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Released by: Synapse Films
Released on: August 9th, 2016.
Director: Frank Henenlotter
Cast: Kevin Van Hentenryck, Annie Ross, Kathryn Meisle, Heather Rattray, Jason Evers, Ted Sorel
Year: 1990
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The Movie:
Shot back to back with Basket Case 3 and Frankenhooker, Frank Henenlotter's Basket Case 2 isn't as unique a horror film as its predecessor but it's still a fun, colorful and completely crazy monster film with some memorable set pieces and an enjoyably quirky cast of characters.
When Duane (Kevin Van Hentenryck) and Belial, his former Siamese twin now separated, jumped from the window of the inner city hotel they'd been calling home the media zones in and has a field day with the freak show live they'd been secretly living. Thankfully for them, they have a guardian angel in the form of the messianic Granny Ruth (Annie Ross), an elderly woman who scurries the pair off to her strange old house out in the boonies of Staten Island where she runs a sort of foster home for freaks such as Belial.
Duane and Belial soon make themselves right at home in their new abode, with Belial making new friends and finding love with Eve, a similarly strange creature who indulges his more base desires in one of the film's stand out scenes. Meanwhile, in an interesting role reversal, Duane is realizing that his status as a 'normal' person actually makes him the odd man out - this time, he's the freak! The only other normal human in the home is Susan (Heather Rattray), Granny Ruth's lovely daughter. Complicating matters further is the subtle presence of a reporter named Marcie (Kathryn Meisle), one of the media hounds who want to cover the case. She figures sneaking into the home would be a great way to land a scoop but soon learns the error of her ways.
Henenlotter has turned everything up for this sequel, save for the bloodshed, which is noticeably toned down this time around. The makeup effects and creature designs for the film are way over the top (watch for David Emge from Dawn Of The Dead as Moon Face!) and there's no shortage of monsters and maniacs inhabiting Granny's home to keep the film looking quirky and strange. Making a weird movie even more unusual is the lighting and carnival style coloring used in the film, bathing almost every scene in one primary color or the other and giving the film a very alien look. The influence of Todd Browning's infamous Freaks in undeniable, but Henenlotter still manages to put his stamp all over the picture.
As far as performances go, Hentenryck and Ross definitely steal the show here, commanding almost as much of our attention as some of the more notable 'freaks' that Henenlotter scatters throughout the picture. Both actors aren't afraid to chew a little scenery and while in some films that might be seen as a detriment, here it only serves to further take things over the top and it fits right in with the cinematography, lighting and monsters. All of this plays out underneath a noticeably bizarre score courtesy of composer Joe Renzetti that'll stick in your head for some time to come once the end credits hit the screen. Gabe Bartalos' make up is exceptionally cool and quite creative, and the quality of his work ensures that the monsters, as rubbery as they might look in some scenes, always shine.
Those who haven't seen the first Basket Case film might have trouble figuring out what's going on and those who have seen the first film might be let down by the lack of gore but Basket Case 2 does prove to be a worth sequel in its own right. The film does a fine job of expanding on the story that took place in the first film and it allows with filmmaker's and effects technicians to push things even further.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Synapse Films presents Basket Case 3 in AVC encoded 1080p high definition framed at 1.78.1 widescreen on a 25GB Blu-ray disc. There's considerably more depth and detail here than there was on the 2012 DVD release, also from Synapse - this is not only obvious in the brighter scenes but just as importantly in the film's many darker indoor scenes as well. Texture and color reproduction are also very strong and the disc shows nice, deep black levels. There aren't any obvious issues with noise reduction, edge enhancement or compression artifacts. Skin tones look nice and natural and all in all, this is a pretty solid visual upgrade over what we've seen in the past.
The English language DTS-HD 2.0 Stereo track on the disc sounds quite solid. Dialogue is clear, levels are well balanced, the effects are mixed in well and there are no issues with hiss or distortion to report. Joe Renzetti's score has some good punch when the movie calls for it and all in all things sound pretty good. You'll notice more depth and range here when compared to the aforementioned DVD release, and there's a bit more clarity here too. Optional English subtitles are provided but there are no alternate language options.
Extras are ported over from the DVD release starting with a fun, twenty-two minute featurette entitled Behind The Wicker that is hosted by the film's effects technician, Gabe Bartalos. Featuring a wealth of great footage and photographs shot behind the scenes of the production while it was underway, we get a chance to see a bunch of effects footage and some nice clips of the locations used in the film as well. Henenlotter shows up here, as does James Glickenhaus, both men talk about their experiences on the film and share some fun stories. There's some fun behind the scenes clips from Frankenhooker here as well.
A second featurette, The Man In The Moon Mask, runs for approximately six-minutes and it gives David Emge a chance to talk about how he wound up playing Half Moon and what it was like working with the effects and appliances that the part required.
The Final Word:
While not as strong as the first film, Basket Case 2 is still an enjoyable monster mash with some great effects work and some memorable characters that definitely make it worth a look for Henenlotter fans. Synapse's Blu-ray offers a nice HD upgrade for the feature and carries over the fun and informative extras from the older DVD release.
Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!
