Released: September 11, 2015
Director: Can Evrenol
Screenplay: Can Evrenol, Cem Ozuduru, Ercin Sadikoglu, Eren Akay
Tagline: "Enter a world of suffering and madness"
Cast:
Ergun Kuyucu as Boss Remzi
Muharrem Bayrak as Yavuz
Gorkem Kasal as Arda
Fatih Dokgöz as Apo
Sabahattin Yakut as Seyfi
Mehmet Cerrahoglu as Baba / The Father
Turkish police officers make a horrifying discovery inside an apartment building. A minimalist but effective logline, drawing interest and leaving a world of possibility for the story. Or a demonic world, in Baskin's case. The Turkish word "baskin" has several English translations, among them "descent," "attack," and "sudden," all of which are equally applicable to the film. As the officers degrade their wait staff and regale each other with tales of female conquest, one of them starts to feel unwell. In the bathroom, he finds a frog in the soap dish. Called to a deserted nearby village where strange things are said to happen, their experiences only get weirder.
Baskin is a gorgeous film. It's lighting and style are reminiscent of Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), lots of deep blues, splashes of red, coupled with clever and expert camera work that taps into the subconscious of the viewer, letting us know that things are not quite what they seem for our five protagonists. I'm thinking in particular of a scene where our heroes' police cruiser careens down the road at night and the camera flips upside down, suggesting a symbolic turn of events before a literal crash with destiny.
There are great touches like this throughout the film, which is carried by excellent actors in each of the particular roles. Gorkem Kasal, playing Arda, is the clear standout and the audience's focal point. You never doubt his sincerity or delivery. The whole film feels so earnest and sincere, even in special effects. The makeup is all old-school and practical, and there's tons of gore. But buckets of blood can't wash away the less than stellar aspects of an otherwise presentable production.
It's in story elements where Baskin flounders a little. There's great set up of an oppressive atmosphere, interesting characters, and an emotional mystery we're invested in uncovering more about. The adrenaline starts to pump in our veins as, ever so slowly, we are teased with information about these characters, their backgrounds, and their situation. Then we enter the abandoned building, the hellish nightmare world envelops our heroes, and the film hits a wall. All these great threads and plot points that were starting to build and intertwine with one another are abandoned for the sake of visually arresting gore. And there's nothing wrong with visually arresting gore. Or even refusing to tie up loose ends. But you have to still provide an emotional payoff for the viewer as a counterbalance, and I think this is where Baskin fails. It's all just about the gross-out factor once we get down into the darkness.
It's still a beautiful film, arresting and fascinating throughout the first two acts, but Baskin can't keep the momentum going in the finale. If there had been something different hiding in that basement, perhaps, the trajectory might have maintained peak force. In the end, the metaphysical gets sacrificed for the carnal, but this is one case where we didn't need the story to stay grounded. We needed it to soar, soar, soar.
Baskin
5-Totally Terrifying
4-Crazy Creepy
3-Fairly Frightening
2-Slightly Scary
1-Hardly Horror
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