The Hypnotic Eye (1960)

The city is stricken by a wave of self-mutilations performed by beautiful women who seem to be in a hypnotic trance. The authorities suspect a stage hypnotist with a popular act, but the ... See full summary »

Director:

George Blair

Writers:

Gitta Woodfield, William Read Woodfield

Stars:

Jacques Bergerac, Merry Anders, Allison Hayes

Cast

Cast overview:
Jacques Bergerac	...	Desmond
Merry Anders	...	Dodie Wilson
Allison Hayes	...	Justine
Marcia Henderson	...	Marcia Blaine
Joe Patridge	...	Det. Sgt. Dave Kennedy
Fred Demara	...	Hospital Doctor
Lawrence Lipton	...	King of the Beatniks
Eric Nord	...	Bongo Drummer (as Eric 'Big Daddy' Nord)
Guy Prescott	...	Dr. Philip Hecht
Jimmy Lydon	...	Emergency Doctor
Carol Thurston	...	Doris Scott
Evan MacNeil	...	Victim

Storyline

The city is stricken by a wave of self-mutilations performed by beautiful women who seem to be in a hypnotic trance. The authorities suspect a stage hypnotist with a popular act, but the stakes are raised when the hypnotist sets his sights on the girlfriend of the detective investigating the case. What is the hypnotist's secret, and why does it seem to involve his beautiful assistant?

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Plot Keywords:

hypnosis | disfigurement | independent film

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Taglines:

BEWARE HIS HYPNOTIC POWER that turns human flesh into helpless robots!

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Genres:

Horror

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 February 1960 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Screaming Sleep

Box Office

Budget:

$365,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bloch/Woodfield Productions, Penguin Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

79 min

Sound Mix:

Mono Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Did You Know?

Trivia

In a small role as a "hospital doctor" is Fred Demara, otherwise known as Ferdinand W. Demara, whose own life story was being depicted that same year in The Great Impostor starring Tony Curtis.

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Connections

Featured in Fantastic Fantasy Fright-o-Rama Show Vol. 1 (1996)

User Reviews

Bizarre horror film dealing with hypnotism

"The Hypnotic Eye" had been a bit of a film holy grail of mine for a few years. Now that I was finally able to track it down, I'm not sure if it was worth the intensive searching, but its certainly a watchable b-horror film. Its a nice blend of campy histrionics which simply can't be replicated but just happen and a really bizarre atmosphere. The film deals with hypnotism, which I find to be a fascinating subject. The segments of Jacques Bergerac (who actually was a magician) on stage are quite entertaining. The film was remade as "The Wizard of Gore" and its nowhere near as mind-blowing as that surreal classic, if only because it doesn't explore the subject to the same hallucinogenic heights.

The acting across the board is very campy and enjoyable to watch. Jacques Bergerac may have been a good stage magician, but hes a horrible actor. The man can't read a line without looking like hes about to explode. This is one of the most compulsively watchable over-the-top performances in recent memory. Marcia Henderson and the typically cold Allison Hayes are there only to look beautiful and they do a fine job of that. Joe Patridge and Guy Prescott as the investigators are both wooden - they make Jack Webb look like Vincent Price! "The Hypnotic Eye" is an entertaining and quite strange little horror item. (6/10)