trashy cult cinema.

Sitting alongside notable cult gems like Night of the Creeps and Slither, Brain Damage tells the tale of a young man afflicted with a worm-like parasite with one goal, to devour brains. To meet that goal, he pumps his host full of hallucinogenic drugs in order to convince him to find and kill new victims.

It’s every bit as disgusting and disturbing as it sounds, but the movie does feature a great soundtrack with the help of jangle-rock band The Swimming Pool Qs and some interesting subtext about substance addiction. In the flood of video nasties hitting shelves in the 1980s, Henenlotter’s work is always appointment viewing.

Special Features (via arrowvideo.com)

• High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
• Original Mono and 5.1 DTS-HD MA Surround Audio Options
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• Isolated Score
• Audio commentary by writer-director Frank Henenlotter
• Listen to the Light: The Making of Brain Damage – documentary featuring interviews with actor Rick Herbst, producer Edgar Ievins, editor James Kwei, first AD Gregory Lamberson, visual effects supervisor Al Magliochetti and makeup artist Dan Frye
• The Effects of Brain Damage – FX artist and creator of “Elmer” Gabe Bartalos looks back at his iconic effects work on the film
• Animating Elmer – featurette looking at the contributions of visual effects supervisor Al Magliochetti
• Karen Ogle: A Look Back – stills photographer, script supervisor and assistant editor Karen Ogle recalls her fond memories of working on Brain Damage
• Elmer’s Turf: The NYC Locations of Brain Damage – featurette revisiting the film’s original shooting locations
• Tasty Memories: A Brain Damage Obsession – an interview with superfan Adam Skinner
• Brain Damage Q&A with Frank Henenlotter recorded at the 2016 Offscreen Film Festival
• Image Galleries
• Original Theatrical Trailer
• Bygone Behemoth – animated short by Harry Chaskin, featuring a brief appearance by John Zacherle in his final onscreen credit
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sara Deck