

Laura Baxter is a young woman, literally a "sleeping beauty," who suffers from a medical condition called "parasomnia." A childhood accident victim, she is actually sleeping her life away, awakening briefly on rare occasions. Art student Danny Sloan falls in love with her, unaware that her hospital neighbor, a terrifying mass murderer and mesmerist named Byron Volpe has other, more sinister plans.
Production
Expressionist hospital sets that look like a Tim Burton fever dream on a budget
Practical Effects
Byron Volpe's mesmeric stare achieved through genuine contact lens discomfort
Score
Nicholas Pike's lush orchestral horror, wasted on too few listeners

Director
William Malone
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Malone's parasomnia research included actual sleep disorder clinics; Laura's condition blends real parasomnias with fairy-tale logic.
The film's troubled distribution saw it shelved for two years; Malone financed reshoots personally, expanding Volpe's role after test audiences responded to Kilpatrick's genuinely unsettling presence.