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#44 - The Bat
Crane Wilbur, 1959
A crime novelist and her servant take a holiday in a remote mansion around the same time that the titular serial killer is on the loose and the local physician (Vincent Price) is very interested in finding a hidden treasure that is located inside the mansion.
A while ago, I picked up a $2 DVD that contained three separate Vincent Price vehicles on it - House on Haunted Hill, Shock and this. I liked House on Haunted Hill as an amusing piece of '50s schlock, so I was hoping the other two films would also deliver. Even discounting the fact that the DVD had scanned in such a way so that the left-hand side of the frame (about a third of the whole picture) was cut out, what I was left with a fairly disappointing prototype for the typical episode of Scooby-Doo. There's some conjecture about who the Bat is (and Price is naturally a prime suspect) while death ensues as a bunch of characters, both good and not-so-good, band together trying to figure out the mystery while trying to stay alive.
It's just interesting enough that I care enough to find out how it turns out, but otherwise it's a woefully mediocre B-movie. Price puts out his trademark slimy charisma but the fact that he is reduced to a secondary part means it's ultimately kind of wasted as other less impressive actors fill the screen. At least its 80-minute running time means it's over quickly. It's not completely terrible but it just sort of exists and doesn't do much for me one way or the other. It's not comically bad but it doesn't have enough charm to overcome its B-movie trappings. Oh, well.
Crane Wilbur, 1959
A crime novelist and her servant take a holiday in a remote mansion around the same time that the titular serial killer is on the loose and the local physician (Vincent Price) is very interested in finding a hidden treasure that is located inside the mansion.
A while ago, I picked up a $2 DVD that contained three separate Vincent Price vehicles on it - House on Haunted Hill, Shock and this. I liked House on Haunted Hill as an amusing piece of '50s schlock, so I was hoping the other two films would also deliver. Even discounting the fact that the DVD had scanned in such a way so that the left-hand side of the frame (about a third of the whole picture) was cut out, what I was left with a fairly disappointing prototype for the typical episode of Scooby-Doo. There's some conjecture about who the Bat is (and Price is naturally a prime suspect) while death ensues as a bunch of characters, both good and not-so-good, band together trying to figure out the mystery while trying to stay alive.
It's just interesting enough that I care enough to find out how it turns out, but otherwise it's a woefully mediocre B-movie. Price puts out his trademark slimy charisma but the fact that he is reduced to a secondary part means it's ultimately kind of wasted as other less impressive actors fill the screen. At least its 80-minute running time means it's over quickly. It's not completely terrible but it just sort of exists and doesn't do much for me one way or the other. It's not comically bad but it doesn't have enough charm to overcome its B-movie trappings. Oh, well.