Basket Case 3: The Progeny
Encyclopedia
Basket Case 3: The Progeny is a 1991 American comedy horror
film written and directed by Frank Henenlotter
. The third installment of the Basket Case series the film follows Times Square
Freak Twins Duane and Belial Bradley and several fellow freaks as they help Belial's girlfriend give birth and subsequently run into trouble with the police, who abduct the babies after their birth. It was released on DVD by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
in 2004. That DVD has been discontinued for some ungiven reason. Synapse
is planning on releasing a new special edition DVD sometime in the near future.
Belial back on to his side at the end of the previous film
, Duane Bradley (Kevin Van Hentenryck) is re-separated from Belial and put in a straitjacket
and padded cell
in Granny Ruth's (Annie Ross) haven for "unique (deformed) individuals". After several months of captivity Duane is released by Granny Ruth, who is preparing to take everyone on a road trip to the home of her ex-husband Doctor Hal Rockwell, who will help in giving birth to Belial's equally misshapen girlfriend Eve's (Denise Coop) babies; before leaving for the trip, Granny Ruth sternly tells Duane to stay away from Belial, who has stopped speaking to Duane telepathically
after Duane's attempt to put them back together.
While traveling via bus to Hal's house in Peachtree County the group stop at a drug store, where Granny Ruth meets local sheriff Andrew Griffin (Gil Roper) while Duane, attempting to wriggle out a bus window, meets the sheriff's daughter Opal (Tina Louise Hilbert) who he tries to convince in helping him and Belial escape. Before Duane can talk to Opal any further Granny Ruth returns and boards the bus and heads back on track to Hal's house, having sweet talked Sheriff Griffin into letting her leave despite the bus being illegally parked.
Eventually reaching Hal's home Duane escapes out a window after Granny Ruth decides to give him a chance and removes his straitjacket; as Duane is imprisoned by Opal and several officers in the local jail, Eve prepares to give birth, which is complicated when Belial mauls Hal, the sight of him in surgical attire causing him to remember his original separation from Duane. With Hal incapacitated Belial is drugged to calm him down and the birth of his and Eve's twelve children is overseen by Little Hal (Jim O'Doherty), Hal and Granny Ruth's multi-armed and blob-like prodigy
son. Shortly after Eve and Belial's children are born, Deputies Bailey (Jackson Faw) and Baxter (Jim Grimshaw) break into the Rockwell house, having realized there is a million dollar reward for the capture of both Duane and Belial. While the freaks party Bailey and Baxter find the sleeping babies and, mistaking the groggy Eve for Belial, shoot and kill her before fleeing with the babies when the freaks come after them.
At the police station Sheriff Griffin finds his daughter in the midst of trying to rape
Duane in dominatrix
attire and sends her away, shortly before Bailey and Baxter arrive with the babies. Employing a nice bit of alliteration
for which all the deputies names were clearly created; "Bailey, you book the Bradley boy, Baxter take the bassinet of baby Belials in back and get Brody to come by... Where's Brennan and Banner?... Bowling", Sheriff Griffin sends the obviously shaken Bailey and Baxter back to their homes and goes off to see what is going on at the Rockwell residence, leaving Officers Brennan (Tim Ware), Banner (Jerry G. White) and Brody in charge of the station. Breaking into the Rockwell house Sheriff Griffin finds Granny Ruth and the freaks in the midst of mourning the dead Eve and the sheriff, disturbed by the sight of the freaks and Little Hal, hurries back to the station, which Belial had broken into. As Belial attacks Brennan, Banner and Brody, Opal releases Duane from his cell, hoping he can stop Belial. Belial kills Brennan by crushing his throat (causing his eyes and teeth to pop out) and rips Banner's head off before trying to maul Brody, who accidentally blasts Opal (who crushes one of the babies in her death throes) with his shotgun prior to having his neck snapped by Belial. Putting Belial in his basket, Duane runs from the station just as Sheriff Griffin appears and opens fire, injuring Belial. Wanting to help Belial reclaim his babies and take revenge on the remaining police Duane makes up with Belial and has Little Hal construct a robotic exoskeleton
for him, which Belial utilizes to butcher Bailey and Baxter.
At Eve's funeral Granny Ruth rallies the grieving freaks and they all travel to the police station, where Sheriff Griffin, grieving over his dead daughter, offers them a deal - Belial for the babies. Granny Ruth agrees to the sheriff's offer and tells him to show up at an abandoned factory on the outskirts of town for the trade; after the meeting at the station Granny Ruth and the freaks ransack a fast food restaurant, scaring away all the customers, much to the chagrin of the staff.
Arriving at the factory with the babies and a shotgun for protection, Sheriff Griffin is ambushed by Belial and the two of them fight, with Belial having the upper hand due to his exoskeleton. After seemingly killing Sheriff Griffin with a blow to the head from his mechanical claw Belial goes to retrieve his children, but is ambushed by the recovered Sheriff Griffin, who trips him. Flailing about in his armor Belial scores a hit against Sheriff Griffin, who is swarmed and killed by the babies when he falls into their cradle.
With the babies reclaimed Granny Ruth, Duane, Belial and the freaks attack a talk show entitled Renaldo (with Belial mauling the titular host). Speaking into the camera Granny Ruth tells the world that the freaks will no longer hide in the shadows and will fight back if oppressed and finishes her speech by telling everyone to have a nice day.
Comedy horror
Comedy horror, also known as horror comedy, is a literary and film genre, combining elements of comedy and horror fiction. The comedy horror genre almost always inevitably crosses over with the black comedy genre; and in some respects could be considered a subset of it.The short story "The Legend...
film written and directed by Frank Henenlotter
Frank Henenlotter
Frank Henenlotter, , is an American screenwriter, director and film historian. He is known primarily for his horror comedies, though he would prefer to be classified as an "exploitation" filmmaker . "I never felt that I made ‘horror films’, he has said. "I always felt that I made exploitation films...
. The third installment of the Basket Case series the film follows Times Square
Times Square
Times Square is a major commercial intersection in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, at the junction of Broadway and Seventh Avenue and stretching from West 42nd to West 47th Streets...
Freak Twins Duane and Belial Bradley and several fellow freaks as they help Belial's girlfriend give birth and subsequently run into trouble with the police, who abduct the babies after their birth. It was released on DVD by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment is the home video distribution arm of the 20th Century Fox film studio. It was established in 1976 as Magnetic Video Corporation, and later as 20th Century Fox Video, CBS/Fox Video and FoxVideo, Inc....
in 2004. That DVD has been discontinued for some ungiven reason. Synapse
Synapse Films
Synapse Films is a DVD/Blu-ray label owned and operated by Don May, Jr. and his business partners Jerry Chandler and Charles Fiedler. The company specializes in cult horror, science fiction, and exploitation films....
is planning on releasing a new special edition DVD sometime in the near future.
Plot
After crudely trying to sew his monstrous former conjoined twinConjoined twins
Conjoined twins are identical twins whose bodies are joined in utero. A rare phenomenon, the occurrence is estimated to range from 1 in 50,000 births to 1 in 100,000 births, with a somewhat higher incidence in Southwest Asia and Africa. Approximately half are stillborn, and a smaller fraction of...
Belial back on to his side at the end of the previous film
Basket Case 2
Basket Case 2 is a 1990 American comedy horror film written and directed by Frank Henenlotter. It was released on DVD by Synapse Films on October 30, 2007.-Cast:* Kevin Van Hentenryck as Duane Bradley* Judy Grafe as News Woman...
, Duane Bradley (Kevin Van Hentenryck) is re-separated from Belial and put in a straitjacket
Straitjacket
A straitjacket is a garment shaped like a jacket with overlong sleeves and is typically used to restrain a person who may otherwise cause harm to themselves or others. Once the arms are inserted into the straitjacket's sleeves, they are then crossed across the chest...
and padded cell
Padded cell
A padded cell is a cell in a mental hospital with cushions lining the walls. The padding is an attempt to prevent a patient from hurting him/herself by hitting his/her head on the hard surface of the walls...
in Granny Ruth's (Annie Ross) haven for "unique (deformed) individuals". After several months of captivity Duane is released by Granny Ruth, who is preparing to take everyone on a road trip to the home of her ex-husband Doctor Hal Rockwell, who will help in giving birth to Belial's equally misshapen girlfriend Eve's (Denise Coop) babies; before leaving for the trip, Granny Ruth sternly tells Duane to stay away from Belial, who has stopped speaking to Duane telepathically
Telepathy
Telepathy , is the induction of mental states from one mind to another. The term was coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Fredric W. H. Myers, a founder of the Society for Psychical Research, and has remained more popular than the more-correct expression thought-transference...
after Duane's attempt to put them back together.
While traveling via bus to Hal's house in Peachtree County the group stop at a drug store, where Granny Ruth meets local sheriff Andrew Griffin (Gil Roper) while Duane, attempting to wriggle out a bus window, meets the sheriff's daughter Opal (Tina Louise Hilbert) who he tries to convince in helping him and Belial escape. Before Duane can talk to Opal any further Granny Ruth returns and boards the bus and heads back on track to Hal's house, having sweet talked Sheriff Griffin into letting her leave despite the bus being illegally parked.
Eventually reaching Hal's home Duane escapes out a window after Granny Ruth decides to give him a chance and removes his straitjacket; as Duane is imprisoned by Opal and several officers in the local jail, Eve prepares to give birth, which is complicated when Belial mauls Hal, the sight of him in surgical attire causing him to remember his original separation from Duane. With Hal incapacitated Belial is drugged to calm him down and the birth of his and Eve's twelve children is overseen by Little Hal (Jim O'Doherty), Hal and Granny Ruth's multi-armed and blob-like prodigy
Child prodigy
A child prodigy is someone who, at an early age, masters one or more skills far beyond his or her level of maturity. One criterion for classifying prodigies is: a prodigy is a child, typically younger than 18 years old, who is performing at the level of a highly trained adult in a very demanding...
son. Shortly after Eve and Belial's children are born, Deputies Bailey (Jackson Faw) and Baxter (Jim Grimshaw) break into the Rockwell house, having realized there is a million dollar reward for the capture of both Duane and Belial. While the freaks party Bailey and Baxter find the sleeping babies and, mistaking the groggy Eve for Belial, shoot and kill her before fleeing with the babies when the freaks come after them.
At the police station Sheriff Griffin finds his daughter in the midst of trying to rape
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
Duane in dominatrix
Dominatrix
Dominatrix or mistress is a woman or women who takes the dominant role in bondage, discipline and sadomasochism, or BDSM. A common form of address for a submissive to a dominatrix is "mistress", "ma'am", "domina" or "maîtresse"...
attire and sends her away, shortly before Bailey and Baxter arrive with the babies. Employing a nice bit of alliteration
Alliteration
In language, alliteration refers to the repetition of a particular sound in the first syllables of Three or more words or phrases. Alliteration has historically developed largely through poetry, in which it more narrowly refers to the repetition of a consonant in any syllables that, according to...
for which all the deputies names were clearly created; "Bailey, you book the Bradley boy, Baxter take the bassinet of baby Belials in back and get Brody to come by... Where's Brennan and Banner?... Bowling", Sheriff Griffin sends the obviously shaken Bailey and Baxter back to their homes and goes off to see what is going on at the Rockwell residence, leaving Officers Brennan (Tim Ware), Banner (Jerry G. White) and Brody in charge of the station. Breaking into the Rockwell house Sheriff Griffin finds Granny Ruth and the freaks in the midst of mourning the dead Eve and the sheriff, disturbed by the sight of the freaks and Little Hal, hurries back to the station, which Belial had broken into. As Belial attacks Brennan, Banner and Brody, Opal releases Duane from his cell, hoping he can stop Belial. Belial kills Brennan by crushing his throat (causing his eyes and teeth to pop out) and rips Banner's head off before trying to maul Brody, who accidentally blasts Opal (who crushes one of the babies in her death throes) with his shotgun prior to having his neck snapped by Belial. Putting Belial in his basket, Duane runs from the station just as Sheriff Griffin appears and opens fire, injuring Belial. Wanting to help Belial reclaim his babies and take revenge on the remaining police Duane makes up with Belial and has Little Hal construct a robotic exoskeleton
Exoskeleton
An exoskeleton is the external skeleton that supports and protects an animal's body, in contrast to the internal skeleton of, for example, a human. In popular usage, some of the larger kinds of exoskeletons are known as "shells". Examples of exoskeleton animals include insects such as grasshoppers...
for him, which Belial utilizes to butcher Bailey and Baxter.
At Eve's funeral Granny Ruth rallies the grieving freaks and they all travel to the police station, where Sheriff Griffin, grieving over his dead daughter, offers them a deal - Belial for the babies. Granny Ruth agrees to the sheriff's offer and tells him to show up at an abandoned factory on the outskirts of town for the trade; after the meeting at the station Granny Ruth and the freaks ransack a fast food restaurant, scaring away all the customers, much to the chagrin of the staff.
Arriving at the factory with the babies and a shotgun for protection, Sheriff Griffin is ambushed by Belial and the two of them fight, with Belial having the upper hand due to his exoskeleton. After seemingly killing Sheriff Griffin with a blow to the head from his mechanical claw Belial goes to retrieve his children, but is ambushed by the recovered Sheriff Griffin, who trips him. Flailing about in his armor Belial scores a hit against Sheriff Griffin, who is swarmed and killed by the babies when he falls into their cradle.
With the babies reclaimed Granny Ruth, Duane, Belial and the freaks attack a talk show entitled Renaldo (with Belial mauling the titular host). Speaking into the camera Granny Ruth tells the world that the freaks will no longer hide in the shadows and will fight back if oppressed and finishes her speech by telling everyone to have a nice day.