Basil Rathbone, born in 1892 in Johannesburg, South Africa, is renowned for his commanding presence in both classic and cult cinema. He gained fame as a Shakespearean actor before transitioning to film, where he often portrayed morally complex characters. In The Spider Woman (1943), Rathbone delivers a captivating performance as the cunning villain, while his role in Madhouse (1974) reflects his adeptness in the horror genre. His contributions to films like Queen of Blood (1966) and Tales of Terror (1962) further solidify his status as a key figure in the realm of cult and exploitation cinema.
The Black Sleep
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...
