libalibi One hell of a movie to review. On one hand, so many things happen here (and I don't mean plot wise) you get lost in the sheer absurdity, and on the other hand, you wonder can this really be called a movie.But it is a movie (sadly for the most of the movie going audience), and it's completely of the wall insanity. It's a shame that dialog doesn't seem to be one with what happens on the screen as than it would be just plain perfect. Freaks are abound in this one, getting a lot of screen time making it a perfect movie to watch with same minded friends and some, God forbid, poison of your choice. I didn't see the second installment, but I sure will now.

Tromafreak After the shockingly surreal events that took place at the end of the last movie, Granny Ruth and pals have a now insane Duane Bradley locked in a padded cell, which is also in the "freak house". Of course it is. Gee whiz, Duane sure does act zany in this one. Zany or not, this story is going forward with us or without us, so, we might as well learn to appreciate it for what it is, whatever the hell it is. Anyway, the female freak (the one Belial had his way with in part 2) is now pregnant, and the only doctor Ruth can think of that can be trusted to deliver the litter, lives in Georgia... Oh, Great. I mean, Florida or North Carolina would have been a better choice, but a road trip is a road trip, right? So, Granny Ruth gets out the old school bus, leaves Duane in his straight-jacket, just to be safe, and takes her family o' freaks all the way down south. Hopefully, in such a small town, nobody will recognize Duane from all those tabloids. Unfortunately Duane feels he's being held against his will, and takes any opportunity he can to get away. Where, you ask? I don't know. Just away, I guess. Once Duane gets away, he gets himself into all sorts of trouble, not to mention Granny and the freaks. Greedy, small-town cops, lookin' for reward money is hot on Belial's trail, but what these yokels find... well, forget it. This movie sucks. But if you've recently had the pleasure of seeing the original Basket Case, and you got the Henenlotter fever, the next logical step would be a flick called Brain Damage.As someone who hates the fact that there is even one Basket Case sequel, even I gotta admit that the idea of a part 2 is, or I guess was intriguing. But 3? Come on, Frank. You're better than that. I would imagine someone, at some point, up and told the man how awful this movie really is, discouraging the poor fella, and sending him into a deep depression, which would explain why Henenlotter wouldn't make another movie (Bad Biology) for 17 years... Embaressment. 4/10

BA_Harrison Basket Case 3: The Progeny continues in much the same vein as Pt 2, with loads of twisted humour, some very silly freaks, and plenty of truly demented scenes, including a terrific musical number from Granny Ruth (Annie Ross) and her 'unique individuals', the birth of twelve mutant babies, Duane (Kevin Van Hentenryck) being dominated by Opal (Tina Louise Hilbert), the hot slutty daughter of a local sheriff, and Belial being transformed into a half-machine/half monster cyborg by Little Hal (Jim O'Doherty), a monstrous multi-limbed genius.In short, this movie is yet another bonkers effort from Frank Henenlotter that, although never reaching the level of brilliance displayed in his debut Basket Case or the marvellous Brain Damage, should appeal to those who enjoyed the director's previous outing for his deranged, separated Siamese twins. The comedy sometimes gets a tad puerile, and the childish behaviour of the freaks becomes irritating at times, but the level of insanity is way high, with a fair amount of inventive gore, and even some nudity courtesy of Playboy twins Carla and Carmen Morrell (who have the dubious pleasure of fondling Belial).It might not be Henenlotter at his best, but I'd much rather watch an enjoyably daft, low budget piece of campy trash such as this than much of today's bland and predictable mainstream horror.

lost-in-limbo After going crazy and stitching Belial back on himself at the end of the second film, Duane is now slapped into a straight jacket and kept in a room for months until he's better. After being released by Granny Ruth he founds out that Belial is going to be a father. So, Ruth organises a road trip with her family to the deep south to meet a doctor she knows that could actually help deliver the infants. Although, after the delivery a couple of officers kidnap Belial's babies, which makes Belial incredibly angry and causes the horrific fury we've come expect from him.First off, a word of warning… it's not a film for the uninitiated of cheap and twisted cinema. Pretty much what we got here is a wayward freak show, which has a charmingly campy appeal. I had to pick up my jaw from the ground, as it's just off the rails! If you've seen the second one, you know what to expect, even if it does up the ante on the craziness this time around. The first film was a sleazy classick, the second wasn't too bad, but this outing I thought was somewhat of an improvement on the first sequel. Only fans of the Basket Case films and that of incredibly wild and cheesy B-films will get something out of it. Frank Henenlotter's "Basket Case 3: The Progeny" is just as cheap and crude, but far more adventurous, with cartoon-style violence and twists that go one step further. Everything and I mean everything is played for wicked laughs. You got the quirky sense of humour and offbeat dialogue, that provides one corny one liner after another. Shoddy looking makeup and cheap rubbery effects actually dazzle, because you seen nothing quite like it, with Belial and his buddies looking okay and at least have different types of personalities and distinguishable features. Plus there's plenty of moments that pop up out the blue, like a musical number and kinky sexual act. But it's those eye popping sequences of Belial's grisly and inventive attacks that just make it so hugely exciting, especially the film's climax, which was a real hoot.One thing you definitely notice throughout the series, is that when it came to this film there was more of a focus on Granny Ruth and her family of "unique individuals". The brotherly love seemed more drifted, but when those two shared the screen that's when most of best moments occurred. The film definitely felt more childish, but still there was an underlying cruel and ghastly tone to proceedings and the story also has a message about accepting others as the way they are. Just to be open-minded, really. There's some nice homage's from other films too and a rather brisk pace keeps things going. Henenlotter even adds a recount of what happened at the end of the second film to just refresh your memory, but that ending I don't think is that hard to forget when your thinking of the Basket Case films. Surprisedly the enthusiastic acting gets better, but by not much. Kevin Van Hentenryck again fitted the role perfectly as the oddball Duane, even if his character's persona is all over shop. But again its Annie Ross, who steals all the scenes she's in as the determined Granny Ruth.Stupid? You're right about that, but it's just hilariously demented fun and nothing more!