Scott LeBrun Super sexy Rosie Holotik plays Charlotte Beale, a psychiatric nurse who goes to work at the isolated Stephens Sanitarium. She gets there to find that the Dr. Stephens who (loosely) ran the place was murdered by one of the patients. Geraldine Masters (Annabelle Weenick), who seems to have inherited the supervisory position, has her misgivings about Charlottes' presence, but agrees to take her on as an employee anyway. Among the unbalanced people Charlotte meets are the gentle giant Sam (Bill McGhee), the desperate-for-love Allyson (Betty Chandler), former military man Sgt. Jaffee (Hugh Feagin), and possessive "mother" Harriet (Camilla Carr).This is actually a pretty good, if overly talky, effort from regional filmmaker S.F. Brownrigg. The low, low budget merely enhances the overall atmosphere. This is a grim, gritty film that goes far based on the personalities of the characters and the performances. Holotik is appealing, but it's Ms. Weenick who takes the acting honours. Things get appropriately gory, especially in the disturbing ending. One great scene takes place between Dr. Masters and the Sargeant, as she insists on asserting her authority.We know early on that we're going to be in for something amusing. Dr. Stephens, who had an unorthodox way of treating mental illness, is just foolish enough to give Judge Oliver W. Cameron (Gene Ross) an axe in order to work through his aggressions. People who saw this film back in the 70s must have gotten a real sense of deja vu if they ended up seeing "Friday the 13th: A New Beginning". One of the major delights is the refrain spoken by the cackling old lady Mrs. Callingham (Rhea MacAdams).Deliberately paced and very moody, "Don't Look in the Basement" (a.k.a. "The Forgotten") is an affecting exploitation-horror flick.Seven out of 10.

Chase_Witherspoon Not without some shock value, this claustrophobic little horror movie concerns a nurse (Fulton) inspired to join a small, rural mental health clinic where an intrepid doctor (Harvey) is practicing new techniques on the seriously deranged patients. Needless to say that after the doctor is killed by one of the crackpots, the suspicious 2IC (MacAdams) presides over an ever-deteriorating situation where the crazies seem to outdo each other for most bizarre and violent outburst.MacAdams playing the twisted "Dr" Geraldine Masters seems a competent actress and her character is genuinely unhinged - Fulton, by distinction, doesn't so much seem to act, as affect a performance of shock and awe in which she does, at the very least, a decent scream queen impersonation. McGhee is okay as the docile and supposedly gentle lobotomised Sam, while among the assortment of oddballs, there's a sultry but dangerous nymphomaniac (Chandler) who just wants to be loved (the scene where she "consummates" her marriage to the phone guy is pretty chilling), an old duck who utters quaint yet sinister premonitions until she apparently bites off her own tongue, while certified nutcases of various afflictions taunt each other incessantly to the point of psychotic rage.While amateurish, with performances varied in quality, the dialogue seems reasonably intelligent and the narrative is pretty solid with a few well-constructed plot twists. The intense climax is perhaps a bit over-the-top for sheer lunacy, but I suppose in a house full of nuts, it's only a matter of time become some of them crack.

shango7200 In the opening credits of "Aloha Bobby and Rose" (1974) you can see a movie theater marquee showing "Last House on the Left" & "Don't Look in the Basement" ! (I suspect that 90% of the fans on here never saw this in a theater because they were too young). I was not aware of the extra gore AND *nudity* ( the classic Allyson & phone company man scene) on the DVD after all the times I saw this (edited for TV) on good ole WOR Channel 9's FRIGHT NIGHT (Saturdays, 1:00 AM late 70s thru the early 80s). There is no way a remake can come close to the sleazy , creepy, late-nite atmosphere of D.L.I.T.B. I love hearing how people first reacted to seeing this on TV to begin with. Seems like most had seen it in 1980 or so on TV (at least that's when I did). YES: we need this to be listed under it's more common title instead of the post release "Forgotten" name.

dolly_the_ye-ye_bird Don't Look In the Basement is a movie I've tried to watch several times. While in college, I must have seen the first 10 minutes at least 10 times. Something always happened to prevent me from seeing the film from front to back. Finally, it was on television the other night and I was lucky enough to catch the whole thing. I'll start with it's good points: First, it's got a good, creepy atmosphere. The house it's filmed in in sufficiently run down and middle of nowhere. The inmates of the asylum are extremely entertaining. The plot is decent.Now for the bad: The film quality is quite bad as is the audio...but the budget being what it was and the times what they were, I can forgive that. Plus, I suppose it could be argued that the lack of quality adds to the atmosphere a bit. Even though the characters are quite entertaining...sometimes for such wrong reasons that you almost feel guilty for laughing at them...the actors are terrible. Except for Sam, the seemingly sweet, and innocent bear of a man with a heart of gold and the mind of a child....and a LOT of unresolved issues!!! He was actually really creepy and fairly well played. Although every time he picked up one of those popsicles, it reminded me of a Bill Cosby Pudding Pop commercial. Come to think of it, that's probably what made him seem so creepy! Even though the plot is decent, it's pretty predictable. I saw the 'twist' coming from the young nurse's first interview with the acting head doctor....although maybe that's because I saw a modern film last week that had the exact same plot and I assumed this one would be the same? Anyway, not a bad little slasher film. I'm glad I finally got to see it uninterrupted.