The Mind of Mr. Soames (1970)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

Alan Cooke

Writers:

John Hale (writer)
Charles Eric Maine (novel)

Genre:

Sci-Fi | Drama

Tagline:

Can this baby kill?

Plot:

A man who has been in a coma since infancy is awakened.

Plot Keywords:

Based On Novel | Independent Film | Character Name In Title

Cast

Terence Stamp	...	John Soames
Robert Vaughn	...	Dr. Michael Bergen
Nigel Davenport	...	Dr. Maitland
Christian Roberts	...	Thomas Fleming
Donal Donnelly	...	Joe Allen
Norman Jones	...	Davis
Dan Jackson	...	Nicholls
Vickery Turner	...	Naomi
Judy Parfitt	...	Jenny Bannerman
Scott Forbes	...	Richard Bannerman
Joe McPartland	...	Insp. Moore
Pamela Moiseiwitsch	...	Melanie Parks
Billy Cornelius	...	Sgt. Clifford
John Croft	...	Guard
Esmond Webb	...	Ticket Seller

Runtime:

Germany:92 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:AA | USA:GP (original rating) | USA:PG

Company:

Amicus Productions

Unsatisfying Conclusion to a Interesting Premise

Due to a complication at birth, a man is born into a coma. For thirty years he has stayed that way. Now due to medical advancement they can stimulate the part of the brain that is asleep, thus allowing him to awaken into consciousness. Problem is that he will be a virtual infant. They will have to educate him at a much quicker pace than a normal child.

Outside of a few implausibilities it isn't too bad. The story is handled in a overall realistic manner. The pacing is tight and compact. The cinematagraphy is outstanding with excellent framing. Stamp plays the part with conviction and overall makes a believable grown up baby.

The story itself is much more complex than it initially looks. It takes a pretty good examination into the science approach vs the humanistic one. It shows how truly complicated the human being is and the great balance it takes to successfully raise one. It also takes a few good potshots at the obtrusiveness of the media.

The stories most interesting angle though comes when the adult child escapes and goes out into the real world. We see what a tight inner fabric society is. The maze that makes up the human world and the complete inability that the 'pure' human, with no prior connections to it, would truly have.

However in the end this movie is a disappointment. It stops at this point and gives us no conclusion. We never see the end result. Was this man child successfully raised? Which approach was the best? Did he ever fully adapt to the world around him? We will never know because it never tells us. The whole idea for the film looks to have been made only to bring up certain issues with no attempt at a complete story.