Comparitively
early Vincent Price thriller.
plot
Cornelia Van Gorder (Agnes Moorehead) is
a mystery writer who has rented an isolated
mansion for the summer in order to concentrate on
her new book. Accompanied by her maid, they find
themselves soon the victims of a mysterious
prowler known as "The Bat". Soon, they
set about trying to catch the sinister figure and
untangling the confusing web of evidence to his
identity...
dvd
Price's final film of the 50's is this
interesting black and white thriller-cum-horror
picture, shot just after Return of
the Fly. Having been adapted from the
popular broadway play of the 20's by Mary Roberts
Rinehart and Avery Hopwood and filmed in two
previous versions, critics of the period largely
viewed this thirdversion as a failure.
But to pan it like that is to
evade doing justice to the pic. Whilst a little
long in the tooth at times, and again with the
stars playing up the campness of the characters (particularly
Moorehead), the suspence is largely kept up, and
the themes enjoyable. Price is still at that
interesting point in his career, between the
great Hollywood success of his youth, and his
true cult status largely the result of the Roger
Corman pictures he made in the 60's.
I find myself unable to say more about Price's
role without giving the game away, but his
sinister appearance continually keeps us guessing
throughout. As the devious doctor, he is
accompanied on the suspect list by a forger
criminal turned butler, and a deceptive police
officer.
For fans of the macabre there are a series of
deaths, which whilst not graphic are nonetheless
apt.
Whilst billed on Anchor Bay's dvd
release as a horror, this is really a thriller.
In the most true and classic sense. Another
elusive "classic" from the master of
the genre (in terms of performance).
The dvd is presented in an excellent transfer,
with a fullscreen ratio, though as information
appears to go offscreen during the credits (eg,
most of the "V" in Vincent Price's
credit) we can assume that this transfer is not
original ratio. But it really doesn't detract
that much.
Although extras are sparse, I like the menu
screens (a sinister concoction of gothic
lettering, and a red and black motiff), and there
is the standard theatrical trailer, which sells
the film very much on Vincent's role (Hello. I'm
Vincent Price, says he from behind the high-backed
chair beside the fire).
Interesting, delightful, and
macabre. Ripping stuff.
RJES
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