The Bat [PG]

Mystery novelist Cornelia Van Gorder takes up residence in an old mansion for the summer. Shortly after her settling in, her household staff flees in fear of the murders that were committed there some years ago and the reappearance of the mysterious murderer known only as ‘The Bat’. At first Cornelia is little troubled by the rumours, but they soon escalate into a mysterious plot that could fill one of her books, as the house becomes the site of hidden embezzled money, the haunt of a serial killer, and multiple murder. 

These are my kind of horror movies, films set in a central site where all the characters are more intrigued by the mysteries that surround them than fearful. The idea of a mystery novelist living in a ‘haunted’ house is one right out of my own imagination: I’m actually serious, I’ve got an idea about a writer renting a foreboding house haunted by death for a period of time in the works. The Bat is an absolutely fabulous old horror classic that delivers the right about of suspense, predictability, and plot misdirection. Sometimes a few ploys are drawn out that bit too much, like the long walk up the stairs to the room where the heroine is suffocating, but ultimately this movie rocks! It’s dramatic, witty, funny, and a delightful viewing experience. 

Mystery novelist Cornelia Van Gorder takes up residence in an old mansion for the summer. Shortly after her settling in, her household staff flees in fear of the murders that were committed there some years ago and the reappearance of the mysterious murderer known only as ‘The Bat’. At first Cornelia is little troubled by the rumours, but they soon escalate into a mysterious plot that could fill one of her books, as the house becomes the site of hidden embezzled money, the haunt of a serial killer, and multiple murder. 

What’s particularly great about this movie is the fact that it really keeps throwing you for a loop and you’re trying to work out the plot just like the characters are. Whilst Cornelia is postulating about the embezzlement and where the money could be hidden in the house, as though she were writing the story herself, you’re sitting back concocting theories as to who The Bat is and inevitably you’ll fall into the trap of thinking it’s one person or another and then the twist comes about: a twist that you didn’t see coming. 

Agnes Moorehead stars as Cornelia Van Gorder and she’s great. She’s the classic older woman who’s titillated by the thought of mystery and intrigue, and always keeps her head, never lets it get warped by fear or paranoid hysteria. I love characters like that! 

Vincent Price is the charming (it’s Vincent Price, always charming) doctor with an agenda of his own and of course he performs the role with finesse, sophistication, and suave. I ADORE VINCENT PRICE! 

Starring Gavin Gordon, John Sutton, Lenita Lane, Elaine Edwards, Darla Hood, John Bryant, Harvey Stephens, Mike Steele, Riza Royce, and Robert Williams, The Bat is a great little gem of a film filled with murder, drama, mystery, comedy, plot misdirection, and that old 1950s horror movie charm. Simplicity is what makes these films stand up against the decaying nature of time and this movie certainly still delivers all the thrills and spills that it would have back in its heyday. I loved it!