So Duane cracks after “Basket Case 2” which is kind of expected. Your mutated brother is finally getting laid by someone he connects with someone he was literally connected to, and the only girl you ever love dies after revealing she has a mutant living within her stomach—or something. The dam is bound to break. In either case, the gang is all back here and on full fledged crazy mode. Even Granny Ruth returns once more to lead the charge and fight for her mutant brothers and sisters to be accepted in to society. I mean… there are people with deformities that live perfectly normal lives, but okay. Everyone has to have a cause, I guess. Now that Belial has fallen in love with fellow mutant Eve, and has somewhat caused her to spring forth other deformed monsters, Duane is reserved as a sidekick of a sorts.
Tag Archives: Horror
Basket Case 2 (1990) [Blu-Ray]
Since the first “Basket Case” was screaming for a sequel (?), Frank Henenlotter graces us with a follow up to the first cult classic. This time around we follow up with the exploits of those wacky homicidal conjoined freaks known as Dave and Belial. Henenlotter is in on the joke, even recasting original star Kevin Van Hentenryck, who shockingly hasn’t aged since the first film. His acting skills haven’t improved, either, but that seems to be part of what makes these “Basket Case” movies so loony and deranged. In either case, after being torn apart, Duane begins to feel a little stir crazy, especially now that he and Belial have discovered a massive home filled with deformed and grotesque humans run by the eccentric Granny Ruth.
Fantasia International Film Festival 2016 Wrap-Up
This year’s edition of Fantasia was their 20th, having missed only three or four, I was eager to attend this anniversary year. As usual since moving from Montreal to Southern California, I was only able to attend for a short period, so I made sure to enjoy it as much as possible, making it a point to see films with a crowd and going to the official festival pub while attending the same week as the market and a few friends. I also made a point to see as many movies as possible, seeing a grand total of 28 films for which the reviews can be found at the below this piece (before the list of winners).
Ash vs. Evil Dead: The Complete First Season [Blu-Ray]
You have to love Bruce Campbell’s attitude toward “Ash vs. Evil Dead.” He’s like that angry dad who you keep asking for bike for your birthday and he keeps telling you that he has no money, and to shut your trap, or he’s locking you in the basement with the other bad kids. Then on your birthday, he shows up with a brand new bike and says “Well I got it because… you know… you’re a good kid, and you wouldn’t shut up about it. Now go get me a pack of smokes.” Bruce is that kind of man who loves his fans despite the gruff exterior and rewarded us with “Ash vs. Evil Dead” because we wouldn’t shut up about it. And because, you know, you can’t have Ash without Campbell. Just in time for Halloween, “Ash vs. Evil Dead” gets everything right about the “Evil Dead” movie series.
Bed of the Dead (2016) [Fantasia International Film Festival 2016]
Two couples in their twenties book a room with a particularly big bed at a sex club, to explore some options for one of the guys’ birthday. Once on the bed, it becomes clear that supernatural forces are at play as they start hallucinating and being picked off one by one. A cop investigating the aftermath discovers more than he expected and is pulled into the situation deeper than he planned.
Clown (2016) [Blu-Ray/Digital]
For such a unique premise and concept, it’s surprising how unremarkable “Clown” ends up being, in the end. Despite its best efforts, “Clown” feels like a short film that perhaps should have stayed a short film, as most of its narrative feels spread out to fit a hundred minutes. And I don’t know how they’ll pull off a sequel, if the final scene is any indication. “Clown” probably watches a lot better as a short film, but it breezes through the premise in the first thirty minutes and stops being interesting by the end of the first hour. Kent is an average dad who finds out the clown he had booked for his son’s birthday has cancelled. Anxious to keep his promise of a clown, Kent goes rummaging through his basement and finds a clown suit locked in a mysterious chest.
Therapy (2016) [Fantasia International Film Festival 2016]
A Night watchman finds blood and camera equipment in an abandoned property on a land he was hired to patrol by developers. He turns these in to the local police who go through the hours of recorded evidence. On these, they find a group of campers being terrorized and picked off one by one.