The Black Sleep

THE BLACK SLEEP-1956-Dr. Cadman (Basil Rathbone) has discovered the title drug and uses it on his former student Ramsey (Herb Rudley) who was suppose to be hanged for murder. Cadman needs Ramsey to assist him in his brain operations. No sooner do they get to his castle home when they meet the brutish Mongo (Lon Chaney Jr.) who's attacking Laurie (Patricia Blair), one of Cadman's nurses. It turns out Mongo is Laurie's father and once a respected doctor. Now only another nurse Daphne (Phyllis Stanley) can control him. At first Ramsey thinks Cadman is brilliant but during an operation he realizes while the black sleep can induce a coma like effect the patient can still feel pain. This doesn't seem to bother Cadman in the least and Ramsey sees that his former teacher is insane and his real goal is to cure his comatose wife. The doctor has a mute servant Casimir (Bela Lugosi) and a gypsy grave robber Udu (Akim Tamiroff) who helps him out. Cadman is a full grown nut who cares nothing about human life and has a basement full of failed experiments in his dungeon to prove it. The “patients” include Curry (Tor Johnson), a big now blind guy, a bible spouting long hair crazy guy Borg (John Carradine), the (now disfigured) sailor (George Sawaya) they operated on earlier and bald girl (Sally Yarnell) with patches of hair all over her body. Of course they rise up and attack, causing Mr. and Mrs. Cadman to fall to their deaths.

THE BLACK SLEEP is always described as an “all star horror” movie and on paper it is. But most of the cast is wasted. Chaney is a dumb grunting henchman, Tor sits around looking “Lobo-ish” (although they do show a “before” picture of his character looking kind of dapper!) and worst of all the great Lugosi in his final full length movie role as the mute butler! Whoever thought this was a good idea should have been injected with “the black sleep” themselves! At least they put Carradine's voice to good use! Rathbone is great as the mad scientist and Tamiroff and Rudley are ok in supporting roles. 

Director Reginald Le Borg had already worked with Lon Chaney in '40's on THE MUMMY'S GHOST and “The Inner Sanctum” series. The next year he directed the disappointing VOODOO ISLAND with Boris Karloff (at least he got to speak...).

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Inner Sanctum

CALLING DR. DEATH-1943-First of the "Inner Sanctum" series from Universal with Lon Chaney (who starred in all of them) as Mark Steele, a successful doctor who uses hypnotism to cure patients. Unfortunately his success doesn't extend to his marriage with his bitchy philandering wife Maria (Ramsey Ames). When wifey goes away for the weekend sans hubby he goes after her. Later he wakes up in his office and can't remember where he's been. Maria winds up dead and a smug police inspector Gregg (J. Carroll Nash) suspects the doc even when they pick up Maria's boy toy Duvall (David Bruce) for the murder. Much of Chaney's dialogue is stream of consciousness over dubbing. He is sweet on his nurse Stella (Patricia Morison) and she helps him hypnotize himself but that doesn't really help. After a while he and nurse Stella declare their love but doc seems to be losing his mind. Is it guilt? However Steele uses his hypnotism to find the real killer in a surreal dream induced flashback (with some clever effects). 

CALLING DR. DEATH tries hard to be a psychological mystery and director Reginald Le Borg sort of succeeds but despite some nice dreamy touches and good acting the short running time has the story going along a little too quickly. The most memorable scene though might be the opening where “the spirit of the Inner Sanctum” introduces the story. It's an actor's head (David Hoffman) in a crystal ball talking in a weird voice. 

Screenwriter Edward Dein wrote many murder mysteries in the 1940's and later directed THE LEECH WOMAN, SHACKOUT ON 101 and CURSE OF THE UNDEAD. Director Le Borg directed the next two in the series and later worked with Chaney on the “all star” low budget horror film THE BLACK SLEEP.

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Ape Sequel

JUNGLE WOMAN-1944-After the events chronicled in CAPTIVE WILD WOMAN, at inquest Dr. Fletcher (J. Carrol Naish) is investigated after he admits murdering one of his patients at his sanitarium. In a flashback the doc tells all. A storm wrecks the circus freeing lions and tigers during lion tamer Fred Mason's act. Paula (Acquanetta), now a full ape saves Mason (Milburn Stone) but is shot down by the police, Fetcher gets the body and at his lab he revives it. Then Mason relates his own flashback (inside Fetcher's!) about the first time Paula Dupree showed up. (Mason's wife Beth (Evelyn Ankers) also tells about almost being attacked by Paula). We also learn that Fletcher now owns the sanitarium of the departed Dr. Walter (played by John Carradine in the first film). The revived ape escapes but when the doc and Willy, his slow witted assistant (Eddie Hyans) search the grounds all they find is a mysterious but beautiful woman. His examination of her is interrupted by a visit from his daughter Joan (Lois Collier) and her boyfriend Bob (Richard Davis/David) who Paula takes a sudden interest in (she finally talks too!). Once again Paula grows jealous. She kills Willy then tries to drown the happy couple when they go canoeing. For a while Bob thinks Fletcher is abusing Paula. Paula menaces Joan but Fletcher kills her. He's exonerated after Paula's corpse is examined which has now reverted to it's original ape form. 

Douglas Dumbrille appears as a non-believing DA, Samuel Hinds is a judge and Tom Keene is a curious doctor. Director Reginald LeBorg made three movies with Lon Chaney (THE MUMMY'S GHOST and 2 INNER STANCTUMS) the same year he made this 61 minute Universal sequel. It would be followed by a second (and last) sequel.  

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Eyes!

THE EYES OF ANNIE JONES-1964-In the English countryside a mill manager Geraldine Wheeler is killed (and her body hidden) in a pre-credits scene. Her Aunt Helen (Joyce Carey) hires young Annie Jones (Francesca Annis) an orphan described as a "dirty, unattractive child" to use her psychic powers to find the Carol. Carol's brother American raised David (Richard Conte)  and his wife are unconvinced but Annie does find his missing cuff link. Later David is not sure he wants his sister found as he has been embezzling money from the mill (which sis owned). Meanwhile a murderer hangs around.

It's kind of talky and simple but the short running time helps. It's based on a story by American mystery writer Henry Slesar and was the second to last film directed by (also American) Reginald Le Borg (THE BLACK SLEEP, VOODOO ISLAND).

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May Is Bowery Boys Month!

 Please excuse this interruption but by popular demand (not really) I'm devoting May to review some Bowery Boys movies. Here's the first one:

HOLD THAT BABY!-1949-Fairly amusing Leo Gorcey and The Bowery Boys installment finds the gang in hot water when they accidentally become guardians of a baby left in their Laundromat. It turns out the baby is actually the heir to a huge fortune. Two sisters (Anabel Shaw and Ida Moore) plot to steal the inheritance by claiming the mother (Francis Auer ) is insane! The Boys are kind of blackmailed by two gangsters (John Kellogg and Frankie Darro) into keeping quiet about having the baby but eventually Gorcey disguises himself as a German doctor and gets the mother out of an insane asylum just in time before the reading of the will! Of course Sach (second billed Huntz Hall ) provides most of the laughs. Gabe Dell is Gabe Moreno, their straight laced friend who tries to help them.

The other "boys" are Billy Benedict as Whitey, Benny Bartlett as Butch and David Gorcey as Chuck. Leo's dad Bernard is also on hand as sweet shop owner Louie. Director Reginald Le Borg was in the middle of helming a series of Joe Polooka comedies when he made this. It's the 14th of 48 Bowery Boys movies, the first half produced by Monogram Studios.

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