Basket Case(1982)
1982 · Frank Henenlotter · 91 min
A young man carrying a big basket that contains his extremely deformed, formerly conjoined twin brother seeks vengeance on the doctors who separated them against their will.
Horror · Comedy
6.2483 votes
TMDB score
2/5
Intensity
3/5
Gore
2/5
Stays with you
How scary is Basket Case?
It starts slow and grimy, following a quiet young man checking into a run-down hotel with a mysterious basket, then slowly builds toward bursts of gruesome payback once his secret comes out. The scares lean more gross and weird than truly frightening, mixing cheap practical effects with a strange, dark sense of humor. It's less about dread and more about squirming and laughing at the same time, with a sleazy, low-budget New York City feel running through it. Good for people who like campy, so-bad-it's-good horror rather than something that will actually keep them up at night.
On The Horror Database's 0–5 scare profile, Basket Case rates psychological 2/5, visceral 3/5, gore 3/5, lingering effect 2/5, and overall intensity 2/5.
- Psychological: 2 of 5
- Visceral: 3 of 5
- Gore: 3 of 5
- Lingering: 2 of 5
- Intensity: 2 of 5
Slow burn vs Jump scares: 25 of 100 — leans Slow burn
Supernatural vs Real-world: 75 of 100 — leans Real-world
Fun-scary vs Disturbing: 35 of 100 — leans Fun-scary
Intensity over runtime
Shape only — no eventsReveal pacing shapeHide pacing shapeHidden by default — shows where the tension peaks and lets up.
A scrappy, grungy build-up with sporadic bursts of violence that gets bloodier and more frantic as it heads into a chaotic, gore-soaked finish.
Intensity across the runtime, 0 to 100: 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 5, 5.
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