Basket Case (1982)

Lesson learned from “Basket Case”: Don’t go sticking your noggin in any strange picnic baskets, what resides there may be more than your Aunt Petunia’s potato salad. This 1982 offering from cult director Frank Henelotter is exactly that, and it’s a perfect example of the “cult” film. Containing of course both bad acting and effects, it nonetheless has that “special something” that keeps you watching and enjoying the proceedings.

Dwayne Bradley is an awkward, gangly dude who checks into a rather sleazy New York hotel with a wad of cash and a big ass wicker basket. The basket is home to Belial, his deformed brother and former Siamese twin who’s basically a mound of flesh with big teeth and two arms. The brothers mission? To track the surgical team that years ago separated the two. Belial holds more of a grudge than Dwayne, as he was the one wrapped up in a garbage bag, labeled a monster (he killed mama during childbirth) and left for dead.

The fun here is seeing Dwayne’s interaction with the sleazy residents of the hotel, who all keep inquiring, “what’s in the basket”, and the bloody rampages of Belial, who, for a dude with no legs, can kick some serious ass. You also get the whole “normal brother v.s. freak brother” angle, as Dwayne is stuck between wanting to lead a normal life by doing things like dating and getting laid, as opposed to taking care of brother Belial and helping him in his homicidal urges for the rest of his life. “Basket Case” contains some fairly gruesome f/x courtesy of Belials’s rampages, and a nice sense of dark humor throughout. Scenes that would never work in most flicks all do well here, with my favorite occurring when Belial figures out Dwayne is seeing a girl behind his back, resulting in him freaking out in a jealous fit and trashing their room via some of the worst stop motion f/x you’ve ever seen…all of which gives it it’s appeal of course. “Basket Case” also has that nice and grainy 16 mm look that I fucking love…films today just don’t have this look anymore. A recommended view, and followed by two decent sequels both helmed by Henenlotter.