The Black Sleep

"The Terror Drug That Wakes the Dead!"

1956 1h 22m EN

😐

6.2

MID

★6.2TMDB · 45

HorrorScience Fiction

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In 19th century England, a noted brain surgeon rescues a former student from being hanged on a false conviction for murder, and spirits him away to an ancient, repurposed abbey far in the countryside. There, he connives his pupil into assisting him in mapping the functions of the various parts of the human brain, using living subjects who are under a terrible animation-suspending drug called "black sleep". Subsequently, the student, along with the daughter of one of the subjects, discover that most of these subjects have survived but are being kept in a dungeon-like cellar, in various stages of physical and mental derangement...

“The Terror Drug That Wakes the Dead!”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Basil Rathbone
Sir Joel Cadman
Herbert Rudley
Dr. Gordon Ramsay
Patricia Blair
Laurie Munroe
Akim Tamiroff
Odo the Gypsy
Phyllis Stanley
Daphne
Lon Chaney Jr.
Dr. Munroe, aka Mungo
Bela Lugosi
Casimir
John Carradine
Bohemund

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Reginald Le Borg
Writers: John C. Higgins, Gerald Drayson Adams
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

82 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.2M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

70 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Reginald Le Borg, shot by Gordon Avil. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Les Baxter. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor John F. Schreyer shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Basil Rathbone and Herbert Rudley and Patricia Blair carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The Terror Drug That Wakes the Dead!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Reginald Le Borg directs. Gordon Avil behind the camera. Les Baxter scores. John F. Schreyer cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

182 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
2Shot for just $0.2M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
370 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
4Directed by Reginald Le Borg, shot by Gordon Avil. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Les Baxter. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor John F. Schreyer shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Basil Rathbone and Herbert Rudley and Patricia Blair carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "The Terror Drug That Wakes the Dead!".
9IMDB entry: tt0049013 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Only 45 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.