The Rio Theatre's Friday Late Night Movie series continues on February 9 with a screening of Frank Henenlotter's (BASKET CASE, BRAIN DAMAGE) totally absurd (yet totally smart) 90s horror comedy FRANKENHOOKER. Given the recent success of Yorgos Lanthimos' not entirely dissimilar transmutation of Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein," POOR THINGS, the time feels right to revisit this oddball 90's offering on our big screen.

After accidentally murdering the love of his life, Jeffrey Franken decides to reanimate her with the help of a drug named Supercrack . . . and the body parts of a dozen streetwalkers. Feeling like a twisted mash-up between John Waters’ SERIAL MOM and Stuart Gordon’s RE-ANIMATOR, FRANKENHOOKER is a bad taste triumph that revels in sublime camp, gloopy gore, and neon-soaked dreamscapes. Plus an iconic performance by Patty Mullen as the eponymous title character.

Via Screen Rant: Frankenhooker's blend of comedy, horror, and absolute absurdism perfectly aligns with Poor Things' approach to storytelling. As the title would suggest, Frank Henenlotter's Frankenhooker centers around a young medical student resurrecting his deceased fiancée through the use of compiling various body parts from New York City sex workers in a movie that's just as funny as it is absurd. Additionally, Frankenhooker's examination of the status quo for many sex workers through humor makes it a wholly unique exploration of an oft-disregarded human experience, thus justifying its bizarre premise. Although Frankenhooker and Poor Things are very different movies stylistically, they share a similar comedic quality and affinity for the absurd, thus making them much more alike than one might initially expect.

Friday, February 9
Doors 10:45 pm | Movie 11:15 pm *Start time subject to change. Please arrive on time.

Late Night Date Night! Bring a friend, pal, or date (or a reanimated iteration of a friend, pal or date) and get two-for-one entry!

FRANKENHOOKER (Frank Henenlotter, 1990 / 88 mins / 18A) A New Jersey mad doctor rebuilds his girlfriend with body parts from exploded hookers.