Douglas Sirk is a master of classic Hollywood cinema, Sleep, My Love/Women and Poisons is not among his most famous films but it is a masterfully directed noir that has interesting points.
The film plays on the false madness or not of the protagonist Alisson and right from the beginning the direction through the train journey and the reactions of the protagonist manages to make her immediately uncomfortable.
The direction plays a lot in showing Alisson dominated by the various scenarios, the interiors of the house are excellent, Sirk's refinement of staging is always great. The photography is also beautiful and when dark reaches excellent heights, during the psychiatric "session" the beam of white light on Alisson's eyes with the rest of the frame in shadow is wonderful and recalls a certain effect of Browning's Dracula .
For some directorial touches the film anticipates the Italian detective story a little, for example the detail of the glove that opens the door or the small long shots of a "hypnotized" Alisson walking around the house in POV.
In general, it is precisely the waiting times and atmosphere that work a lot, plus the elegance, the chiaroscuro, the play of shadows that Sirk manages to create are of notable impact.
To be highlighted the memorable balcony sequence.
On the writing, whether the intrigues between Alisson, her husband Richard and Bruce, the only character who offers comfort situations to the protagonist, work; the femme fatale Daphne who has an impactful stage presence and where Sirk's direction always gives excellent paintings, remains a character who is only "functional" and without too much exploration. The same goes for the "psychiatrist" who comes out at the end even indicating a potential plan of his but never staged in the film, a few more comparisons between him and Richard would have been helpful.
In any case, the film works well in its core and in the main dynamics which the screenplay gives greater weight and prominence and as written, Sirk's great direction does the rest.