The Black Sleep

1h 22min

Horror

Science Fiction

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...

Production Companies

Bel-Air Productions

United Artists

Cast

Basil Rathbone

Basil Rathbone

Sir Joel Cadman
Herbert Rudley

Herbert Rudley

Dr. Gordon Ramsay
Patricia Blair

Patricia Blair

Laurie Munroe
Akim Tamiroff

Akim Tamiroff

Odo the Gypsy
Lon Chaney Jr.

Lon Chaney Jr.

Dr. Munroe, aka Mungo
George Sawaya

George Sawaya

Sailor-Subject
Tor Johnson

Tor Johnson

Mr. Curry
Sally Yarnell

Sally Yarnell

Female Subject
Peter Gordon

Peter Gordon

Sgt. Steele
Claire Carleton

Claire Carleton

Carmona Daly
Clive Morgan

Clive Morgan

Roundsman Blevins (uncredited)
Louanna Gardner

Louanna Gardner

Angelina Cadman
Aubrey Schenck

Aubrey Schenck

Prison Coroner's Clerk (uncredited)
John Sheffield

John Sheffield

Det. Redford (uncredited)

Release date

15th Jun 1956

Status

Released

Spoken languages

English