In the mid 1960s Amicus Productions emerged as a Hammer Films
wanna-be. The studio aped the Hammer horror films and even occasionally
encroached on Hammer by "stealing" their two biggest stars, Christopher
Lee and Peter Cushing. The first Amicus hit was "Dr. Terror's House of
Horrors", released in 1965 and top-lining Lee and Cushing. The format of
various horror tales linked by an anthology format proved to be so
successful that Amicus would repeat the formula over the next decade in
films such as "Tales from the Crypt", "Vault of Horror" and "The House
That Dripped Blood". The studio cranked out plenty of other horror
flicks and by the mid-to-late 1970s Amicus was producing better fare
than Hammer, which had made the mistake of increasingly concentrating on
blood and gore and tits and ass to the detriment of the overall
productions. Occasionally-indeed, very rarely- Amicus would branch out
from the horror genre and produce other fare. (i.e. the Bond-inspired
"Danger Route" and the social drama "Thank You All Very Much") but the
studio was out of its element when it came to producing non-horror
flicks. A particularly inspired offbeat entry in the Amicus canon was
the 1970 production "The Mind of Mr. Soames", based on a novel by
Charles Eric Maine. The intriguing premise finds John Soames (Terence
Stamp) a 30 year-old man who has been in a coma since birth. He has been
studiously tended to by the staff at a medical institution in the
British countryside where a round-the-clock team sees to it that he is
properly nourished and that his limbs are exercised to prevent atrophy.
Soames apparently is an orphan with no living relatives so he is in
complete custody of the medical community, which realizes he represents a
potentially important opportunity for scientific study- if he can be
awakened. That possibility comes to pass when an American, Dr. Bergen
(Robert Vaughn) arrives at the clinic possessing what he feels is a
successful method of performing an operation that will bring Soames "to
life". The operation is surprisingly simple and bares fruit when, hours
later, Soames begins to open his eyes and make sounds.The staff realize
this is a medical first: Soames will come into the world as a grown man
but with the mind and instincts of a baby.
Soames' primary care in the post-operation period is left to Dr.
Maitland (Nigel Davenport), who has constructed a rigid schedule to
advance Soames' intellect and maturity as quickly as possible.
Initially, Maitland's plans pay off and Soames responds favorably to the
new world he is discovering. However, over time, as his intellect
reaches that of a small child, he begins to harbor resentment towards
Maitland for his "all stick and no carrot" approach to learning. Dr.
Bergen tries to impress on Maitland the importance of allowing Soames to
have some levity in his life and the opportunity to learn at his own
pace. Ultimately, Bergen allows Soames outside to enjoy the fresh air
and observe nature first hand on the clinic's lush grounds. Soames is
ecstatic but his joy is short-lived when an outraged Dr. Maitland has
him forcibly taken back into the institute. Soames ultimately rebels and
makes a violent escape into a world he is ill-equipped to understand.
He has the maturity and knowledge of a five or six year old boy but
knows that he prefers freedom to incarceration. As a massive manhunt for
Soames goes into overdrive, the film traces his abilities to elude his
pursuers as he manages to travel considerable distance with the help of
well-intentioned strangers who don't realize who he is. Soames is
ultimately struck by a car driven by a couple on a remote country road.
Because the lout of a husband was drunk at the time, they choose to
nurse him back to health in their own home. The wife soon realizes who
he is and takes pity on him- but when Soames hear's approaching police
cars he bolts, thus setting in motion a suspenseful and emotionally
wrenching climax.
"The Mind of Mr. Soames" is unlike any other Amicus feature. It isn't a
horror film nor a science fiction story and the plot device of a man
having been in a coma for his entire life is presented as a totally
viable medical possibility. Although there are moments of tension and
suspense, this is basically a mature, psychological drama thanks to the
intelligent screenplay John Hale and Edward Simpson and the equally
impressive, low-key direction of Alan Cooke, who refrains from
overplaying the more sensational aspects of the story. Stamp is
outstanding in what may have been the most challenging role of his
career and he receives excellent support from Robert Vaughn (sporting
the beard he grew for his next film, the remake of "Julius Caesar") and
Nigel Davenport. Refreshingly, there are no villains in the film. Both
doctors have vastly different theories and approaches to treating Soames
but they both want what is best for him. The only unsympathetic
character is a hipster TV producer and host played by Christian Roberts
who seeks to exploit the situation by filming and telecasting Soames'
progress as though it were a daily soap opera.
Amicus had a potential winner with this movie but it punted when it
came to the advertising campaign by implying it was a horror film. "The
mind of a baby, the strength of a madman!" shouted the trailers and the
print ads screamed "CAN THIS BABY KILL?" alongside an absurd image of
Stamp locked inside an infant's crib. In fact, Soames does pose a
danger to others and himself simply because he doesn't realize the
implications of his own strength- but he is presented sympathetically in
much the same way as the monster in the original "Frankenstein".
Perhaps because of the botched marketing campaign, the film came and
went quickly. In some major U.S. cities it was relegated to a few art
houses before it disappeared. In fact the art house circuit was where it
belonged but the ad campaign isolated upper crust viewers who favored
films by Bergman and Fellini but balked when the saw the over-the-top
elements of the ads.
"The Mind of Mr. Soames" is currently streaming on Amazon Prime.
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