Bad Biology – Blu-Ray Review

“I was born with seven clits”. The opening lines of this movie let you know it’s not going to be a sequel to Mary Poppins.

Bad Biology is a 2008 horror film directed, after a 17 year break in filmmaking, by Frank Henenlotter, known for his work on cult classics like “Basket Case” and “Brain Damage.” The film follows the story of Jennifer, a woman with a bizarre biological condition (see above) that causes her to have a voracious sexual appetite and pop out “fake, unfinished freak babies” like shelling peas within hours of having sex , and Batz, a man with a condition that causes his mutant, sentient dick (yes you read that right) grow uncontrollably.

The film is an incredibly bizarre, completely surreal, hyper-sexual exploration of human desire and biology. The narrative is unconventional, blending elements of body horror, VERY dark comedy and, possibly too much, eroticism to create a uniquely bizarre and unsettling experience.

The film’s visuals are striking, with Henenlotter’s signature blend of practical effects and surreal imagery. The grotesque mutations and sexualised violence are depicted in an almost cartoonish way (the first head knocking scene made me genuinely “LOL”) which adds to the film’s surreal atmosphere.

Bad Biology will be an extremely Marmite film due to its graphic content, unconventional storytelling and Hip Hop cast. It’s for the most part a Eurotrash style soft core porno that many will want to watch once and file away in the recesses of their minds, but it’s garnered a cult following among fans of extreme cinema. The film’s unapologetic embrace of the grotesque certainly makes it a memorable and provocative viewing experience and you’re never likely to forget seeing a woman administering CPR to a massive mutant member.

Now this wickedly warped feature gets a re-birth from Severin Films in a Special Edition set, that includes the film in its newly restored version, scanned in 4K from the camera negative.

This dual 4K UHD and Blu-ray release comes complete with a slew of brand-new special features and gets its UK bow on 26th February 2024, and will also be released on standard edition Blu-ray.

SPECIAL FEATURES: Disc 1: 4K UHD

Commentary With Director Frank Henenlotter, director of photography Nick Deeg and actor Anthony Sneed
Archival commentary with Frank Henenlotter and producer R.A. The Rugged Man Thorburn

Disc 2 (Blu-Ray)

Commentary with Frank Henenlotter, Nick Deeg and Anthony Sneed – Quite the commentary 😀 Some very interesting thoughts on a lot of the scenes and them asking each other questions like the gem “by the way, who’s cock was that?” A commentary as mad as the film.
Archival commentary with Frank Henenlotter and producer R.A. The Rugged Man Thorburn – A commentary made when the film had just been made. They both say it’s a strange film. This commmentary a little odd. Neither commentary’s really help towards the film feeling less sleazy. Quite the reverse in fact.
Spook House – Interviews with Frank Henenlotter and R.A. The Rugged Man Thorburn, production coordinator MichaelShershenovich, Nick Deeg, retired detective David Henenlotter and production manager Chaz Kangas – If you’re doing extras for a film this weird, you may as well make them weird too right? This starts with them walking through a haunted house attraction, Then it goes to more standard, very well shot, interviews. They’re all pretty interesting looks into the set, which was based in “The spook house”. A few odd things happened on this haunted set. Yeah, the bizarreness just builds.
In The Basement With Charlee Danielson – A brief, completely off-kilter interview with the elusive Miss Charlee Danielson and aBasketball – Charlee Danielson interview filmed on a potato for 3 minutes with a bone jarringly annoying basketball bouncing sound. More weirdness. Is she O.K?
Deeg and Sneed – A Conversation between Nick Deeg and Anthony Sneed – Deeg and Sneed should be a superhero duo. Decent, well shot hour long interview between the two, mainly Sneed. (Deeg was the DoP on the movie).
Swollen Agenda – Interview with make-up effects artist Gabe Bartalos – Interesting content on the works of a make up artist on a batshit film.
Beyond Bad – Behind the Scenes of Bad Biology – 30 mins behind the scenes. If you have even a passing interest in filmmaking this is a great extra feature.
F*ck Face – Photographer Clay Patrick McBride runs around the director’s apartment filming guys making their ‘O Face’ – Short interview with the photographer behind the photo portfolio Jennifer has in the film.
SUCK – A wonderfully twisted short film by Anthony Sneed – This says it’s wonderfully twisted, and it’s an extra on Bad Biology. Guess how twisted it is?! “Suck on my dirty little meat digit”
Legendary Loser – Music Video by R.A. The Rugged Man – Music Video from Film producer, writer, magazine journalist and legendary rapper in the hip-hop underground R.A. The Rugged Man. It’s a fun video for a song that almost made me want to look up his other works… almost.
Thorburn Image Gallery – publicity pics, behind-the-scenes shots, video covers and death pix – 242 very peculiar photographs that you won’t want to add to your mums digital photo frame.