Don't Go in the House Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.0

Don't Go in the House Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman January 16, 2022

The shadow of Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho looms pretty large over Don't Go in the House, though kind of interestingly in that regard, no studio tour such as the one offered at Universal will allow visitors to see a supposed imposing Gothic mansion on a backlot, since Don't Go in the House's titular edifice is an actual New Jersey building called the Strauss Mansion, which has evidently subsequently been turned into a museum. The mansion (see screenshot 2) is obviously more than a bit reminiscent of the "house on the hill" overlooking the Bates Motel, but Don't Go in the House has other tethers to the Hitchcock masterpiece, including an inhibited focal character, in this case a guy named Donny Kohler (Dan Grimaldi), who has a somewhat convoluted history with his (no real spoiler here, since it's revealed openly in the film's first few minutes) deceased mother. There are some differences, of course, with one of the chief ones being that due to abuse suffered at the hands of his mother when he was a child, Donny has turned into something of a pyromaniac, though you perhaps would be forgiven for not knowing that considering an early vignette in the film, when a coworker of Donny's at an incineration facility accidentally sets himself on fire, and Donny is more or less paralyzed, drawing the umbrage of his supervisor, who understandably is outraged that Donny just stood there while the coworker was up in flames (the coworker's situation is actually dealt with quickly and he survives).

Donny's mother is evidently not dead as the story opens, or at least Donny isn't yet aware of that fact, but once he demurs when a concerned coworker invites him for drinks (after having witnessed the boss go ballistic with Donny), Donny goes home and makes some chamomile tea for his mom, taking it to her upstairs bedroom, where he discovers she's expired. Almost immediately, Donny is beset with voices telling him he's "free at last" and that the voices have arrived to "help" him. That "help" may be somewhat questionable, given what transpires, as Donny, in a mode that is less Psycho than The Collector, kidnaps a series of women and then burns them alive.

Stephen Thrower contributes a typically interesting and informative commentary on one of the cuts included in this package (see the supplements section, below, for more details), and in it he gets into some of the history of this film's release and the largely negative reaction it engendered. Thrower blames some of this on what might be termed in modern day parlance an "overly woke" sensibility that only saw misogyny in the film, which of course isn't hard to find, given the fact that Donny takes out a series of helpless innocent bystander females. And there's no denying that some of the graphic imagery depicting chained women being burned alive is beyond disturbing.

But as Thrower also gets into, there's a rather potent emotional subtext in this film that may in fact be more visceral than what Hitchcock offers in Psycho. Norman's "history" with his mother is really only alluded to in the first film (there's a bit more fleshing out, no pun intended, in some of the follow ups which accrued in the subsequent decades), but here, Donny childhood relationship with his mother is at least relatively more detailed, and in a way plays like a weird sibling to some aspects in Carrie, with a parent who is arguably something of a religious zealot attempting to deal with (in the parent's mind, anyway) a "wayward" sinner of a child.

Don't Go in the House was previously offered on Blu-ray a few years ago by Scorpion Releasing. Those interested may want to check out Brian Orndorf's Don't Go in the House Blu-ray review of that version for Brian's take on the movie, as well as what the screenshots look like and the supplements on that release (which do not match the ones on this release for the most part). As I am known for repeating ad infinitum, different reviewers means different opinions, and I'm evidently a bit more of a fan of the film than Brian is.

Don't Go in the House Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Screenshots 1 through 10 are from the Theatrical Cut, screenshots 11 through 14 are from the Television Cut, and screenshots 15 through 18 are from the Integral Cut.

Don't Go in the House is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films with all three cuts featuring AVC encoded 1080p transfers in 1.78:1. The back cover of this release states this features "a new 2K scan from the original negative", though it fails to differentiate between the three versions and any conforming and/or cobbling together from different sources that might have been needed. That said, as can be pretty readily made out by comparing the different versions Severin is offering, there's little if any difference between the three, but that said, there are some noticeable differences from the Scorpion Releasing edition, at least based on the obviously fallible method of screenshot comparisons. The Severin release looks at least marginally brighter to my eyes, with an arguably slightly warmer palette that can emphasize things like ruddy reds more than icy blues. There are occasional moments in the Severin release that don't seem to have the same easily apparent grain structure as the Scorpion release (compare screenshots of the mansion between the two releases and pay attention to the sky), but that said, there are other moments where the Severin release may have a more easily discernable grain field (compare the screenshots of a distraught Donny with his hand over his mouth). Detail levels are generally commendable throughout all three versions, but all three do have occasional pretty rough looking patches (see screenshots 8 and 9 for a couple of examples). There are some minor signs of age related wear and tear in the form of rather small nicks and scratches, and a few flecks. Some may feel this may wander down toward 3.5 territory at times, but on the whole, the transfers here are solid, organic looking and well detailed.

Don't Go in the House Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Kind of interestingly, the Theatrical Cut and Television Cut feature LPCM Mono audio, while the Integral Cut boasts a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono track. I really didn't notice much if any difference between them, and while there are some of the age related issues that Brian mentions in his review of the Scorpion Releasing version, I didn't find them overly distracting or problematic. Dialogue, score and effects are all rendered with good fidelity, if at times kind of narrow dynamic range. Optional English subtitles are available.

Don't Go in the House Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Disc One

• Theatrical Cut (HD; 1:22:33)


• Audio Commentary 1 with Director Joe Ellison and Producer Ellen Hammill


• Audio Commentary 2 with Star Dan Grimaldi (this is listed as Archival)


• Television Version (HD; 1:29:37) is an alternate version with additional footage, but some obvious cuts of the most graphic material.


• "House" Keeping (HD; 20:55) features Producer Matthew Mallinson and Screenwriter Joseph R. Masefield. Kind of hilariously, Masefield discloses an early draft of this was called Burning Man.


• We Went in the House! (HD; 19:23) features Michael Gingold touring some of the film's locations.


• Playing With Fire (HD; 9:44) is an archival interview with star Dan Grimaldi.


• Trailer Gallery

  UK Theatrical (HD; 1:34)

  
  

  UK Teaser (HD; 00:41)

  
  

  German Theatrical (HD; 1:53)

  
  

  US Theatrical (HD; 1:56)

  
  

  US TV Spots (HD; 1:46)

• Image Gallery

Disc Two

• Integral Cut (HD; 1:32:09)


• Audio Commentary with Stephen Thrower, Author of Nightmare USA


• Minds on Fire (HD; 14:56) is a video essay by David Flint subtitled The Dying Embers of 1970s Psychological Horror.


• Burn Baby Burn (HD; 28:29) is an interview with Director Joseph Ellison.


• Grindhouse All-Stars: Notes from the Sleaze Cinema Underground (HD; 34:24) features interviews with filmmakers Matt Climber, Joseph Eillsion, Roy Frumkes and Jeff Lieberman.


• Open Matte Flamethrower Scene (HD; 3:50)


• Don't! Trailers from the Golden Age of Grindhouse (HD; 13:21)

Don't Go in the House Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There's absolutely no doubt that Don't Go in the House won't be everyone's cup of chamomile tea, but the film has a really visceral energy and Grimaldi is superb in the lead. Thrower's deconstruction of a "woke" mentality overreacting to the film may chafe at some PC types' sensibility, but, really, when you get right down to it, couldn't any film featuring a "damsel in distress" be deemed "misogynistic" in some way? So, with caveats duly noted for those who may tend to be squeamish, and with an understanding that this Severin release offers generally secure technical merits and some outstanding supplements, Don't Go in the House comes Recommended.