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Frankenhooker (1990)
Canonically, Dr. Frankenstein is always so focused on his “It’s alive!” proclamation that he often neglects to ask, “But couldn’t life be a little hotter?”
Enter the 1990 horror-comedy Frankenhooker. This loopy, often literally head-exploding satire of ‘80s superficiality and reactionary politics plays on Friday, Oct. 4, at Clinton Street Theater.
From Frank Henenlotter, beloved cult director of Basket Case and Brain Damage, Frankenhooker begins in everyone’s favorite breeding ground for mad science: suburban New Jersey.
After Elizabeth (Patty Mullen) is dismembered in a tragic garden-party accident, her fiancé and amateur scientist Jeffrey (James Lorinz) tries to bring her back to life—but with what he deems are a few cosmetic improvements.
Looking for “parts,” Jeffrey ventures across the Hudson into pre-Giuliani Times Square, where Frankenhooker hits an even higher gear of mocking puritanic Satanic panic. Clinton Street Theater, 10 pm, Friday, Oct. 4.
Also Playing:
5th Avenue: The Truman Show (1998), Oct. 4-6. Academy: Night of the Living Dead (1968), Oct. 4-10. The Addams Family (1991), Oct. 4-10. The Brood (1979), Oct. 4-10. Cinema 21: Playtime (1967), Oct. 5. Cinemagic: Event Horizon (1997), Oct. 2-3. Tucker & Dale vs. Evil (2010), Oct. 3. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), Oct. 4, 5 and 8. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2 (1986), Oct. 5 and 8. Clinton Street: Suspiria (1977), Oct. 4. The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975), Oct. 5. Antichrist (2009), Oct. 6. Blood Tea and Red String (2006), Oct. 7. Mirror, Mirror (1990), Oct. 8. Hollywood: Island of Lost Souls (1932), Oct. 3. Fright Night (1985), Oct. 7. The Seven Brothers Meet Dracula (1974), Oct. 8. Tomorrow: Marie Antoinette (2006), Oct. 5. The Mummy (1999), Oct. 5. The Monster Squad (1987), Oct. 6.