The Bat (1959)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Crane Wilbur

Writers:

Avery Hopwood (novel) (play)
Mary Roberts Rinehart (novel) (play)

Release Date:

9 August 1959 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller | Mystery

Tagline:

When Someone SCREAMS ... It Will Be YOU!

Plot:

A crazed killer known as "The Bat" is on the loose in a mansion full of people.

Plot Keywords:

Bat | Mansion | Bank | Murder | Mystery Writer

Cast

Vincent Price	...	Dr. Malcolm Wells
Agnes Moorehead	...	Cornelia van Gorder
Gavin Gordon	...	Lt. Andy Anderson
John Sutton	...	Warner, the chauffeur
Lenita Lane	...	Lizzie Allen
Elaine Edwards	...	Dale Bailey
Darla Hood	...	Judy Hollander
John Bryant	...	Mark Fleming
Harvey Stephens	...	John Fleming
Mike Steele	...	Victor Bailey
Riza Royce	...	Jane Patterson
Robert Williams	...	Detective Davenport (as Robert B. Williams)

Runtime:

80 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono | Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Canada:G (Ontario) | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Finland:(Banned) (1961) | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) | USA:Approved (PCA #19363)

Company:

Liberty Pictures

Trivia:

Her role as Judy became the final on-screen feature film role for former child star Darla Hood of Our Gang/Little Rascals fame.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): At the beginning, Lizzie explains to Cornelia that the staff were hearing noises and were threatening to quit. When Cornelia is playing cards a little later, Lizzie explains the same thing and Cornelia acts as though she had no idea as to why the staff quit.

Quotes:

Judy Hollander: [after finding Mark Fleming dead with his throat torn] I don't think I'll sleep tonight.
Dale Bailey: Me either.
Judy Hollander: All I can see is poor Mark Fleming just staring at us... I thought that when people died, their eyes closed, is in sleep.
Dale Bailey: Don't think about it.
Judy Hollander: I'll bet you're thinking about it.
Dale Bailey: No, I was thinking of my husband sleeping in jail tonight. Oh Judy I love him so much!

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Horror Incorporated: The Bat (1959) (#3.6)" (2003)

A sly and atmospherically powerful who-dun-it.

Agnes Moorhead (Endora of "Bewitched" fame) is a sheer delight as a cagey old bird of a mystery writer, and Price is wonderful in his seemingly dual role. As has been lamented here before, the brevity of Price's screen time is somewhat disappointing but that is the only factor which disappoints.

I found this to be an inventive and disingenuous endeavor full of red-herrings and wrong turns. Figure this one out for yourself. Puzzle the clues, weed out the characters set here as distractions, look past the deliberate contrivances and solve the mystery on your own.

Excellent entertainment with a splendid darkling atmosphere which I found enormous fun to view. While this is not up to "Gaslight" or "Rebecca" standards, there are many worse ways to spend a late Saturday night, or a rainy Sunday afternoon.

It rates a 7.5/10 from...

the Fiend :.