Search - The Incredible Two-Headed Transplant/The Thing With Two Heads on DVD

2 movies! 2 Heads! 2 Fun!!

Stanley Runk | Camp North Pines | 08/21/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is certainly a double feature if I've ever seen one! Both films deal with the still unapproved surgical procedure of grafting a second head onto a human body. Just imagine how many lives will be saved when science finally gets this far. The Incredible Two-Headed Transplant is first on the bill. It's awfully funny, though it seems to be taking itself seriously. Wacky scientist, fired and disgraced from his surgeon job(for reasons never explained) decides to show the medical world he's worth something by creating a two-headed man. Sounds simple enough, he already has numerous two-headed animals. When an escaped rapist/killer tries to assault the doctor's wife, the doctor blows him away and sticks the head onto the local retarded handyman. Neither men consent to this. The operation is a success, and it certainly is incredible-incredibly stupid, that is. The doctor and his assistant actually seemed surprised that the thing goes on a killing spree after it escapes. I guess the doctor didn't think that he had just revived the head of the guy who tried to rape his wife. And to add to the fun, Casey Kasem is in it too! Some of the editing looks like this could have been a lost Russ Meyer movie...minus the boobs of course.
Next on the double bill is The Thing With Two Heads. This time the movie is going for laughs, and does succeed in a few spots. Though it's less serious, the explanation of grafting a second head is more believable this time. This is definately a career low for Ray Milland, who is established early on as a racist surgeon. He doesn't want to hire a black doctor even though he has a great reputation. Milland is dying of cancer and wants a body donor from death row to graft his head onto, then after his head adjusts to the body, remove the convict's head and replace it with his own. With time running out for Milland and only one donor, it turns out to be a black man who has other plans-he wants to clear his name of the crime he was accused of. Lots of chasing, including a long motorcycle chase where a record number of police cars are trashed. So, get yourself Domino's two for one pizza deal, kick back and enjoy the two-headed double feature."

Double the Genre - Double the Fun

joseph Corey | Raleigh, NC United States | 12/24/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The brilliance of AIP was that they didn't merely make an indie film - like Miramax, they made Indie genres. Any other studio would be happy with only one Two headed creature movie on the slate. But Sam Arkoff knew that a year later, the drive-in audience would be begging for a second - second head film. I remember as a kid hearing about these amazing films.

Who would imagine that Casey Kasem and Bruce Dern would be acting against each other in "The Incredible Two-Headed Transplant." But they're not sharing heads in this classic. Arkoff knew that the audience wanted to see a two headed superstar in the second flick and a year later, he gave us "The Thing With Two Heads" featuring Oscar winner Ray Milland and football superstar Rosie Grier sharing a body and a motorcycle.

And for Munster fans, you get to see Pat Priest.

The great part about the Midnite Movie Double Features series is that you get entire 2 headed grafted 70s genre in one box."

Ultra-schlock

C. S. Junker | Burien, WA USA | 06/20/2005

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Where did people get the idea for silly movies like these? Who knows. Both flicks are about putting two heads on one body. Why is this an important scientific advance that will benefit humanity? You tell me and we'll both know.

"The Incredible Two-Headed Transplant", despite the idiocy of its premise, is actually a fairly well-made bit of cinema, with a plot that clips along nicely, with plenty of cheesy action and melodrama. The point, of course, is for mad scientist Bruce Dern to sew the head of a psycopathic killer onto the body of a retarded farm hand. Why? Well, because it's there, I guess. Naturally, things get even more ridiculous after the surgery, but the movie ends before you get too fed up with it.

"The Thing with Two Heads," on the other hand, is basically a bore. It has a nice idea for the setup. Racist doctor Ray Milland is dying and needs a new body. Convict Rosy Grier is taken from death row so that Milland's head can be sewn onto Grier's body. The plan is for Milland to take over the body and lop off Grier's head at some point.

Of course, Milland is in a coma and doesn't know who the subject is, so he wakes up to find himself attached to a black man's body. Horrors! It's all played for laughs, of course, but it just isn't funny. Ray Milland has rescued more than one movie from absurdity, but he can't pull it off with this one. It gets old fast.

These two features certainly qualify as "midnite" movies. If you're in the mood for something utterly ridiculous, this will certainly fill the bill."

Fun and Campy Doubleheader from MGM

Michael R Gates | Nampa, ID United States | 10/22/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"First up in this doubleheader (pun intended) from MGM's Midnite Movies series is THE INCREDIBLE TWO-HEADED TRANSPLANT, a low-budget SF/horror flick originally released in 1971 by American International Pictures. Despite the ludicrous storyline about a medical doctor who grafts the head of an insane-asylum escapee onto the body of a gentle but mentally deficient young hulk, strong and believable performances are delivered by star Bruce Dern and costar Casey Kasem. Horror aficionados and fans of classic Saturday-morning television might recognize Kasem as the voice of Shaggy in the various animated incarnations of SCOOBY DOO, but most viewers will recognize him as the longtime host of the syndicated radio show THE AMERICAN TOP 40 COUNTDOWN. One other notable aspect of this mostly dull strip of cinematic celluloid is the appearance of Pat Priest--here playing the wife of Dern's character--who is better known to audiences for her portrayal of the character Marilyn during the bulk of the run of the 1960s TV series THE MUNSTERS.

The best half of this Midnite Movie doubleheader is 1972's THE THING WITH TWO HEADS, an intentionally campy and hilarious social satire that takes pokes at both racism and expedient medical ethics. Although this AIP cheapie was intended as a sequel to the previous years achingly dull THE INCREDIBLE TWO-HEADED TRANSPLANT, it is actually a fairly well-made film that is marred only by the Woodsian special FX. Indeed, while watching THE THING WITH TWO HEADS, one can easily imagine the ghost of Ed Wood whispering into director Lee Frost's ear: "Gee, nobody will care that the bust of Ray Milland looks fake. Aw, who will be able to tell that Milland is just standing behind Rosey Greer? Hey, don't worry--the audience will be so caught up in the story that they'll never notice that Dr. Kirshner's head moves all around on Jack Moss' shoulder!" (For those of you who don't already know, Ed Wood is almost universally recognized as Hollywood's worst film director of all time.) Yet, despite these obvious bargain-basement FX, the performances by the principals are solid and the satire remains suprisingly timely, making THE THING WITH TWO HEADS an enjoyable ride for horror/SF fans and non-fans alike.

The DVD from MGM is, unfortunately, a double-sided disc. THE INCREDIBLE TWO-HEADED TRANSPLANT is offered in a nice anamorphic widescreen edition, but THE THING WITH TWO HEADS, the better of the two films, is offered in a basic widescreen format that is, sadly, non-anamorphic. The only extras offered are the theatrical trailers for each film, but the disc is still well worth amazon's low admission price. A must-own for fans of campy, satirical SF & horror."