Wednesday, October 23, 2024

Basket Case

Odd.



It's a special kind of an experience when you watch something like Basket Case, admittedly it's one of the most original and unique horror movies ever made bar none but I almost don't know how to feel about it. The directorial debut of Frank Henenlotter is the story of a young man named Duane who we only know two things about, he always carries a wicker basket around with him and is bumping off doctors. What's great is that if you don't really know the twist or the situation of Duane, it's a movie that keeps you guessing even after the 30 minute mark when you finally see what's in the basket. Shot on an extremely low budget that started out with just $16,000 but slowly garnered more as the still in production film showed footage to backers, it's pretty great what all they do with it! With footage in and around New York City, some bloody fantastic death scenes, along with stop motion and puppetry special effects, gets an approving thumbs up from me! It's not a super involved story that barely hits the 90 minute mark with credits yet doesn't waste any time for the audience. The acting is kinda here and there but I think that's part of the charm for low budget horror movies, with good acting from Kevin Van Hentenryck as our loner Duane, Terri Susan Smith as Sharon the love interest, and Beverly Bonner as Casey the next door neighbor of Duane who hold their own and bring a sense of professionalism to a mostly first time film production crew. The rough film stock, sets, and crude effects surprisingly work really well and you don't bash the movie for any of it, never an element present that takes you out of the film which considering how friggin' weird it is says quite a lot! It's a very humble beginning yet has spawned a cult status over the 40 years since it was released. Plus any movie especially a horror film that shows full frontal male nudity has some serious balls, pun intended. You really just don't see that barely ever so that's an impressive feat under it's belt. It's bizarre but it's decent and I'm happy I saw it, may not look like much but you can find treasure even in a dumpster. 2.5 stars, 7/10, and new movie time coming up next with a certain Symbiote.

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