Overview
A chilling tale of obsession and madness unfolds in a New York hotel room.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Mild
- brooding
- claustrophobic
- unsettling
- classic cinema night
- film noir marathon
What critics said
Critics generally recognize effective suspense and an unsettling premise, while finding the deliberately stretched pacing and performances uneven.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Most of the danger unfolds inside and around a hotel suite while Nell’s behavior becomes increasingly volatile.
Jed watches Nell through the window opposite his room, and the courtyard links separate lives and viewpoints.
Nell’s fantasies, fixation on Jed, and volatile treatment of Bunny drive the film’s psychological suspense.
The hotel, nighttime city setting, voyeurism, and fatalistic tension place the story firmly within American film noir.
Films like Don't Bother to Knock, and why
Gaslight
psychological instability, confined urban setting, and noir suspense
The Window
classic film noir atmosphere, voyeurism, and dangerous obsession
The Night of the Hunter
claustrophobic psychological thriller centered on a disturbed woman and escalating danger
Movie Details
- Director
- Roy Ward Baker
- Release Date
- 1952-07-18
- Runtime
- 76 min
- Rating
- 6.6 / 10 (172)
Cast
- Richard Widmark
- Marilyn Monroe
- Anne Bancroft
- Donna Corcoran
- Jeanne Cagney
- Lurene Tuttle
- Elisha Cook Jr.
- Jim Backus
- Verna Felton
- Willis Bouchey
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Don't Bother to Knock about?
- A hotel-room encounter becomes a tense noir study of obsession, delusion, and concealed danger.
- What is Don't Bother to Knock like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Don't Bother to Knock as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Don't Bother to Knock violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Don't Bother to Knock as mild.
- What did critics think of Don't Bother to Knock?
- Critics generally recognize effective suspense and an unsettling premise, while finding the deliberately stretched pacing and performances uneven.
- Which films are like Don't Bother to Knock?
- Films with a similar feel include Gaslight, The Window, and The Night of the Hunter.
- How long is Don't Bother to Knock?
- Don't Bother to Knock runs 76 minutes.
- Where can I watch Don't Bother to Knock?
- In United States, Don't Bother to Knock is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
