Almost ten years after his last "Dr. Kildare" film, Lew Ayres is back in the medical field, here playing Patrick Corey, a scientist who experiments on living organs. His whole personality is taken over by the evil brain of a deceased millionaire who appears to have been a bullying criminal, blackmailing former associates and even trying to kill one of Ayres' associates. Ayres gives a complex performance which outshines his leading lady, future first lady Nancy Davis (Reagan) whose acting is extremely inconsistent. In one scene, she's told that she'll end up outshining Madame Curie. Well, her mixed performance will never be compared to Greer Garson! The sound effects are quite eerie, some of the scientific explanations somewhat palatable, and the brain itself is a stagnant monster of such unrelenting evil that you really hope to see it explode. Add in some revelations about the dead man's family which expose much about the way the brain controls, and you have a creepy "B" feature that you just can't turn away from, no matter how corny it gets.
Review of Donovan's Brain
