Basket Case - Der unheimliche Zwilling

After first glancing at the article of this movie in the book "Cult Movies 2" some 25 years ago, I finally watched Basket Case today having bought the VHS from a used video store about a month ago. It concerns conjoined twins Duane (Keven Van Hentenryck) and Belial (which is a mixture of a puppet and stop-motion animation) and their revenge against the doctors that tore them apart. There's also a romance between Duane and one of the doctors' receptionist, Sharon (Terri Susan Smith). Written and directed by Frank Henenlotter, Basket Case is obviously low-budget and amateurish with cheesy moments to spare especially whenever Belial attacks someone. But it can also provide some genuine scares and shocks especially when Belial encounters Sharon. So on that note, Basket Case comes highly recommended. P.S. One of the players, a Dorothy Strongin who played Josephine here, died in my current hometown of Baton Rouge, LA, on May 25, 2006.

Basket Case was a horro movie that was intentionally funny. And because of how cheesy it is, it's even sillier now. The plot is quite simple and the acting is mediocre, but remember, it's a B movie. But the kills are funny and have just the right amount of gore. The ending was both weird and predictable. Not the best movie and not required viewing for horror fans, but a fun 90 minutes.

this film was alot of fun to watch as a fan of cheesy films. it isn't for hardcore gorehounds but is a treat for anyone who gets a kick out of b-movie classics like "the horror of party beach".

this film is genuinely entertaining despite it's low budget and doesn't seem to take itself too seriously. forget the plot holes and bad acting, this film is STILL worth watching.

things to look for:

the cheesy stop animation of the "monster" moving around

the silly sounding howls of rage it makes

feeding time LOL

the "scary eyes" scene LOL

"bloody folder? what bloody folder?"

basket case isn't the meaning of life or a technical marvel, but it is fun to watch nonetheless. if you're in the mood for a fun b-movie, then basket case might be exactly what you're looking for. it won't scare you, but it just might entertain you.

Basket Case (1982)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Duane Bradley (Kevin Van Hentenryck) arrives in New York City carrying a basket that contains a big secret. Duane is actually half of a Siamese twin and he and his deformed brother (who he keeps in the basket) are seeking vengeance against the doctors who separated them.

Frank Henenlotter's BASKET CASE was made for very little money and it quickly became a success and gathered a rather large cult following. I think there are several things to really enjoy in the film but at the same time I can't help but think that there are several things that could have improved it. The biggest issue I have with the film is the fact that it really drags at times and I think losing ten minutes probably would have helped it. I mean, the revenge factor takes way too long to materialize and I'd argue that there are way too many subplots.

Outside of that you've got to respect what Henenlotter was able to do with such a small budget. Yes, the special effect of the deformed brother isn't believable but there's still some low-budget charm that really helps the picture. Another major plus is that the atmosphere really captures the seedy side of New York City and there's no question that the authentic locations really add a lot to the picture. As with William Lustig's MANIAC, this film just breathes NYC and its seedy locations. Van Hentenryck's performance is another plus the film has going for it and there's no doubt that there are many memorable supporting players.

BASKET CASE certainly deserves its cult reputation. The gore, weird story line and terrific locations make it a must see.

Dwayne Bradley (Kevin Van Hentenryck) carries a basket around with him. He tells his landlord (Robert Vogel) that it contains "clothes", but that's not quite true. The secret of the basket is fiendish, nasty and is liable to tear your face off if you stand in its way. (And there's a plot that's sort of like "The Abominable Dr. Phibes" in the way Dwayne tracks down the doctors...)

This film is very obviously low-budget, costing only $33,000, but the director (Frank Henenlotter) does not let that distract him. In fact, he almost turns it into a joke, using his friend's apartment as a makeshift "hotel". He has Dwayne carrying a large sum of cash, but is actually rather small when you know that it represents the actual budget of the film. And to make the film appear more professional than it was, they even faked the credits. As one trivia site explains, "The crew was very small and rather then repeat the same names over and over again they decided to just make up names."

There's something of a time capsule effect in this film. Much is filmed on 42nd Street in New York, during its porn and hooker glory years. You won't see that anymore, but you can forever see it in this film. And one scene is filmed in the basement of the legendary sado-masochistic Hellfire Club, complete with real-life glory holes. (To see what the club looks like now, you can see it on the DVD features.)

I think this movie must set the record for most times the phrase "what's in the basket?" is used in a single film. I'm surprised it's not the film's tag line, because I think I counted six instances. I'm not sure if it's supposed to be a running joke or if the writer is just that uninventive. (For fun, if you're a smoker, have a cigarette each time someone asks. That will be almost as much fun as the "In the Mouth of Madness" smoking game!) Some scenes are fairly cheesy. The puppetry is amateur and the claymation is like something from "Pee-Wee's Playhouse" (yes, not even good enough to be compared to "Clash of the Titans"). I enjoyed this and totally let it slide (cheesy effects from the 1980s are still better than modern computer effects in many cases).

For some reason, I really enjoy male nudity in movies (ask about my love of the films of Gregg Araki). I'm not gay or anything... I'm all about the ladies. But something about male nudity still comes off as a special thing in movies, maybe because I've seen just about all you can see in life and this still remains a rarity. Well, anyway, this film has some unusual male nudity that leads to the film's climax (pun intended) and I think you'll want to be there when it happens.

Oh, and mullets. If you're hankering for a Jeff Goldblum mullet (the hair from "The Fly", not "Jurassic Park") you really need to see this one. It's actually more like the hair of noted linguist and psychologist Steven Pinker.

Mike Mayo calls the film, "One of the all-time great low-budget horrors" that "is an ingeniously twisted original in every respect." It is one of the few horror films that Mayo has praised with four out of four bones on the Videohound rating scale. And with good reason. When it comes to low budget, few if any films get this big with so little -- "Basket Case" is a modern classic, and decades later can still be found on the shelves of many video stores. And what other film has mutant Siamese twin necrophilia?

I went almost 25 years without seeing "Basket Case". Don't make that same mistake. While this is not the greatest horror movie and not my favorite Henenlotter film, it has found its way into cult horror history (admit it, even if you never saw it you've still heard of it). This happens for a reason, and after watching maybe you'll understand what that reason is. At the very least, you'll find out what's in the basket.