MILL CREEK SCI-FI CLASSICS: The Atomic Brain (1963)

Also known as Monstrosity, this is one of the first movies where decay is given as the reason for the diminished intelligence of zombies. It also features plenty of people better known for other things, like narrator Bradford Dillman, Commerical pitchman Frank Gerstle and Marjorie Eaton, who played the original Emperor in The Empire Strikes Back before the special edition re-imagining.

In just 72 minutes, we learn an old woman who gets her pick of three servants to insert her brain into, thus getting a young body that will extend her lifespan.

This was directed by Jack Pollexfen, who also made Indestructible Man, and Joseph Mascelli, who was the director of photography on The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies!!?The Thrill Killers and Wild Guitar.

This is the last film of Judy Bamber, who is also in A Bucket of Blood and Dragstrip Girl. The budget was so low that she provided Xerxes the cat, who was her housecat.

Don’t have the box set? You can watch it on Tubi or download it from the Internet Archive.