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Catalog/Horror/The Black Sleep
The Black Sleep poster
B
Strong
MASTER SCORE 60.4 / 100
1956·Horror / Sci-Fi / Science Fiction·1h 22m

THE BLACK SLEEP

“The Terror Drug That Wakes the Dead!”

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...

Above the Line
Reginald Le Borg·DirectorJohn C. Higgins·ScreenplayGerald Drayson Adams·StoryGordon Avil·Director of PhotographyLes Baxter·Original Music ComposerJohn F. Schreyer·Editor
Cast
Basil Rathbone·Sir Joel CadmanHerbert Rudley·Dr. Gordon RamsayPatricia Blair·Laurie MunroeAkim Tamiroff·Odo the GypsyPhyllis Stanley·DaphneLon Chaney Jr.·Dr. Munroe, aka MungoBela Lugosi·CasimirJohn Carradine·BohemundGeorge Sawaya·Sailor-SubjectTor Johnson·Mr. Curry
Full Crew
(14 credits)
Directing· 1
Reginald Le Borg·Director
Writing· 2
John C. Higgins·ScreenplayGerald Drayson Adams·Story
Camera· 1
Gordon Avil·Director of Photography
Editing· 1
John F. Schreyer·Editor
Sound & Music· 1
Les Baxter·Original Music Composer
Art & Design· 3
Ted Coodley·Makeup ArtistClarence Steensen·Set DecorationGeorge Bau·Makeup Designer
Production· 2
Howard W. Koch·ProducerAubrey Schenck·Executive Producer
Other Departments· 3
Louis DeWitt·Visual EffectsCherie Banks·HairstylistJack Rabin·Visual Effects
By the Numbers
60.4
OF 100
Master Score
6.0
OF 10
IMDb
—
CRITICS
Rotten Tomatoes
—
Worldwide Gross
0
Oscar Wins
Where to Watch

THE AVAILABILITY MAP

The canonical record of where this film lives across the streaming map.

Provider Index In Progress

Streaming, rental, and purchase availability for this title is being ingested from the TMDB watch-providers feed and will appear here once the next catalog refresh runs. Until then, the canonical source links below remain the fastest route.

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Poster DNA

THE VISUAL DECONSTRUCTION

A bespoke vision agent's reading of the design language behind The Black Sleep's key art.

Dominant Palette
3 colors
#FF0000
#FFFF00
#000000
Mood
Horrific, Chaotic, Terrifying
Composition
Layered
Era
1950s
Visual Style
Illustrated

“The poster features a collage of distorted and frightened faces against a black and yellow background. A large, red-skinned head with glowing white eyes dominat”

horrorsci-fi
Key Elements
AxeChainsRed HeadHuman Figures
Atmosphere
Dark
Color Mood
Mixed
Setting
Abstract
Design Score
7/10
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THE NEIGHBORHOOD

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THREE WAYS DEEPER

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AUT
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