The Bat (1959)


The Bat was adapted from a 1920 play of the same name by Avery Hopwood, itself an adaptation of a 1908 novel by Mary Roberts Rinehart called The Circular Staircase.  It has been filmed a number of times, most notably a 1926 silent version.  Vincent Price saw the play as a child and it had quite the effect on him.  When he was offered a role in a new adaptation in 1959 he jumped at it. 

Cornelia van Gorder (Agnes Moorehead) is a popular mystery writer who often retires to a small town every year to relax and get some work done.  This year she has rented a mansion called The Oaks, owned by local banker John Fleming (Harvey Stephens).  He is on a hunting trip with his friend Dr. Malcolm Wells (Price), so his nephew Mark (John Bryant) thought it was the perfect time to get some extra money.  Unfortunately, all of Cornelia's servants except her maid Lizzie (Lenita Lane) and chauffeur Warner (John Sutton) flee due to rumors about rabid bats as well as a maniac known as The Bat who is killing women in the area.

He is not the only murderer as, when John Fleming reveals that he has embezzled a million dollars from the bank and tells Dr. Wells of his plan to frame a cashier and fake his death, Wells decides to get rid of Fleming before the banker gets rid of him.  Fleming's body is destroyed in a forest fire, and Wells makes plans to retrieve the money.  However, Lieutenant Anderson (Gavin Gordon) is on to him, and also suspects Warner may be The Bat as well.  Whoever it may be also knows of the money and begins to terrorize Cornelia and Lizzie, having no trouble murdering whoever gets in his way.

I had the feeling this came from a play as the direction, from Crane Wilbur, had that stage feel.  Though released in 1959 the film feels like something from the 1930s.  Still, Agnes Moorehead and Lenita Lane have good chemistry, and it is unfair that Price got top billing as he is merely a supporting character.  Still, he's good when he's in it, but had always voiced his disappointment in how the movie turned out. 

Despite it being a bit stodgy it is still entertaining.  Everyone is on point with the acting, and it does keep one guessing on the identity of the killer until near the end when it becomes obvious due to the process of elimination.  I would agree with Price that it's not a movie that stood up well over the years but it's not an awful film.  It just feels a bit long in the tooth. 

The Bat (1959)
Time: 80 minutes
Starring: Agnes Moorehead, Lenita Lane, Vincent Price, Gavin Gordon
Director: Crane Wilbur

 

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