Brand Upon the Brain! A Remembrance in 12 Chapters (2006)

Returned home to his long-estranged mother upon a request from her deathbed, a man raised by his parents in an orphanage has to confront the childhood memories that have long haunted him.

Director:

Guy Maddin

Writers:

Guy Maddin, Louis Negin (narration)

Stars:

Gretchen Krich, Sullivan Brown, Maya Lawson

3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gretchen Krich	...	Mother
Sullivan Brown	...	Young Guy Maddin
Maya Lawson	...	Sis
Jake Morgan-Scharhon	...	Chance Hale / Wendy Hale (as Katherine E. Scharhon)
Todd Moore	...	Father
Andrew Loviska	...	Savage Tom
Kellan Larson	...	Neddie
Erik Steffen Maahs	...	Older Guy Maddin
Cathleen O'Malley	...	Young Mother
Clayton Corzatte	...	Old Father
Susan Corzatte	...	Old Mother
Megan Murphy	...	Murderous Sister
Annette Toutonghi	...	Murderous Sister
David Lobo	...	Oarsman
Eric Lobo	...	Oarsman

Storyline

Guy Maddin reluctantly returns to his childhood home, an abandoned Canadian island, where his parents ran an orphanage. As Guy fulfills his dying mother's request to paint the lighthouse which served as the orphanage, memories of strange events there overpower him. An undercover investigation by child author/detective Wendy & a revolt by the repressed children, blew open a cover-up by Guy's parents. Wendy disguised herself as her brother Chance and discovered that Maddin's inventor father performed outré scientific experiments on the orphans.

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Plot Keywords:

avant garde | orphanage | island | childhood memory | surrealism | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Fantasy | Romance | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Shot in nine days and edited over three months.

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Quotes

Narrator: What's a suicide attempt without a wedding?

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Connections

Edited into Samo je zemlja ispod ovog neba (2009)

User Reviews

Both derivative and inventive

With the exception of a few brief seemingly random shots, Brand Upon the Brain! is shot (or made to appear in post-production to be shot) in grainy black and white. The look is reminiscent of David Lynch's Eraserhead, a classic that may have been an influence, though the style is quite different. Maddin's film uses much more frenetic editing techniques, particularly frequent cutting to create an abrasive subliminal effect from which the title appears to be derived.

I use the term 'abrasive' and for some people that might be a negative, but I found it effective. The film uses captions and along with a neo-silent-era visual design, it has the effect of a coherent experimental film with a bizarre horror narrative. A man, Guy, returns to the island orphanage of his parents after a thirty year absence, on the request of his dying mother. It turns out the parents were subjecting the orphans to some peculiar activities from which Guy escaped.

I found the design, high-contrast lighting and editing techniques effective in conveying a bizarre nightmare-type of story, a horror film that is not entirely original in narrative nor design, yet original in its presentation. I liked the voice-over narration by Isabelle Rosellini.

There are some very attractive characterisations and depictions of inoffensive perversity. Definitely worth a look.

Details

Official Sites:

ED Distribution [France] Official MySpace

Country:

Canada USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 September 2008 (France)

Also Known As:

Brand Upon the Brain!

Filming Locations:

Seattle, Washington, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$46,412, 13 May 2007

Gross USA:

$263,200

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$298,982

Company Credits

Production Co:

The Film Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1