Basket Case 2

2025-06-27T08:12:34Z

89.76.86.83: changed the plot; they didn't trick Marcie. They only mentioned interviewing Belial after they had already broken into her house

{{short description|1990 film by Frank Henenlotter}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Basket Case 2
| image = Basketcase2.jpg
| caption = Promotional release poster
| director = [[Frank Henenlotter]]
| producer = Edgar Ievins
| writer = Frank Henenlotter
| starring = Kevin Van Hentenryck
| cinematography = Robert M. Baldwin
| editing = Kevin Tent
| music = [[Joe Renzetti]]
| distributor = Shapiro Glickenhaus Entertainment
| released = {{Film date|1990|03|02}}
| runtime = 90 minutes
| country = United States
| language = English
| budget = $2,500,000{{citation needed|date=September 2014}}
}}
'''''Basket Case 2''''' is a 1990 American [[comedy horror]] film written and directed by [[Frank Henenlotter]], and the sequel to his 1982 film ''[[Basket Case (film)|Basket Case]]''.<ref name="Kane 1990">{{cite news|last=Kane|first=Joe|date=March 2, 1990|title='Basket Case 2' weaves slick, sicko spell|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/114298134/daily-news/|newspaper=[[New York Daily News]]|location=New York, New York|page=37|access-date=December 8, 2022|via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref> It stars Kevin Van Hentenryck reprising his role as Duane Bradley, who moves with his deformed, formerly [[conjoined twin]] brother Belial into a home for "unique individuals" run by their deceased aunt’s friend, eccentric philanthropist Granny Ruth (played by [[Annie Ross]]).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/the-bottom-shelf-basket-case-trilogy-and-audition/|title=The Bottom Shelf: Basket Case Trilogy and Audition|last=Aldwinckle|first=Nick|date=March 17, 2016|website=[[Den of Geek]]|access-date=December 8, 2022}}</ref>

The film spawned another sequel, ''[[Basket Case 3: The Progeny]]'', in 1991.

==Plot==
After falling from a hotel window at the end of [[Basket Case (film)|the first film]], Duane Bradley and his deformed, surgically-separated [[conjoined twin]] brother Belial are taken to the hospital. Their unusual situation draws media attention, making it impossible to lead a secret life. They are rescued from the hospital by Granny Ruth, who saw their story on the news. She takes them to her home, where she and her granddaughter Susan care for an extended family of similarly deformed individuals. Among these individuals is Eve, who is similar to Belial in that she is a bodyless torso. Traumatized by how she has been treated prior to Ruth rescuing her, Eve is mute and spends most of her time in the attic. A few years pass and as Eve and Belial fall in love, Duane's resentment of Belial grows. He hasn't forgiven Belial for Sharon's murder and wishes to live a life without being surrounded by "freaks", as previously he had been unable to leave Belial due to their psychic bond.

During all of this a sleazy reporter named Marcie and her equally sleazy photographer Arty have been looking for the Bradley brothers in order to bring them to justice. Upon discovering the freaks, Marcie decides that she will expose them to the world, forcing Ruth and the others to stop her. They kill Arty, as well as a private detective named Phil who was assisting Marcie. Duane and the other freaks break into Marcie's house after having obtained the address from a note in Phil's wallet; Belial mutilates her face, turning her into a freak as well.

That night the freaks celebrate their victory while Eve and Belial consummate their relationship in the attic. Seeing this as an opportunity to finally be free of Belial, Duane approaches Susan and asks her to run away with him. She is horrified that he would leave his brother and reveals that she, too, is a freak. She has been pregnant for six years as her baby refuses to leave her womb; upon revealing this, a grotesque [[lamprey]]-like creature emerges from Susan's surgical wounds where failed [[cesarean]] sections have been attempted. This shatters the last of Duane's psyche and he accidentally kills Susan by pushing her out a window. He then goes to Belial and forcibly sews him to his body. The film ends as Ruth and the others discover what Duane has done, and stare at him horrified while Duane says it’s all right now that they’re “together again”.

==Cast==
{{colbegin}}
* Kevin Van Hentenryck as Duane Bradley<ref name="Basket Case Cast">{{cite web|title=AFI Catalog - Basket Case 2|url=https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/58404|publisher=AFI Catalog|access-date=July 22, 2023}}</ref> and Belial Bradley (voice; uncredited)<ref name="Interview">{{cite web|title=Interview: Kevin Van Hentenryck, Star of BASKET CASE|url=https://www.starburstmagazine.com/features/interview-kevin-van-hentenryck-star-of-basket-case/|publisher=STARBURST Magazine|access-date=August 7, 2024}}</ref>
* [[Annie Ross]] as Granny Ruth<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Kathryn Meisle as Marcie Elliott<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* [[Heather Rattray]] as Susan Smoeller<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* [[Jason Evers]] as Lou, The Editor<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* [[Ted Sorel]] as Phil<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Judy Grafe as News Woman<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* [[Chad Brown (poker player)|Chad Brown]] as News Man<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Beverly Bonner as Casey<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* [[Leonard Jackson (actor)|Leonard Jackson]] as Police Commissioner<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Alexandra Auder as Nurse Sherri<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Brian Fitzpatrick as Cop<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Gale Van Cott as Desk Clerk<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Kuno Sponholz as Sick Old Man<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Dominic Marcus as Security Guard,<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/> Belial Bradley (additional vocal effects) and Unique Individuals (voices; uncredited)
* Doug Anderson as Snoring Cop<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Jan Saint as Lyle Barker<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* [[Matt Mitler]] as Arty<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Michael Rubenstein as Clancy<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* George Andros Aries as "Worm Man"<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Deborah Bauman as "Mouse Face"<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Marianne Carlson as Arthur "Huge Arthur"<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* [[David Emge]] as "Half Moon"<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* James Farley as Pearl<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Ron Fazio and Joseph Leavengood as Leon<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* [[Tom Franco]] as "Frog Boy"<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Jeri LaShay as Ellice<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Matt Malloy and Jeffrey Danneman as "Toothy"<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Jody Oliver as "Brainiac"<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Nick Roberts as "Platehead"<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Michael Rogen as Man With 27 Noses<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* [[Sturgis Warner]] as Frederick "The Pinhead"<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Denise Coop as Eve (uncredited)
* Richard Pierce as Mr. Bradley (archive footage; uncredited)<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Diana Browne as Dr. Judith Kutter (archive footage; uncredited)<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Bill Freeman as Dr. Julius Lifflander (archive footage; uncredited)<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Lloyd Pace as Dr. Harold Needleman (archive footage; uncredited)<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
* Sean McCabe as Young Duane (archive footage; uncredited)<ref name="Basket Case Cast"/>
{{colend}}

== Reception ==
The staff of ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' called ''Basket Case 2'' "a hilarious genre spoof" that pays homage to the 1932 film ''[[Freaks (1932 film)|Freaks]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/1989/film/reviews/basket-case-2-1200428489/|title=Review: 'Basket Case 2'|author=|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|year=1990|access-date=September 18, 2014}}</ref> [[Kevin Thomas (film critic)|Kevin Thomas]] of the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' complimented the film's atmosphere, which he felt was aided by the cinematography and score, and highlighted Ross and Van Hentenryck's performances.<ref name="Thomas 1990">{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-04-13-ca-1102-story.html|title=Movie Review : 'Basket Case 2' Has Makings of Cult Success|last=Thomas|first=Kevin|author-link=Kevin Thomas (film critic)|date=April 13, 1990|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=September 18, 2014}}</ref> He wrote that ''Basket Case 2'' "has everything it needs to become the cult film that its 1982 predecessor has been: outrageous dark humor, bizarre horror, driving energy and genuine pathos."<ref name="Thomas 1990" />

Joe Kane of the [[New York Daily News|New York ''Daily News'']] gave the film a mostly positive review, commending its "dark wit" and exploration of Duane and Belial's romantic pursuits.<ref name="Kane 1990" /> He wrote that, "While the interior-bound sequel lacks the original's sleazy [[Times Square]] ambience, and most of the flick's secondary freaks are more whimsical than menacing in design [...] ''Basket Case 2'' stacks up as fun fear fare for ''Basket Case'' cultists, fright-film fans and adventurous viewers of every stripe."<ref name="Kane 1990" /> ''[[The New York Times]]''{{'}} Caryn James wrote, "As cheap horror spoofs go, this one isn't all bad", but lamented a perceived deviation from an initial "tongue-in-cheek approach" as the film progresses, writing, "Twenty minutes or so into the movie, there is very little left to surprise you, except an exceptionally tacky ending."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/03/02/movies/belial-and-other-oddities-return-in-basket-case-2.html|title=Belial and Other Oddities Return in 'Basket Case 2'|last=James|first=Caryn|date=March 2, 1990|work=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=September 18, 2014}}</ref>

In his 2011 book ''Horror Films of the 1990s'', [[John Kenneth Muir]] opined that ''Basket Case 2'' was "disappointing" and that it "eschews all the qualities that made the down-and-dirty, low-budget original such a great pleasure."<ref>{{cite book |last=Muir |first=John Kenneth |title=Horror Films of the 1990s |publisher=[[McFarland & Company|McFarland]] |date=2011 |isbn=978-0786484805 }}
</ref>

On the [[review aggregator]] website [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film has an approval rating of 71% based on seven surveyed critics, with an average rating was 6.3/10.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://rottentomatoes.com/m/basket_case_2/|title=Basket Case 2 (1990)|work=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=2022-11-12}}</ref>

== Home media ==
''Basket Case 2'' was released on [[DVD]] by [[Synapse Films]] in October 2007.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/31187/basket-case-2/|title=Basket Case 2|last=Gibron|first=Bill|work=[[DVD Talk]]|date=2007-10-28|access-date=2014-09-18}}</ref>

== Sequel ==
{{Main|Basket Case 3: The Progeny}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{IMDb title|0099108}}

{{Frank Henenlotter}}

[[Category:1990 films]]
[[Category:1990 comedy horror films]]
[[Category:1990 romantic comedy films]]
[[Category:American comedy horror films]]
[[Category:American sequel films]]
[[Category:American monster movies]]
[[Category:Films about twin brothers]]
[[Category:Films directed by Frank Henenlotter]]
[[Category:Puppet films]]
[[Category:Parasitic twinning in culture]]
[[Category:Films scored by Joe Renzetti]]
[[Category:1990s English-language films]]
[[Category:1990 direct-to-video films]]
[[Category:1990s American films]]
[[Category:English-language comedy horror films]]
[[Category:English-language romantic comedy films]]

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Basket Case 2