Basketcase is actually kind of dear to my heart, as it was one of the first in a series of increasingly disturbing B-raters I saw growing-up. That sounds a lot worse than it is, but it's a good opener. I think I first saw Basketcase II first, then sought out the original. Why? A question I cannot answer.
The first half of Basketcase is plagued by uneven pacing, but the latter half of the film is handled nicely. The acting is sub-par, but passable, largely because the movie scores fairly high on the creative side. Of course, the premise is as flimsy as the suspension of disbelief, and I do not believe audiences ever find themselves truly caring for any of the characters, but Basketcase's saving grace is its brutally realistic gore, which is enough to shutdown even the most ardent naysayer in the audience.
The movie has always been, to me, a great example of the true pitfalls of censorship, in that it is not -- by any stretch of the imagination -- a good movie, which should signal to those who do not like these kinds of flicks to get up, get their things, and GTFO long before the truly gory scenes begin, but few do. The gore is more realistically portrayed than in most films, and the grainy quality of the filmstock, poor cinematography and camerawork, and seedy sets (actual New York City at that time) all lend an air of verisimilitude rarely present in more mainstream films. I can see these images disturbing some viewers, but if said viewers are willing to overlook all of the film's other, glaring inadequacies -- knowing full well what kind of picture Basketcase is -- then they deserve to be offended.
If you are a fan of the genre, and/or just a gorehound, Basketcase delivers. HAHAHA, cuz it's... nothing.
© C Harris Lynn, 2010
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