In the Basement
Ulrich Seidl peers into Austrian basements where private rituals, obsessions, and fantasies expose unsettling psychological portraits.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- None
- unsettling
- clinical
- voyeuristic
- arthouse film night
- documentary viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly regard the film as a formally controlled and unsettling observational documentary whose detached intimacy exposes disquieting private behavior.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The film presents basement activities through detached observation, allowing discomfort to emerge from behavior and context rather than commentary.
The basements function as enclosed extensions of the subjects' homes and reveal private rituals, identities, and obsessions.
The subjects use their basements for hobbies, collections, fantasies, and rituals that expose otherwise concealed aspects of personality.
The film contrasts recognizable domestic settings with unusually intimate and unsettling activities carried out within them.
Films like In the Basement, and why
The Act of Killing
observational documentary form, unsettling intimacy, and psychologically revealing portraits of ordinary lives
Paradise: Love
austrian documentary filmmaking, emotionally distanced observation, and disturbing examination of private behavior
Animal Love
clinical observational style, uncomfortable domestic subjects, and austrian social critique
Movie Details
- Director
- Ulrich Seidl
- Release Date
- 2014-09-26
- Runtime
- 81 min
- Rating
- 6.1 / 10 (82)
Cast
- Alessa Duchek
- Gerald Duchek
- Inge Ellinger
- Manfred Ellinger
- Walter Holzer
- Cora Kitty
- Alfreda Klebinger
- Fritz Lang
- Josef Ochs
- Peter Vokurek
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
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is In the Basement about?
- Ulrich Seidl peers into Austrian basements where private rituals, obsessions, and fantasies expose unsettling psychological portraits.
- What is In the Basement like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of In the Basement as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is In the Basement violent?
- No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in In the Basement.
- What did critics think of In the Basement?
- Critics broadly regard the film as a formally controlled and unsettling observational documentary whose detached intimacy exposes disquieting private behavior.
- Which films are like In the Basement?
- Films with a similar feel include The Act of Killing, Paradise: Love, and Animal Love.
- How long is In the Basement?
- In the Basement runs 81 minutes.
- Where can I watch In the Basement?
- In United States, In the Basement is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
