It's difficult to say that a movie from the 30s is filled with clichés, because at the time they weren't so. The mad scientist, the arrogant businessman, the cocky boyfriend and the kind and clever woman, they are all here and doing the same things they do in today's movies. Perhaps at time time they were book stereotypes... How we can't improve on the story of films after 80 years is a testament of our complacency as humans. Perhaps this is why mad scientists appear, they are only men of science at the beginning, but the world drives them mad. There is such a scene in the movie and one of the few in the genre that try to explain the desperation that takes one to do insane things. In this time, the madness of the scientist is a given and nobody cares why he does it, only that he die in an explosion wild eyed and screaming "Noo!".All in all, a classic of horror.

Luckily we know better than to judge a movie by its title, otherwise perhaps nobody would ever bother to check out "The Man Who Changed His Mind". When I hear a title like that, I imagine the fascinating story of a man sitting in a bar and ordering a cup of coffee. Yet, when the waitress brings the order, he claims to have changed his mind and now wants a cup of tea instead. Obviously, this is NOT what this early collaboration between horror veteran Boris Karloff and the respectable director Robert Stevenson is about. No actually, you may interpret that title very literally, as Karloff depicts an obsessive and utterly bonkers scientist who's able to transfer the brain substance of one individual's body to that of another. The genius but anti-social and obnoxious Dr. Laurience is the subject of mockery and disbelief amongst his colleagues, but with the help and encouragement of his new and lovable assistant Clare Wyatt, he even manages to get his research financed by a wealthy newspaper tycoon. When they announce to stop the financing prematurely, however, Dr. Laurience mentally snaps and uses his opponents as reluctant guinea pigs. "The Man Who Changed His Mind" is a very modest and sadly overlooked 1930's horror gem that actually deserves to have a slightly more respectable status. The film is very straightforward and certainly doesn't waste any time with its running time of barely 62 minutes. The introduction of the characters is brief and to-the-point, the dialogs are never longer than absolutely necessary and even the obligatory triangular relationship aspect between the mad scientist, his assistant and her fiancée is kept to a minimum. The acting performances are admittedly rather stiff, including the one given by the amazing Mr. Karloff, but his crazy eyes and naturally malignant charisma (and in this case also his wildly outrageous haircut) are more than enough to make him a very scary protagonist. Speaking of scary, the film has a couple of noteworthy tense moments, like the actual brain transfers and the race-against-the-clock finale. Definitely one of Karloff's better "evil scientist" movies from the era, this one was shot and produced in England. For some reason, UK horror movies always feature an extra bit of menacing atmosphere and creepy elegance. The young and developing talent of director Robert Stevenson also might have helped, of course. In heavy contrast to this morbid little film, Stevenson would later direct some of Disney's big successes like "Old Yeller", "Mary Poppins" and "Herbie, the Love bug".

The machine that transfers brains is a staple of science fiction to the point of being camp or cliché, but this is probably the first time the idea was used on film. Karloff plays a mad scientist who invents the device, demonstrating it on a pair of chimps. A British newspaper mogul bankrolls his research, only to find his mind exchanged for the mad doctor's crippled lab assistant.Karloff's performance is what makes this movie. He returned to the United Kingdom after his initial success in Hollywood and made a series of low-budget horror films, of this was probably one of the best of the lot. Nowhere near the quality of Universal.

The incomparable Boris Karloff was doubtlessly not only one of the greatest Horror icons in the History of Motion pictures, but one of the greatest actors the world of cinema will ever see, and the 1930s were both a golden age in Horror cinema and the most memorable decade in the genre-deity's career. Take this wonderful film, for example. While "The Man Who Changed His Mind" of 1936 may not be as brilliant as the most essential masterpieces starring Karloff (such as "Frankenstein", "Bride Of Frankenstein", "The Mummy" or "The Black Cat"), it is doubtlessly a terrific example for both Karloff's genius, and for the variety of innovative ideas that dominated the Horror industry in the 30s.Karloff plays the eccentric Dr. Laurience, who is dedicated to the idea of separating the mind from the body, and transferring it to other bodies. After successful experiments with animals, Laurience is eager to 'change minds' in men... The chain-smoking Dr. Laurience alone is a character as eccentric and interesting as only the good old days in Horror, and Karloff is, as always, brilliant in the role. The film includes a bunch of other eccentric characters, such as a cigar-smoking newspaper mogul or Laurience's wheel-chair bound colleague. Anna Lee plays Clare, a young female scientist, and aspiring assistant to Laurience. The only character I found slightly annoying is that of her boyfriend, Newspaper mogul's son. The film is only 63 minutes long, and does not drag for a minute. The fact that the film did not have the production values of contemporary Universal Horror classics does not lessen it in the least. It may not be as rich of impressive cinematography as are some other Karloff classics, but it has a delightful atmosphere of climatic insanity, and a sophisticated tension from the first minute. Overall, "The Man Who Changed His Mind" is a wonderful film for everyone who appreciates Classic Horror that comes with my highest recommendations!