Main Cast: Steve Martin, Kathleen Turner, David Warner, Paul Benedict, Richard Brestoff
Release Year: 1983
Country: US
Run Time: 93 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
Steve Martin and Carl Reiner concoct one of Martin's best comic vehicles with Martin playing the world's top brain surgeon, Dr. Michael Hfuhruhurr -- he ought to know, he said so himself. Hfuhruhurr pioneered the radical new cranial screw-top technique, but he grieves over the untimely death of his wife Rebecca, carrying around a small plastic likeness of her to get through the long and lonely evenings. Thinking of her while driving home, Hfuhruhurr takes his eyes off the road and runs down the beautiful but deadly Dolores Benedict (Kathleen Turner). Hfuhruhurr performs surgery which saves her life, but as she recovers, Hfuhruhurr doesn't realize Dolores is a gold-digging vixen who has driven her latest husband (George Furth) to death by apoplexy. She is now looking for a new victim and Hfuhruhurr fits the bill. They marry, but Dolores denies her husband sexual favors, which frustrates Hfuhruhurr to distraction. He takes Dolores on a belated honeymoon to Austria, where he meets fellow brain surgeon Dr. Necessiter (David Warner), who keeps a wide assortment of brains in his laboratory. Dolores takes the opportunity to have an extramarital affair, and when Hfuhruhurr finds out he dumps her. But in Necessiter's laboratory, Hfuhruhurr becomes attracted to Brain #21, Ann Uumellmahaye (voice of Sissy Spacek), with whom he communicates telepathically. At last, here is one case where a man loves a woman for her mind rather than her body (which doesn't exist)! But Ann's brain is deteriorating rapidly; Hfuhruhurr needs to find a body and transplant the brain quickly in order to save Ann. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
Review
A noted critic once observed that the use of overly exaggerated comic names reeks of desperation, and while Steve Martin's character's unpronounceable moniker in The Man With Two Brains may not mark the nadir of his comic career, the film remains a minor comic gem in the talented renaissance celebrity's post-Saturday Night Live career. An uneven comedy effort despite some truly sidesplitting moments, this somewhat raunchy early effort isn't without its moments. The film's odd mix of off-the-wall zaniness and endearing quirk isn't quite as refined here as it is in Martin's later efforts, and despite frequent dull stretches, it does provide a curious preview of the inspired mix that made Roxanne (1987) and L.A. Story (1991) so effective. The image of Martin serenading a pickled brain while boating on serene waters offers surreal charm, and as ridiculous as the whole thing seems, the affection in Martin and Sissy Spacek's performances comes off as oddly genuine. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
James Cromwell - Realtor; George Furth - Timon; Peter Hobbs - Dr. Brandon; Bernard Behrens - Gladstone; Earl Boen - Dr. Conrad; Jeffrey Combs - Dr. Jones; Jenny Gago - Nurse #1; Bernie Hern - Gun Seller; Stephanie Kramer - Beautiful Girl; Sparky Marcus - Bellboy; Frank McCarthy - Olsen; Don McLeod - Gorilla/Schlermie Beckerman; Estelle Reiner - Tourist in Elevator; Adrian Ricard - Nurse in Room; Kate Sarchet - Hooker #2; Wendy Sherman - Hooker #3; Warwick Sims - Drunk Test Policeman; Sissy Spacek - Ann Uumellmahaye; Tom Spratley - Minister; William Traylor - Inspector; Natividad Vacio - Ramon; Perla Walter - Housekeeper; Diane Peterson - Hooker #1; Haunani Minn - Nurse Breen; David Byrd - Desk Clerk; Peter Elbing - Morgue Attendant; Oceana Marr - Older Nurse; Breck Costin - Handsome Waiter; Randi Brooks - Fran; George Fisher - Patrol Car Officer
Credit
Mark Mansbridge - Art Director, Marion Dougherty - Casting, Eli Cohen - Costume Designer, Mina Mittleman - Costume Designer, Kevin Brennan - Costume Designer, Michael Grillo - First Assistant Director, Carl Reiner - Director, Bud Molin - Editor, Joel Goldsmith - Composer (Music Score), Lance Anderson - Makeup, Ric Sagliani - Makeup, E. Thomas Case - Makeup, William Badalato - Production Designer, Polly Platt - Production Designer, Michael Chapman - Cinematographer, William E. McEuen - Producer, David V. Picker - Producer, Bruce Gibeson - Set Designer, Robert Sessa - Set Designer, Allen Hall - Special Effects, Clayton Pinney - Special Effects, Robert Willard - Special Effects, Steve Maslow - Sound/Sound Designer, Bud Alper - Sound/Sound Designer, Louie Elias - Stunts, Gary Epper - Stunts, Jeannie Epper - Stunts, Gary McLarty - Stunts, John Robotham - Stunts, George Fisher - Stunts, Steve Martin - Screenwriter, Carl Reiner - Screenwriter, George Gipe - Screenwriter
Written by Martin and George Gipe, the film is a broad comedy, with Martin playing Dr. Michael Hfuhruhurr, a pioneering neurosurgeon with a cruel and unfaithful new wife, Dolores Benedict (Turner).
In 2000, readers of Total Film magazine voted The Man with Two Brains the 35th greatest comedy film of all time.[citation needed]
Plot
Dr. Michael Hfuhruhurr (Martin), a widowed brain surgeon renowned for inventing a method of 'cranial screw-top' brain surgery, saves the life of Dolores Benedict (Turner), a gold-digging femme fatale who is accidentally run over by Hfuhruhurr when fleeing the scene of her latest husband's fatal coronary (which her malicious mind-games and scheming caused). As she recovers, Hfuhruhurr falls in love with her and they marry. She torments him by pretending to be too ill to consummate the marriage, driving him into a frenzy of frustration. On a honeymoon/business trip to a medical conference in Vienna, a city living in fear of the serial "Elevator Killer", Hfuhruhurr meets mad scientist Dr. Alfred Necessiter (David Warner), who has created a radical new technique enabling him to store living brains in liquid-filled jars.
After learning that his adored new wife is really "a cheap, vulgar slut," Hfuhruhurr discovers he can communicate telepathically with one of Necessiter's brains, that of Anne Uumellmahaye (uncredited but voiced by Sissy Spacek). Hfuhruhurr and the disembodied brain immediately fall in love. The convergence of a sudden rush of random murders and the possibility of brain transplantation causes Hfuhruhurr to speculate about how he might improve his lot in life.
As the good doctor searches for a female to kill so he can have the beloved brain implanted into a human body, he realizes that he is unable to kill. He professes this to the surgeon, who tells Hfuhruhurr that as a last resort he can implant the brain into a gorilla that he keeps in his laboratory. After giving this idea serious consideration for several seconds, Hfuhruhurr replies "I couldn't fuck a gorilla!"
Determined to find a body for Anne, Hfuhruhurr drives to the city center with a syringe filled with window cleaner, the substance used by the Elevator Killer to kill his victims, and selects a prostitute to kill and take her body. However, after taking her to her room, he finds that he is unable to do the deed because he hates her squeaky voice, and goes home empty-handed. Returning to his apartment, he finds that Benedict has just been murdered by the Elevator Killer, who turns out to be Merv Griffin. Hfuhruhurr hurriedly takes Benedict's body to Necessiter's lab while evading the Austrian Police, where he and Necessiter manage to transfer Anne's consciousness to Benedict's body. However, in the process, Hfuhruhurr is electrically shocked by the equipment and falls into a coma.
Waking up six weeks later, back in his hometown, Hfuhruhurr finally meets up with Anne in Benedict's body. He realizes that he loves her as a person, even though she hadn't told him she was a compulsive overeater (and has gained considerable weight). They are married shortly thereafter, and reenact the previous over-the-threshold scene. The film ends with a request for the audience to report the whereabouts of Merv Griffin if they see him at large.
