备受梦魇折磨的年轻男子让·伯洛特（帕沃·里斯卡 Pavel Liska饰）反复做着同样一个梦境：两个恶魔闯进他的卧室，把他推进了疯人院。心力憔悴的伯洛特偶遇神秘侯爵马奎斯（杨·特里斯加 Jan Triska饰）。这个扬言要救治伯洛特的怪异侯爵，引诱伯洛特来到一间阴森恐怖的疯人院。黏着的空气，病态的疯人，黑暗之中穿插的“生肉表演”以及一系列令人作呕的放荡作为，让失魂落魄的伯洛特彻底崩溃了。当他从看似纯美的护士夏洛特（安娜·吉赛罗娃 Anna Geislerová饰）口中得知院长和侯爵的丑恶的面目时，这场炼狱般的噩梦才刚刚开始。 这部由捷克电影和动画大师杨·史云梅耶创作的超现实主义作品《梦魇疯人院》，荣获2005年皮尔森电影节最佳影片，2006年捷克金狮奖最佳艺术指导、海报设计等奖项，并代表捷克参加2007年奥斯卡最佳外语片的角逐。史云梅耶在开篇就警告世人，这是一部考验你视觉极限和挑战你心理极限的反美学的影片。他以此片向死亡美学大师爱伦·坡和色情作家萨德侯爵致敬。骇人的生肉与内脏，悚然的仪式与噩梦，一起构筑起了这座彻底癫狂病态的梦魇疯人院。
Troubled by bouts of sleepwalking and disturbing nightmares, graduate student Sarah Foster goes to her university sleep research center for help. But when she wakes up after her first night of being monitored, the world she lives in seems to have changed in subtle, Twilight-Zone-esque ways.
Looking for work, Aaron comes across a cryptic online ad “$1,000 for the day. Filming service. Discretion is appreciated.” Low on cash and full of naiveté, he decides to go for it. He drives to a cabin in a remote mountain town, where he meets Josef, his cinematic subject for the day. Josef is sincere and the project seems heartfelt, so Aaron begins to film. But as the day goes on, it becomes clear that Josef is not who he says, and his intentions are not at all pure.
A couple of Australians introduce three American backpackers to the local legend of Lemon Tree Passage where a ghost of a motorcyclist warns young drivers to slow down. After seeing the ghost first hand they uncover a malevolent force that posses the area and threatens to wreak havoc on the final days of their vacation. Isolated and ten thousand miles from home, the tourists find themselves caught in the clutches of an evil force much more heinous than the local myth believed.
Danny Haley's bookie operation is shut down, so he and his pals need money; when Danny meets Arthur Winant, a sucker from out of town, he decoys him into a series of poker games where eventually Winant loses $5000 that isn't his...then hangs himself. But it seems Winant had a shadowy, protective elder brother who believes in personal revenge. And each of the card players in turn feels a faceless doom inexorably closing in. Dark streets and sexy torch-singer Fran lend ambience.
Successful businessman Jake takes his pregnant girlfriend Lindsey on a babymoon trip to an upscale desert resort. When they get there, Lindsey discovers that Jake's meddlesome soon to be ex-wife, Gwen is there too. In a dream vacation gone wrong, it becomes apparent that someone is determined that Lindsey will never use her return ticket.
An ex-hacker is forced to break into high-level banking institutions, another man must try to penetrate the booby trapped building to get the young man off the hot seat.
Patrick Davenant invites a group of friends to visit a theater inside his villa, a place which later reveals itself as sinister. Within a short time, the guests realize that they are trapped in the villa. A merciless killer then begins to murder them one by one.
PANIC BEATS begins with a totally nude woman with welts on her body, running through a misty forest full of decayed skeletons. A knight on horseback is chasing her, and we soon learn that he is Alaric de Marnac (a wicked character Naschy first created for HORROR RISES FROM THE TOMB), viciously killing her for her unfaithful ways. After the credits role, we are taken to the present where a descendent of Marnac named Paul (Naschy) is married to the wealthy Geneviève (Julia Saly) was has some serious heart problems. Paul decides to take her to his ancestral home in the country for some peace and quiet, but the superstitious-filled setting opens a Pandora’s Box of terrible occurrences. We soon discover that Paul is a real son-of-a-bitch who plans to scare his wife to death, planning to control her fortune and continue his secret affair with seductive bad girl Mireille (Silvia Miró), who happens to be the niece of the tarot card-reading housekeeper, Mabile (Lola Gaos). Paul’s malevolent scheme works, but he still has to worry about an additional money-hungry mistress (this guy really gets around!), the unforgiving Mabile, as well as new fianceé Mireille who might be hiding a thing or two herself. More grisly murders follow, and the ghost of Marnac returns from hell to punish the most despicable human character in the film. PANIC BEATS was also written by Naschy (under his real name Jacinto Molina) who injects the film with an old-fashioned spooky house motif, beefed up with a modern movie sense of violence and sexuality. The film offers nothing too innovative storywise, and even Naschy admits on the disc’s extras that it was partly inspired by GASLIGHT and REBECCA, but he seems to just toss in a hodgepodge of exploitation and horror ingredients, while delivering a stylish and enjoyable effort with a number of twists and some genuinely chilling moments. The camera shots and lighting are both effective, and there's even does a cool set-up (much like what Freddie Francis did in THE SKULL and THE CREEPING FLESH) where we see the point of view of Marnac through his dark helmet as he stalks his female prey. Graphically, we are exposed to everything from a plate of bloody eyeballs, to victims being beaten relentlessly with the various Medieval weapons affixed on the house’s walls (for example, someone is axed in the stomach, followed by the soaked entrails oozing out!). Naschy’s most frequent 1980s leading lady, Julia Saly, is not given much to do, but with her offbeat looks, is a nice presence nonetheless. The prominent female star here is Silvia Miró who is seen in the buff frequently, and she certainly makes for some well-appreciated Euro starlet eye candy. Naschy himself is very good in the film, putting on conniving facades, carrying a number of women on a string,
