The Bat (1959)

 The Bat (1959)


In 1959, Mary Roberts Rinehart's 1908 novel The Circular Staircase had been adapted for the stage and screen four times.   The Bat in 1959 was the fourth adaptation of The Circular Staircase, and it starred Vincent Price.   At the time that The Bat was released, the film going public were in the atom age of giant monsters and invaders from outer space, so the film felt a little antiquated, and it wasn't well received by critics or viewers at the time, though in retrospect the film has been getting more love.  The Bat is a film about a banker who stole a million dollars from the bank that he works at, and hid it in his house, but then he is killed and the mysterious murderer The Bat tries to find the money, but the house where the money is hidden is being rented by a famous murder-mystery author.  Who is The Bat, and can he be stopped before the author and all of her friends are murdered off?

The Bat was written and directed by Crane Wilbur, and based on the 1908 novel The Circular Staircase by Mary Roberts Rinehart.  The Bat was distributed by Allied Artists in 1959, and open to lackluster reviews.  The film has gone on to become a cult classic, especially among fans of horror film legend Vincent Price.  The Bat has since fallen into the public domain, and is often found on cheap collections of public domain films on DVD, and can also be found for free online, though I do not recommend streaming films, or watching them on sites like Youtube, I believe it is always better to have physical copies of films.   The Bat is an fun whodunnit murder mystery, that will keep you guessing up until the very end, honestly the reveal of who The Bat is, to me came as a surprise at the end of the film.  
The Bat stars Vincent Price as Dr. Malcolm Wells, Agnes Moorehead as Cornelia van Gorder, Gavin Gordon as Lt. Andy Anderson, John Sutton as Warner, Lenita Lane as Lizzie Allen, Elaine Edwards as Dale Bailey, Darla Hood as Judy Hollander, John Bryant as Mark Fleming, Harvey Stephens as John Fleming, Riza Royce as Jane Patterson, and Robert B. Williams as Detective Davenport.   The film has a talented cast featuring horror film legend Vincent Price; Agnes Moorehead who has ben in films such as Citizen Kane; and it would be the last film appearance of Darla Hood, who was famous for playing Darla in Our Gang (which in the 1940s became The Little Rascals).   

The first time I watched this film, I remember being, unimpressed, but watching it again last night, I feel like I appreciated the film more.   The Bat is more of a whodunnit murder mystery than it is a straight up horror film, though it does have some elements of classic horror films.  The film has a touch of humour to it, which is subtle but works really well.  All-in-all I would say that this is an effective horror/mystery film, and definitely worth watching.  If you have not yet checked out The Bat, I highly recommend it.  If you come across a copy of this classic film, don't pass it up.   Not a must see film, but in my opinion a wonderful film nonetheless.

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