– but there’s also a lot about the movie that … doesn’t hold up so well. One could argue that the climax, in which Dr. Hfuhruhurr very nearly resorts to murder in order to obtain a sexy host body for his lover’s brain, was intended as a criticism of misogyny and male superficiality – but considering that the entire movie ends on a dumb fatphobic joke, it’s hard to give it the benefit of the doubt.
Regardless, The Man With Two Brains has – and we refuse to budge on this – the best damn celebrity cameo in movie history.
At the risk of spoiling the film (seriously, stop reading now if you haven’t seen this 39-year-old movie and wish to enjoy it completely untarnished), much of the action takes place in Vienna during a medical conference. A random (although ultimately pivotal) B-story involves a mysterious stranger who murders women in elevators, which the locals have dubbed, somewhat unimaginatively, the “Elevator Killer.”
When we witness the Elevator Killer take down his first victim, we pointedly never see his face – just that he’s wearing a trenchcoat and ominously carrying a syringe.
Warner Bros.
When the killer corners his victim, she seems to know him and is seemingly pleasantly surprised to see him. In true whodunnit form, before she is able to further reveal the identity of the mystery man to the audience, he strikes!
Warner Bros.
Towards the end of the film, Kathleen Turner’s character also ends up in an elevator with the murderer, and she too seems to know him – who could it be?? Well, when Martin appears on the scene, it’s revealed that the Elevator Killer is none other than … talk show host Merv Griffin, playing … Merv Griffin. Yup, the long-time TV personality bashfully admits that he’s the culprit, revealing that: “I’ve always just loved to kill. I really enjoy it.” He goes on to say that his predilection for homicide has been difficult due to his fame. He can’t even “lurk” anymore without someone saying: “Who’s that lurking over there? Isn’t that Merv Griffin?” (Hence why he’s now operating in Vienna).