Having only seen one Frank Henenlotter film, Brain Damage, prior, there was some idea of what to possibly expect from his directorial debut, Basket Case. However, even having seen Brain Damage, I don’t think anything could have properly prepared me for how absolutely demented and truly insane his debut feature was, and what ended up being something so obscenely insane and wild ended up also being gratuitously enjoyable, adding to the schlock genre of film that some horror heads absolutely adore. Basket Case is one of those rare cases where the busier the audience watching the movie the better the experience will be; that is to say it’s a movie that will be enjoyed with a crowd or with at least a solid drink in your hand. This is not a knock on the film at all, but more of a statement on the level of madness and cult aesthetic one is going to find themselves in with the chaos that awaits.
The film focuses on Duane Bradley (Kevin VanHentenryck), who’s travelled to New York City without much on him other than a wicker basket. Nothing seems totally out of the ordinary other than something lives in in the wicker basket, something Duane cares about and something truly despicable. Audiences later find out it is his former conjoined twin, Belial, and he’s convinced Duane to do what he believes is right — find the surgeons responsible for separating them and making them responsible for their actions in arguably the most gruesome and disturbing way possible. Belial is essentially a head and arms, but manages to kill and deform his victims in truly horrific, blood-soaked ways that will have audiences hollering with excitement and pleasure, watching this detached twin seek the revenge he is out for.
BASKET CASE 4K UHD. Photo courtesy of Arrow Video and MVD Entertainment Group.
While Basket Case makes its horrifying glorious debut on 4K UHD, this Arrow transfer is the opposite of horrific. It’s absolutely stunning in its dark gritty underbelly scenery and takes advantage of the low budget the filming had in leaving grain intact and recreating a nearly gritty print quality for the home release. The restoration was done by the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and may help clarify why the transfer is so excellent. A top the beautifully deranged transfer, there is a genuinely shocking amount of features, to the extent that even the most casual of fans of the movie (or the trilogy) should add this set to their collection solely to deep dive into the features and get their hands on anything and everything they’d ever want to know about Henenlotter or Basket Case.
Included in these features, is Henelotter’s first directorial outing, his 30-minute short, Slash of the Kinfe, which includes a commentary from himself and playwright Mike Bencivenga, and a five minute animated short called Belial’s Dream. A slew of interviews and archival footage from the process of making Basket Case, location shoots, and interviews with practically anyone who had involvement with the making of this insane feature are all included. Over-flowing, quite literally, with special features and extras, along with the enjoyment and chaos of this franchise and this movie itself, are more than enough reasons to jump in for this purchase. Moreover, a reversible sleeve featuring original art and new commissioned artwork by renowned artist Sara Deck, a double sided fold out poster with both sides of the sleeve art, and a collectors booklet with a Basket Case comic strip, truly make this Arrow 4K UHD release a must-have for all horror collectors alike.
Basket Case Special Features
- 4K restoration from the original 16mm negative by MoMA
- 4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
- Original uncompressed PCM mono audio
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- Audio commentary with writer/director Frank Henenlotter and star Kevin VanHentenryck
- Archival audio commentary with Frank Henenlotter, producer Edgar Ievins, actor Beverly Bonner and filmmaker Scooter McRae
- “Basket Case 3-1/2:” An Interview with Duane Bradley’s short film by Frank Henenlotter
- “Me and the Bradley Boys”’s interview with actor Kevin VanHentenryck
- A Brief Interview with Director Frank Henenlotter’s a strange 2017 interview with the director
- “Seeing Double: The Basket Case Twins” interview with actors Florence and Maryellen Schultz
- Blood, Basket and Beyond interview with actor Beverly Bonner
- “The Latvian Connection” featurette including interviews with producer Edgar Ievins, casting person/actor Ilze Balodis, associate producer/special effects artist Ugis Nigals and Belial performer Kika Nigals
- “Belial Goes to the Drive-In” interview with film critic Joe Bob Briggs
- Basket Case at MoMA footage from the 2017 restoration premiere
- What’s in the Basket? feature-length documentary covering the three films in the Basket Case series
- In Search of the Hotel Broslin archival location featurette
- “The Frisson of Fission: Basket Case, Conjoined Twins, and Freaks” in Cinema video essay by Travis Crawford
- Slash of the Knife (1976, 30 mins) short made by Frank Henenlotter featuring many of the same actors from Basket Case, including optional audio commentary with Frank Henenlotter and playwright Mike Bencivenga
- Basket Case and Slash of the Knife outtakes
- Belial’s Dream (2017, 5 mins) animated short by filmmaker Robert Morgan
- Extensive image galleries
- Trailers, TV & radio spots
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sara Deck
- Double-sided fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sara Deck
- Collector’s booklet featuring writing on the film by Michael Gingold and a Basket Case comic strip by artist Martin Trafford
Available for purchase on Blu-Ray on April 30th, 2024.
For more information, head to the official Arrow Video Basket Case webpage.
To purchase, head to the official MVD Entertainment Group Basket Case webpage.
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Categories: Films To Watch, Home Release, Recommendation
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