I just had to watch at least one episode of the Last Drive-Inn during Hooptober and I chose the Basket Case one. Having watched Basket Case for the first time around 8 years ago, I couldn't remember much about apart from that it was a unique film.

Anyway, Basket Case is kind of a revenge/american pie like movie. Duane (Kevin van Hentenryck) and Belial Bradley are two Siamese twins who were removed after being stuck together for around 12 years. Belial is the deformed one in the basket. We follow them getting Belial some revenge against the people who took them apart. The other story thread throughout the film is Duane falling "in love" with a receptionist named Casey (Beverly Bonner) and his brother getting jealous and also wanting to get "laid". At least that is how I thought Belial felt like.

Some of the scenes are simply just pure gold. Like the bar scene were Duane is drunk and tells one of his neighbors what really is in the basket in such an over the top "drunk" way or the creepy scene were Belial is looking at a stolen red panty inside his basket.

Director Frank Henenlotter didn't forget to give us some great gore too. Belial literally offscreen chews someone in half, at least that is what I think happened. They even split up their dad straight through the middle with a giant saw attached to a little car. Great stuff! We even see the small Belial lifting up his brother by his nuts with one arm in a rage.

Anyway, the ending is something you must see for itself, you can guess all you want but I think you never guess how it goes. And yeah, having Joe Bob talk about his experience with the film is just such a plus. Love the guy!

Basket Case is a must watch for horror fans. It perfectly balances horror and comedy.

***Gory and amusing horror about separated Siamese twins in New York City, one vengeful***

A young man from upstate New York, Duane Bradley (Kevin Van Hentenryck), travels to the seedy side of Manhattan with a mysterious wicker basket, looking for a couple of dubious doctors.

“Basket Case” (1982) is a very bloody ‘B’ horror with (mostly) low-key comedy that’s actually funny. The quaint low-budget effects consist of rubber puppetry & gloves with some stop-motion unapproved by Ray Harryhausen. Blonde Terri Susan Smith shines as Duane’s potential girlfriend, Sharon, while Beverly Bonner heartily rises to the challenge as Duane’s friendly next-door neighbor in hotel, Casey.

The flick is entertaining so I can see how it’s become a cult favorite, but the focus on the seedy side of Manhattan makes for a somewhat unpalatable experience. Yet it’s interesting going back in time to New York City in 1981. Some people lambaste “Basket Case” for being “amateurish” but, come on, it only cost $35,000, which would translate to about $100,000 today.

The film runs 1 hour, 31 minutes, and was shot in Manhattan with some stuff done in Glens Falls, New York.

GRADE: B-