Don't Look in the Basement 2 (2015) Reviews

• Not as good as the original.

  BA_Harrison2016-07-23

  The arrival of a new patient at a home for the mentally ill stirs up ghosts from the past, causing the staff and residents to exhibit severe personality changes. S.F. Brownrigg's cult 1972 horror Don't Look In The Basement gets a belated sequel courtesy of Brownrigg's son, Tony. Unlike his father's film, which was a cheap, grainy, lo-fi effort (none of which prevented it from being an effective shocker), Tony's film is surprisingly polished, boasting crisp cinematography and solid performances. What it is lacking, however, is a decent pace and a strong story. The first forty minutes of Don't Look In The Basement 2 are extremely uneventful and unfold at a snail's pace, introducing the viewer to the characters, none of whom are as memorable as those in the original film. At around the halfway mark, the plot gets a little more interesting as people begin to act strangely, but the leaden pace persists. There's a smattering of gore to help liven up proceedings (including some graphic gut munching), but on the whole I found the whole thing frustratingly lacklustre, and not really worth the 40+ year wait.

• polished and well-acted sequel

  PeterBradford2018-04-08

  Technically, the film is very strong. Excellent cinematography, great use of the location, which is the same location as the original film. I swear some of the furniture looks the same! There is one actor from the first film, the great Camilla Carr, who I wish worked more. The director did an outstanding job evoking dread and fear. Two thumbs up.

• A Lot Better Than I Was Expecting

  Michael_Elliott2016-06-04

  Don't Look in the Basement 2 (2015) ** (out of 4) A mental hospital is the setting as boss Emily (Camilla Carr) tells her crew that they've got a new patient coming. It turns out that Sam (Willie Minor) was in a sanitarium where he murdered eight people in 1972. Dr. William (Andrew Sensenig) is given his case and it doesn't take long for everyone to realize that something isn't right. DON'T LOOK IN THE BASEMENT was a shocking hit back in 1972 even though it featured no stars or much of a budget. The film was directed by cult favorite S.F. Brownrigg and it remained popular throughout the last couple decades thanks to its public domain status, which meant people had easy access to it. This direct sequel took over thirty years to materialize and it was co-written and directed by Tony Brownrigg, the original director's son. It seems doing sequels to these older movies is something that is catching on because another 70s favorite, SILENT NIGHT BLOODY NIGHT also got the sequel treatment. I went into this expecting something quite awful and was shocked not to get that. In fact, I was rather amazed at the technical quality of the picture because you'd never know that you were watching a low-budget movie. The cinematography by Chuck Hatcher makes this seem like a Hollywood picture because of how great it is. The editing, the score and one of the songs played throughout were also extremely good. Another shock was the fact that all of the performances were extremely good and believable, which is something I rarely say for a film like this. If you're familiar with the first film then you'll remember Carr and it was great getting to see her return here. Brownrigg does a very good job in the director's chair but I must say that the only disappointing thing was the actual screenplay. There's simply not enough going on here to keep you glued to the screen for the rather short 82 minutes. I really wish that a better or fuller story had been done. Everything is here for a good movie but it falls just short because there's way too much talking going on and there's needed to be a bit more plot development. Still, DON'T LOOK IN THE BASEMENT 2 was a shocking surprise and manages to be better than the first film.

• About 50 times better than it has any right to be!

  stsinger2016-05-28

  If you're a fan of the horror genre, you have to slog through a lot of crap and once in a while, you come across a truly pleasant surprise. "Don't Look in the Basement 2" is one of those happy surprises. For those who are unaware, "Don't Look in the Basement" was a 1973 horror film by S.F. Brownrigg that involved a young nurse going to an asylum where murder and mayhem ensues. It garnered some serious notoriety because it was acquired by Hallmark Pictures and was given the same marketing campaign as the original "Last House on the Left" ("It's only a movie... only a movie..."). And now, over 40 years later, comes a direct sequel directed by Anthony Brownrigg, son of the original director. In this one, a doctor goes to work at a small, country asylum after a tragedy involving his wife. The director of the asylum informs the staff that a very special patient is coming. And it is a man named Sam, who was one of the lone survivors of the events in the original film. Once Sam gets there, strange things start to happen. Patients and staff start acting strange, and seem to be taking on the persona of the characters of the original movie. And as you might expect, murder and mayhem seem to be on the menu again... The movie is way, way better than you'd expect. The acting is professional, there is creepiness, scares, intentional comic relief, and some truly disturbing scenes. It's well photographed and solidly directed. And it's got an actual, honest-to-goodness ENDING. It helps to have seen the original (otherwise the characters seem to be just acting weird instead of channeling other characters) but it's not a necessity. I was really surprised by how good this was. Definitely recommend it.

• Great movie

  awy77342019-02-21

  This movie was exccelent,it had funny moments, and I just loved the entire movie ,watched it a couple times highly replayable, has the same feel as similar movies like session 9 and death tunnel, ,this movie was great I bought it and added it to my DVD collection, of out of print b movies fits great ,,,it's way better than part one and continues on with the story perfect, and the main cast of characters, all of them we're great ,this was really well done and over looked great story especiallly when your living it for real, hits home depending what your life experiences are great movie