Friday, February 24, 2012

Basket Case

Duane Bradley, a simpleton from the country who arrives in New York City, is a man with more secrets than how he gives his glorious hair such body. He shows up with a large wad of cash (making the mistake of flashing it to everyone in the seedy hotel where he decides to stay), a basket with a lock on it, and a hidden agenda. Years ago his conjoined twin, Belial, and he were separated against their will by a few doctors in an attempt to appease his embarrassed father. Having left Belial (not much more than a head and stubby arms) for dead, the surprise is that Belial survives the separation and is reunited with Duane that evening. Under the care of a loving and very understanding aunt, they boys are raised in seclusion until she passes away.

The boys, under the guidance of Belial, take their trip to New York City to enact revenge on the doctors that performed the operation years ago. Along the way, Duane meets and falls for Sharon (a receptionist at one of the doctors they are plotting to kill. Belial is not happy about Duane's new romance, which he discovers after Duane tries to see her without Belial's knowledge. The rest of the film gives a glimpse into how the boys came to be, and the steps they take to get revenge.

Thoughts:
This is honestly one of the best, well produced and well acted low-budget B-horror movie I've seen. IMDB lists the budget of the film at about $35K, which to me is truly amazing at what they were able to create. First, a lot of these actors and actresses didn't go on to do anything else (at least as reported on IMDB), and yet they deliver in their roles. The story is actually really compelling, and this is one of those movies where you have to see how it ends. The effects are fun too - given the low budget, they still pull off some great work. Overall I would say this is a must see. I was excited to learn there are some sequels as well, which I plan to view as soon as I'm able.

This review was originally published on PlastikSickness on January 2, 2012.