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NIGHTMARES IN A DAMAGED BRAIN, aka Nightmare
NIGHT OF THE BLOODY APES, a south-of-the-border nasty

The Doctor is currently evaluating the following titles with a view to inclusion: NIGHT OF THE DEMON (1981) NIGHTMARE MAKER NIGHTMARE CITY

NIGHTMARES IN A DAMAGED BRAIN

aka Nightmare (US); Goldmine Productions, USA/Italy, 1982; 97 min

Another prime target for the video nasty bashers, Romano Scavolini’s Nightmare was released in the UK with a questionable title change, press-showings accompanied by sick bags, and a competition among video dealers to guess the weight of a “damaged brain” in a pickle jar.

This unimaginative retread of Halloween (1977) has a young boy finding his parents engaged in sado-masochistic sex and offing the pair of them in a protracted and bloody axe murder scene, evocative of Ulli Lommel's The Bogey Man (1981). Now an adult, he is eventually released from an institution which has controlled his worst excesses with drugs, only to fall victim to a series of recurring brutal nightmares which prompt him to kill again.
An incestuous affair (the producers provided the special effects and appear in the film), Scavolini’s only contribution to the genre attracted rather more attention in the courts than in the cinemas. The makers were sued in the USA for spuriously crediting Tom Savini with the special effects and the UK distributor was jailed for six months for supplying an uncertificated version of the film on video.

Dir. Romano Scavolini; Prod. John L. Watkins, William Milling; Scr. Romano Scavolini; Star. C.J. Cooke, Sharon Smith, Baird Stafford; With Mik Cribben, Christina Keefe, William S. Kirksey, William Milling, Scott Praetorius, Danny Ronen, John Watkins.

UK Vid. World of Video 2000, QRT 89 min (unrated), Beta & VHS

NIGHT OF THE BLOODY APES

aka Horror y Sexo (Mex.), La Horripilante Bestia Humana (Mex.), Gomar — The Human Gorilla (US); Jerand, Mexico, 1968; 82 min

Rene Cardona plagiarised his own Doctor of Doom (1962) with this gory outing which showcases actuality footage of open heart surgery to make up for the otherwise risible special effects such as prosthetic makeup appliances which come unstuck on camera, and bouncing rubber knives, to name but two.
The feeble plot concerns a mad scientist who transplants the heart of a gorilla to reanimate his dead son, who comes back to life as a huge, oversexed and violent man-monster.
Notable only for being the only video nasty to emerge from Mexico, the film’s alternative original language title Horror y Sexo deserves some recognition for its candour.

Dir. Rene Cardona; Prod. G. Calderon Stell; Scr. Rene Cardona, Rene Cardona Jr.; Star. Jose Elias Moreno; With Carlos Lopez Moctezuma, Armando Silvestre

UK Vid. Iver Film Services, QRT 82 min (unrated), Beta, VHS & V2000

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