Baskin hints at horror greatness, but it doesn’t quite reach that pinnacle.
The Turkish film marks Writer/Director Can Evrenol’s feature film debut, and he doesn’t fail to impress. The term Baskin itself means "descent, sudden attack, dominant," and from the opening scene, we get just that. A trippy sequence that uses light and sound to overload our senses and get us in the mood to party.
After that intense opening, the film gives the audience a breather while still building up the creep factor with a shitload of slimy toads and a hooded mystery figure that keeps popping up throughout the early portion of the film. All the actors in the film give a solid performance. The camaraderie displayed by the actors portraying the cops (the restaurant scene and the sing-a-long in the van come to mind) end up giving the viewer someone to actually care about in this muddled up story. The performance of the All-Father/Baba (Mehmet Cerrahoglu), the leader of this satanic cult, is especially memorable. The chilling scene in the catacombs when he’s trying to figure out his next sacrifice coupled with all the GORE will definitely make horror nerds a fan of this director. One lovely scene has the All-Father using some poor cop's intestines like a zipper to open his gut! Totally brutal! Something you have to see to appreciate.
After that intense opening, the film gives the audience a breather while still building up the creep factor with a shitload of slimy toads and a hooded mystery figure that keeps popping up throughout the early portion of the film. All the actors in the film give a solid performance. The camaraderie displayed by the actors portraying the cops (the restaurant scene and the sing-a-long in the van come to mind) end up giving the viewer someone to actually care about in this muddled up story. The performance of the All-Father/Baba (Mehmet Cerrahoglu), the leader of this satanic cult, is especially memorable. The chilling scene in the catacombs when he’s trying to figure out his next sacrifice coupled with all the GORE will definitely make horror nerds a fan of this director. One lovely scene has the All-Father using some poor cop's intestines like a zipper to open his gut! Totally brutal! Something you have to see to appreciate.
The film is shot well, giving this Turkish horror film a solid visual foot to stand on. And with all the craziness that goes on in the dark, the filmmakers really stepped up to make sure the audience knew exactly what was going in those dimly lit set pieces. Unfortunately where it all falls apart for me is the story! The flow of the plot starts to waver when the shit starts to hit the fan, which eventually ends up bringing up several unanswered questions at the conclusion of this movie. It’s a shame to have to scratch your head after it’s all said and done.
The film has the potential to flow like a modern day Italian Giallo film, with its use of suspense, intense horror visuals, and trippy scenes making great use of light and sounds, but fails to successfully finish the story cohesively. Fortunately the cast, theme, gore, and technical aspects of the movie aid in masking the weak story. I love me a good ol’ satanic cult story, and this one in particular left me wanting to bask in the Dark Father’s UV rays for a while longer. //Arturo Padilla
The film has the potential to flow like a modern day Italian Giallo film, with its use of suspense, intense horror visuals, and trippy scenes making great use of light and sounds, but fails to successfully finish the story cohesively. Fortunately the cast, theme, gore, and technical aspects of the movie aid in masking the weak story. I love me a good ol’ satanic cult story, and this one in particular left me wanting to bask in the Dark Father’s UV rays for a while longer. //Arturo Padilla
