Overview: Cinedigm announced today that The Film Detective, the classic film restoration and streaming company, will release the late 1950s horror classic, The Bat (1959), on special-edition Blu-ray and DVD, October 25th, 2022.

The predator has steel claws and rips his victims to shreds! But who is he? Vincent Price (House of Wax, The Last Man on Earth) thrills in this horror classic about a down¬trodden country estate that becomes the site of a horrific murder.

Agnes Moorehead (Bewitched, Hush … Hush, Sweet Charlotte) co-stars in this picture in one of her many commanding, on-screen performances. Other co-stars include Gavin Gordon (Murder by Invitation) and Darla Hood of the Our Gang comedies in her final film role.

Prolific writer/director Crane Wilbur (He Walked by Night, Crime Wave) helms this feature, alongside an impressive gallery of weirdos who are guaranteed to give you the creeps. Which of them is the mysterious killer known as The Bat? You’ll find out soon enough, but beware … the scream you hear may be your own!

Blu-ray Verdict: A faithful filming of Mary Roberts Rinehart-Avery Hopwood play, in truth, this film is truly an exercise in bizarre behavior. I love watching it, not because it’s a marvelous whodunit, but because it’s such a strange period piece, and because the characters are living in a world gone mad, yet they maintain their composure and impeccable manners.

A mystery writer rents a mansion in an undisclosed location. Her household staff members have fled because they fear rabid bats. She goes to the local bank with her female companion and engages in shameless exposition with the bank manager. We learn that a million dollars has been embezzled from the bank.

Cut to a cabin in the woods, where the bank president is bragging about the embezzlement to his male companion, the town doctor. Things get ugly between them; the doctor kills the bank president and hurls him into an extremely convenient forest fire.

Back to the writer and her female friend. It’s a stormy, spooky night. They’re sitting around yakking about The Bat, a misogynist serial killer who has been frightening the region. As the writer goes to lock the front door, she is menaced by a hand encased in a clawed glove. Highly controlled panic ensues.

The women call the police and lock themselves in a bedroom. The Bat lets himself in and traipses around the house. He releases what looks like a mechanical bat into the women’s bedroom.

What follows is very odd. Night after night, The Bat goes roaming around the house, and nobody seems to be able to stop him. Meanwhile, life goes on pretty much as usual for the mystery writer and her friend. They have a dinner party where a man gets killed and stuffed into a closet by The Bat. They have a slumber party, and one of their friends gets killed by The Bat!

Why don’t they move out of the house? Obviously it’s not a safe environment. I mean, it contains a homicidal maniac, after all!

That important question summarizes why I love this movie. It’s full of existential ambiguity, and it’s beautifully shot. It also features Agnes Moorhead and Vincent Price, so you cannot go wrong there, my friends.

In closing, The Bat is a quite enjoyable mystery with a cast of memorable characters, some good suspense and light and shadows atmosphere. It reminds me of those radio mystery shows, but of course that fun is transported competently on screen.

A bit of a slow start but it increasingly gets better with the Bat loitering around the house, terrorizing and even bumping off a few victims. What you get, as aforementioned, is a lighthearted treat with great performances by both Agnes Moorehead and Vincent Price. The Bat is a highly anticipated release from The Film Detective label. Presented at 1.85:1, this pristine print is beautifully restored from original 35mm archival elements and includes the host of bonus features that label fans have come to expect.

Notably, the release includes nine archival radio re-broadcasts featuring the iconic Price in everything from the popular radio drama Suspense to a comedic performance for CBS Radio Workshop in Speaking of Cinderella. Presented in partnership with Retro Entertainment.

BONUS FEATURES: Full-color booklet with essay, “The Case of The Forgotten Author,” by professor and film scholar Jason A. Ney; full-length commentary track by Jason A. Ney; all-new, original production, The Case for Crane Wilbur, by Ballyhoo Motion Pictures; nine archival radio episodes featuring Vincent Price.

Official Purchase Link