The third cinematic adaptation of Avery Hopwood and Mary Roberts Rinehart’s stage play, more a murder mystery than a horror film, The Bat is a bombardment of Agatha Christie red herrings (not Hitchcock, mind you) which becomes unnecessary convoluted in hopes of retaining the viewer’s attention. Aside from the fact that its cast includes Vincent Price, Agnes Moorehead (of Citizen Kane and “Bewitched” fame) and, for those who are still interested, the final performance of Dana Hood (of Our Gang/Little Rascals fame), the film offers little in the way of cinematic entertainment but does, for historical value, posit two interesting aspects in its beleaguered course.
Cornelia van Gorder (Agnes Moorehead) has recently rented a large house called “The Oak,” located in the middle of nowhere, in order to settle down and write another of her famous mystery novels. The owner of the house, John Fleming (Harvey Stephens), has embezzled a million from a local bank which he has hidden back at his estate. The plot thickens in that The Oak has recently been prey to a series of murders by a suspect the police dub as “The Bat.” Now, as more and more characters enter the stage, it avails the screenwriter/director, Crane Wilbur, more opportunities to–in his eyes–turn the logistic thumbscrews. However, what he accomplishes is merely creating a trite, formula of stagnant cat-and-mouse games with the audience which is neither engaging nor amusing. With this, further explication of the plot will be withheld, not in an effort to retain the work’s integrity or narrative prowess, but rather in the guise of good taste and brevity.
Having said this, I will pause to remark on two features of the film which I did find of interest. One, the figure of Cornelia does not rely upon a male love interest to sustain her character, unlike many plot contrivances of the time (and yes, to usurp the ensuing curiosity of Wilbur perhaps having gone the other way, there is an less-than-ironic bond between Cornelia and her maid, Lizzie Allen (Lenita Lane)). Two, the mysterious antagonist cannot, by modern horror standards, be ignored due to his ironic physical similarities to Freddy Krueger in that he appears without a normal face, a full-brimmed hat, and a hand laden with claws. Or perhaps I was merely bored enough to let my mind wonder excessively as it attempted to entertain itself during the movie.
-Egregious Gurnow
- Interview with J.R. Bookwalter - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Andrew J. Rausch - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Rick Popko and Dan West - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Director Stevan Mena (Malevolence) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Screenwriter Jeffery Reddick (Day of the Dead 2007) - January 22, 2015
- Teleconference interview with Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) - January 22, 2015
- A Day at the Morgue with Corri English (Unrest) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Writer/Director Nacho Cerda (The Abandoned, Aftermath) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actress Thora Birch (Dark Corners, The Hole, American Beauty) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actor Jason Behr, Plus Skinwalkers Press Coverage - January 22, 2015
