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There are better movies of two hours length. I loved the actress'performance.

The first must-see film of the year.

The acting in this movie is really good.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

In a '70s private sanitarium, the physicians are at ease playing the weirdest medical games, free from any prudence (endowing the patients with weapons, like in the dryly and efficiently satirical scene of the 1st murder, when the physicians looks as insane as his patient, and has an intriguing look of carelessness and incompetence), delving into alternative psychotherapy, and the plot actually has a dramatic underbelly, there's something respectable, mostly the acting, by people who enjoyed their roles (the usual cartoons of cinema insanity) and the thrill of the plot, and by the directing (good, unhurried scenes, like the open-minded young nurse's arrival at the sanitarium, in the aftermath of the murders), with a sense of satire, until it indulges in aqua-fortes of delusional behavior and it becomes a moderately convincing rip-off of a '60s stage-play (the ravings, the screams, like in Albee or Williams). The _jurisconsult is aware of the uselessness of the treatments as given in the sanitarium, they are like the Popsicles cherished by the childish giant.The new nurse arrives from a dignified professional world, into the realm of insane experiments. The actress, a '70s starlet with an eerie look, and nowadays the highlight of the cast (as she probably was at the time of the release, as well), does a reasonably sunny role.'The Basement' has a mystery puzzle plot, with scattered hints: the doll, the phone, the missing vials …. It's a satire, with the placidity of the female psychiatrist in the aftermath of her colleague's demise (when she receives intruders, she seems one of her patients), the insane psychiatrists who were also neurosurgeons, the knowing smiles of these deluded medical workers, who put themselves at the mercy of crazy people, the shocking carelessness of the sanitarium life, with the murderer left free, and the young nurse's room open to the patients during her sleep. The patients don't look like sick people, they seem stock movie weirdos.

"The Forgotten (1973)" is also known by it's more common title "Don't Look in the Basement". Don't Look in the Basement fits the film okay while The Forgotten seems to be a more appropriate title.Question why would Dr. Stephen allow a mentally unstable patient to use a real axe in therapy? A toy axe maybe but a real axe? Even if he thought it was therapeutic for the man to chop wood - a toy axe would have been the logical choice for therapy. Why was he so trusting in his obsession-development theory and creating a "family"? You'll have to watch the film to find the answers.The film is pretty good. It's worth watching if you like movies surrounding asylums.6.5/10

Don't Look in the Basement has attained a certain level of infamy on the basis that it was one of the 72 films that made the video nasty list. For those not in the know, this was a list of films considered obscene by the authorities in early 80's Britain. It does have to be said, though, that like many others from that list this one has no right being on any list of movies considered extremely shocking. Don't Look in the Basement has no real reason to have been labelled a video nasty but I am pleased for it that it was because it has given it a lasting fame of sorts. Its original title 'The Forgotten' is actually a more meaningful title though, seeing as it's about people locked away in a hospital for the insane. It seems likely that it was given the 'Don't' moniker to tie it in with other similarly titled horror flicks from the time. In actual fact, there were four of these on the video nasty list, so perhaps the censors back in the day took eccentric exception to use of the word 'don't' at the beginning of film titles…The story revolves around an experimental asylum for the criminally insane, where the chief doctor encourages the inmates to act out their fantasies and allows them to roam the facility unchecked. This ends in disaster though when one of them puts an axe in his back. The following day a new nurse turns up for duty and shortly afterwards a series of murders begins.The first time I saw this film I was pretty unimpressed. I was expecting something completely different though. I certainly wasn't prepared for an oddball flick populated by a selection of very strange characters. The story is basically a 'lunatics taking over the asylum' narrative but it has something definitely quirky and interesting about it that I picked up on having seen it again with a clearer mind. The budget is clearly very small but the scuzziness of the production values adds somewhat to the overall effect. This is much better for the fact it is so rough and ready with threadbare sets. Even the basic acting adds to the strangeness seeing as the inmates are supposed to be out of their minds anyway. It is a character-driven movie and they are a real selection box of oddness, each has his or her own quirks. Although I could have done without the extremely annoying frizzy haired character called Danny who screams and giggles in an incessantly irritating way. Otherwise there were some interesting ones, including a strange old woman who spoke in strange riddles, an ex-soldier who thinks he is still fighting a war, an axe-wielding character called The Judge, a Popsicle loving man with the mental age of a child, a woman with severe relationship issues and another who nurses a baby doll.The mystery/thriller/horror side of the story almost takes a back seat a lot of the time. But it increases in relevance in the final third. Things are wrapped up ultimately with a pretty neat twist that I didn't see coming. At the end of the day this is probably among the most interestingly different of the films to make the video nasty list. It's not for all tastes but for fans of 70's American exploitation movies it's one to see.

Nurse Charlotte Beale arrives at the isolated Stephens Sanitarium to work, only to learn that Dr. Stephens was murdered by one of the patients and his successor, Dr. Geraldine Masters, is not very eager to take on new staff. Charlotte finds her job maddeningly hard as the patients torment and harass her at every turn, and she soon learns why Dr. Masters is so eager to keep outsiders out. This is a great extremely low budget movie made in Texas with unknowns. Honestly, it deserves the same status as a movie like I Spit on Your Grave or the Texas Chainsaw Massacre.It's completely over the top, but the story sucks you in and the cast are more than adequate in their roles as complete lunatics - each with their own personalities and back stories.Each one seems crazier than the next. The movie zooms by, largely because it's really well written and competently directed.The movie was originally called The Forgotten. I actually say this movie when it came out as Don't Look in the Basement so there must have been an early decision to switch titles to make it more controversial. In a way it's too bad because the original title is more classy and serves the movie better, I think.Don't miss the nympho and the telephone man!This place is truly an insane asylum like no other. And there's a kewl twist ending. I loved every frame!