Trepanation /trepanning /trephination /trephining /burr hole

[Issmortor]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trepanation

I actually came across this article when reading the Wiki on Cocaine:

There is also evidence that these cultures used a mixture of coca leaves and saliva as an anesthetic for the performance of trepanation.

In summary, it is the process of drilling a hole in the skull to give one or more beneficial effects. One belief is that it increases the blood flow, or "brain-blood-volume," and creating a heightened sense of existence. It has also been done to cure mental illness, or to indigenous peoples, to free evil spirits causing the effects we commonly know of as mental illness.

I think the concept is interesting, but i must admit, i am leaning towards the more discrediting idea that it is a placebo effect more than any actual scientific effect.

I also remember seeing a movie several years ago, where the antagonist would perform this ceramony with a small handheld tool, that poked a hole(or maybe drilled) into the forehead of his victims(usually younger children). The reason for this was to access their "soul" and enter into their body to continue his life in their body. Therefore giving him eternal life. But the protagonist in the movie(was maybe a cop?) was trying to stop him from doing this to a loved on of his. One thing i remember specifically was a "tick" the person would always have, no matter who the "bad guy" took over he would do this thing where he taps each of his fingers on his thumb back and forth, over and over. And at the end of the movie, when you are made to believe the "bad guy" was defeated, it then pans out to a young girl who is doing the "finger tapping" thing.

What does everyone else think of this procedure?