Basket Case (film)

Basket Case
Theatrical release poster
Directed byFrank Henenlotter
Screenplay byFrank Henenlotter
Produced by
  • Arnold H. Bruck
  • Edgar Ievins
  • Tom Kaye
Starring
  • Kevin Van Hentenryck
  • Terri Susan Smith
  • Beverly Bonner
CinematographyBruce Torbet
Edited byFrank Henenlotter
Music byGus Russo
Production
company
Basket Case Productions
Distributed by
  • Analysis Film Releasing Corporation
  • Rugged Films
  • Creswin Distribution (Canada)
  • Euro Space (Japan)
  • Sinfonia Films (France)
Release date
  • April 7, 1982 (1982-04-07)
Running time
91 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$35,000[1]

Basket Case is a 1982 American horror film written and directed by Frank Henenlotter in his feature directorial debut. Produced by Edgar Ievins, the film stars Kevin Van Hentenryck as Duane Bradley, a young man who seeks vengeance on the doctors and nurses who performed an unwanted surgery that separated him from his deformed conjoined twin brother Belial, whom Duane hides in a large wicker basket.

Basket Case was shot on a cp-16 camera (model with non reflex view finder)16 mm in New York City, on a budget of around $35,000. The film was blown up to 35 mm for its original theatrical release in April 1982. Receiving mixed reviews upon release, it has since become considered a cult film,[2][3] and has spawned two sequels, Basket Case 2 (1990) and Basket Case 3: The Progeny (1991), both of which were also directed by Henenlotter.

In 2017, Basket Case was selected for preservation by the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), who oversaw a restoration of the film from its original 16 mm camera negative.[4][5] The 4K restoration was released on Blu-ray and DVD by Arrow Video in 2018.[6]

  1. ^ Towlson, Jon (2014). Subversive Horror Cinema: Countercultural Messages of Films from Frankenstein to the Present. McFarland & Company. p. 185. ISBN 9781476615332.
  2. ^ Tierney, John (January 14, 1991). "Era Ends as Times Square Drops Slashers for Shakespeare". The New York Times. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
  3. ^ Stine, Scott Aaron (2003). The Gorehound's Guide to Splatter Films of the 1980s. McFarland & Company. p. 37. ISBN 978-0786415328. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
  4. ^ Squires, John (March 8, 2017). "The Museum of Modern Art is Preserving and Restoring 'Basket Case'". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
  5. ^ Squires, John (November 27, 2017). "Arrow Video Bringing 4K Restoration of 'Basket Case' to US Blu-ray". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
  6. ^ Bowen, Chuck (March 9, 2018). "Blu-ray Review: Frank Henenlotter's Basket Case on Arrow Video". Slant Magazine. Retrieved November 29, 2022.