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Basket Case (1982)

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All Critics
Top Critics

Average Rating: 6.4/10
Reviews Counted: 19
Fresh: 15 | Rotten: 4

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Release Date: Jan 1, 1982 Wide

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Average Rating: 3.1/5
User Ratings: 10,650

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Movie Info

The poor social skills of a young yokel turn out to have a horrifying explanation in this low-budget splatterfest, which marks the debut of Frankenhooker director Frank Henenlotter. The film begins with a bloody prologue and the arrival of young Duane Bradley (Kevin Van Hentenryck) at a broken-down New York hotel full of drunks, hookers, and assorted weirdos. An upstate native with few big-city survival skills, the earnest Duane seems slightly off. He flashes lots of bills at the hotel manager,

R, 1 hr. 30 min.

Horror

Directed By: Frank Henenlotter

Written By: Frank Henenlotter

In Theaters: Jan 1, 1982 Wide

On DVD: Dec 8, 1998

Analysis Releasing

Basket Case Trailer & Photos

Cast

Sean McCabe
Young Duane
Kevin Van Hentenryck
Duane Bradley
Ilze Balodis
Social Worker
Terri Susan Smith
Sharon
Beverly Bonner
Casey
Tom Robinson
Thief in Theater
Chris Babson
Casey's Date
Robert Vogel
Hotel manager
Maria T. Newland
Patient
Diana Browne
Dr. Judith Kutter
Lloyd Pace
Dr. Harold Needleman
Florence Shultz
Nurse
Bill Freeman
Dr. Julius Lifflander
Mary Ellen Shultz
Nurse
Constantine Scopas
Hotel Tenant
Charles Stanley
Hotel Tenant
Sydney Best
Hotel Tenant
Johnny Ray Williams
Hotel Tenant
Yousef Abuhamdeh
Hotel Tenant
Lubi Kirsch
Hotel Tenant
Catherine Russell
Hotel Tenant
Mitchell Huval
Hotel Tenant
Pat Ivers
Street Girl
Emily Armstrong
Street Girl
Noel Hall
Drake
Bruce Frankel
Second Detective
Russell Fritz
Casey's John
Joe Clarke
Brian "Mickey" O'Donova...
Ruth Neuman
Aunt
Kerry Ruff
Detective
Dorothy Strongin
Josephine
Richard Pierce
Mr. Bradley
Kevin VanHentenryck

Critic Reviews for Basket Case

All Critics (22) | Top Critics (1) | Fresh (17) | Rotten (4) | DVD (16)

The DIY effects may look naively amateur today but there's a loving B-movie attitude and a genuine sense of character to the "monster," the misshapen, fleshy, snaggle-toothed Belial.

September 28, 2011 Full Review Source: MSN.com

| Comment

Sean Axmaker

MSN.com

The Blu-ray release of Basket Case gives fans and newcomers alike the perfect excuse for hanging out with the demented denizens of the Hotel Broslin.

September 23, 2011 Full Review Source: Slant Magazine

| Comment

Budd Wilkins

Slant Magazine

Delicious offbeat tongue-in-cheek humor.

September 20, 2011 Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews

| Comment

Dennis Schwartz

Ozus' World Movie Reviews

Its singularity makes it far more valuable than any number of movies made at an ostensibly higher level of quality.

September 4, 2011 Full Review Source: Antagony & Ecstasy

| Comment

Tim Brayton

Antagony & Ecstasy

Uproariously disgusting

November 15, 2009 Full Review Source: CinePassion

| Comment

Fernando F. Croce

CinePassion

A classic slice of horror! "bloody" good fun!

July 23, 2008 Comment

Clint Morris

Moviehole

pure 80s sleeeeeas

March 2, 2008 Comment (1)

Stefan Birgir Stefansson

sbs.is

like Eraserhead updated for the slasher generation, Basket Case is a deranged psychodrama, full of gleefully gory set-pieces, quirky humour, and some impossibly moving pathos.

November 7, 2007 Full Review Source: Eye for Film

| Comment (1)

Anton Bitel

Eye for Film

If you're in the right mood, this monster mash is vile fun.

April 9, 2007 Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com

| Comment

Rob Gonsalves

eFilmCritic.com

A thing of modest B-movie beauty.

January 18, 2007 Full Review Source: Lessons of Darkness

| Comment

Nick Schager

Lessons of Darkness

O culto a este filme prova que absolutamente qualquer porcaria pode, de uma maneira ou de outra, despertar o interesse de algu�m.

May 22, 2006 Comments (3)

Pablo Villaca

Cinema em Cena

Good creepy Hell's Kitchen horror flick.

November 6, 2005 Comment

Cole Smithey

ColeSmithey.com

More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for Basket Case

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This trash cinema classic was an early staple of VHS splatterfests, and even though it's definitely a dated film, the entertainment value still holds up. Basket Case is not just a horror film, it's sort of an amalgam of different things. It has some nice gory moments, some strange horrific scenes, an odd

April 26, 2007

Tim Salmons

Super Reviewer

Ultra low budget gore fest concerning socially awkward Duane Bradley who checks into a New York Hotel carrying a large mysterious basket. He has to take care of some unfinished business. The run-down seedy hotel is rather depressing and the mood is spare and desolate. There's a feeling of hopelessness in the d�cor from

December 11, 2009

Mark Hobin

Super Reviewer

Basket Case Quotes

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1. Duane Bradley: No, he's deformed. A freak, he's like a squashed octopus.
– Submitted by Rocky F (59 days ago)
1. Sharon: What's in the basket?
– Submitted by Austin G (8 months ago)

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