Don’t Look in the Basement
- Year: 1973
- Country of origin: USA
- Genre: Horror, Thriller
- Director: S.F. Brownrigg
- Length: 89 min
The day the insane took over the asylum!
Film Synopsis
Don’t Look in the Basement (1973) follows a young nurse who takes a job at an isolated sanitarium only to discover that the doctor has been killed and the new head of the facility uses questionable methods to “treat” the patients. As she tries to find her footing among an odd group of inmates and unravel what has happened to the real doctor, the line between sanity and madness blurs and violent incidents escalate. The tension builds toward a bloody climax in which the truth about the asylum and those in control comes to light.
Critical Perspective
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Although relatively straight-faced, the film is nevertheless great fun … Wildly gory though the latter stages are, it’s typical of the Brownrigg experience that we should be left at the end with feelings more of sadness than of horror.
Stephen Thrower, The Definitive Guide to Horror Movies (Thunder Bay Press, 2025)
Don’t Look in the Basement Blu-ray & DVD Editions
See which disc extras are included across selected editions.
| Disc Extras | VCI BD-ALL/US 2018 | Dark Force BD-ALL/US 2018 | Brink BD-ALL/US 2017 | Film Chest DVD-0/US 2014 | VCI DVD-0/US 2012 | VCI DVD-1/US 2007 | VCI DVD-0/US/OOP 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Audio Commentary by David DeCoteau and David Del Valle | |||||||
| Audio Commentary by Tony Brownrigg (Son of Director S.F. Brownrigg) | |||||||
| Restoration Comparison | |||||||
| Biographies | |||||||
| Biography: Director S.F. Brownrigg | |||||||
| Production Notes | |||||||
| Theatrical Trailer |
Edition and Packaging Notes
- VCI’s “Grindhouse Double Feature” Blu-ray also includes Don’t Open the Door! (1974). Bonus trailers included: Hillbillys in a Haunted House (1967), Night of the Bloody Apes (1969), Beast of the Yellow Night (1971), Dixie Dynamite (1976), Bad Georgia Road (1977) and Terror (1978).
- Dark Force’s “Starlite Drive-In Theater” Blu-ray also includes Chaos (2005) and no extras. Bonus trailer included: Don’t Go in the House (1979).
- Brink’s Blu-ray includes an 8-page booklet. It also includes Don’t Look in the Basement 2 (2015).
- VCI’s 2012 “Scream Theater, Volume 3” DVD also includes Don’t Open the Door! (1974).
- VCI’s 2007 “Grindhouse Double Feature” DVD also includes Don’t Open the Door! (1974).
- VCI’s 2000 DVD is also available in the “Scream Pack” box set with Don’t Open the Door! (1974) and Kiss of the Tarantula (1975).
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