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I already encountered quite a few opinions and reviews that labeled "the Bat" as one of Price's LEAST entertaining movies. Okay, either I'm too biased about this magnificent actor's work or either I just know crap about horror cinema but I thought it was a GREAT movie!! Granted, the screenplay is a little too ambitious and too many characters are introduced, but overall this is an exciting and well-plotted thriller that satisfies the fans of haunted house stories as well the typical "whodunit" mysteries. The always-amazing Price is part of a well-filled cast and the events take place in an old, luxurious mansion. One million dollar worth of cash has been stolen from the bank, the loot is hidden somewhere in the house and there's a maniacal killer with a dedication for rabbit bats on the loose. Let the fun begin! The temporary tenant of the mansion, who happens to be a murder-story author, starts her own search for the killer's identity. "The Bat" is low on visual effects and make-up, but the constantly tense atmosphere and mysterious characters make up for that. The film could have used a little more action instead of all the talking but it remains an absolute pleasure to behold Vincent Price as a sneaky crook. The old "Oaks" mansion is a genuinely creepy horror location and the "Bat" character is a cool and imaginative villain. Certainly not the absolute highlight of Price's impressive career, but nonetheless a warmly recommended movie for his fans.

I think that I may be in the minority here, but I actually prefer this 1959 movie adaptation of Avery Hopwood's stage-play The Bat over the original silent film by director Roland West. Although it is just as flawed in terms of narrative and undoubtedly lacks its earlier '20s incarnation's stylish visuals, the performances are far less irritating and there is very little sign of the original's dreadful cornball comedy. This version also turns the titular character into something far more sinister than a mere jewel thief—a psychotic serial killer with a penchant for vulnerable women—making it a darker affair overall.

Top-billed horror star Vincent Price is, as always, simply great and easily steals every scene he is in, but his role as devious Dr. Malcolm Wells is merely a supporting one, the focus of the film being on thriller author Cornelia van Gorder (Agnes Moorhead), who finds herself at the centre of a real life murder/mystery when it transpires that there is a fortune hidden somewhere inside the mansion in which she currently resides. Moorhead puts in a strong performance, her character being extremely feisty, unflappable, and resourceful, but most importantly of all, likable.

Creepy, thrilling, and genuinely scary in parts (The Bat, with his hat, mask and clawed glove, looks like a murderer straight out of a giallo), this is one 'old dark house' that you'll have fun exploring.

Agnes Moorhead (Endora of "Bewitched" fame) is a sheer delight as a cagey old bird of a mystery writer, and Price is wonderful in his seemingly dual role. As has been lamented here before, the brevity of Price's screen time is somewhat disappointing but that is the only factor which disappoints.

I found this to be an inventive and disingenuous endeavor full of red-herrings and wrong turns. Figure this one out for yourself. Puzzle the clues, weed out the characters set here as distractions, look past the deliberate contrivances and solve the mystery on your own.

Excellent entertainment with a splendid darkling atmosphere which I found enormous fun to view. While this is not up to "Gaslight" or "Rebecca" standards, there are many worse ways to spend a late Saturday night, or a rainy Sunday afternoon.

It rates a 7.5/10 from...

the Fiend :.

Fans of Vincent Price know and love him for his horror films and with a title like THE BAT, you'd think that this is a film about some evil murderous bat,...right? Well, despite the title, it's actually a murder mystery about some stolen stocks and the murders that occur to try to recover this fortune. For me, this wasn't a problem--it was still a pretty good film. But some will no doubt be disappointed that this isn't a horror flick.

Because this isn't exactly a horror film, it also isn't so surprising then that Agnes Morehead is the star of the film and Price is actually a supporting player. She is a mystery writer (like TV's Jessica Fletcher) and the mystery appears to be unfolding all around her. So, it's up to her and her small band of helpers to unravel who is dressing up in silly garb (the mystery person in a black hood refers to himself as "The Bat"--hence the title of the film) and killing people in the house Ms. Morehead is renting.

The film features decent writing and acting, but in many ways it's obvious that this was originally a stage production. This isn't a terrible thing, though the staginess of the film is apparent at times. Additionally, since the ladies inside the rented house were being constantly threatened, I couldn't help but think "why don't they just leave the house??!!". Duh. But despite all this, it's still a decent time-passer and worth a look.

Watch out for the red herrings, I was wrong. And I am very rarely wrong in pre-1980's whodunits. Grabbing this to watch early Vincent Price I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of thriller that could be produced with the technology. For those of you looking for the technological aspects of movies the lighting and shadow work was excellent. That and the sound-tract adds a lot to the overall feel of the movie. An added plus was Darla from "Our Gang" adding a cute bit part of the movie. Comletely gore-less, this movie actually does as promised and delivers thrills without blood. Something most modern movies cannot pull off.

Problems with the movie - First it has a nasty habit of just dumping information on you instead of making the viewer gradually learn what happens. Second as most 1950's horror fare it does have a tendency to drag on. But both of these can be overcome by what some previous reviewers call a confusing plot. Sorry guys, if you know whodunit at the beginning of the movie it is not worth watching.