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The Vampire Bat

A review of the 1933 pre-code horror classic

By Tom BakerPublished about a year ago 3 min read
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Movie poster for THE VAMPIRE BAT (1933)

The Vampire Bat is a 1933 horror film starring the inimitable and wonderful old horror actor Dwight Frye--he of Frankenstein and Dracula fame, as well as many others-camping it up as the "Bat Man of Kleinschloss," which is a fictional Bavarian city that is neither German, British, nor American Hollywood, but somehow all three at once.

There have been a series of mysterious deaths, with exsanguinated corpses popping up, and the town fathers suspect that vampires, or at the very least, a single vampire is responsible. Investigator Karl (Melvyn Douglas) doesn't think so. I mean, after all, it is 1933, NOT 1433. But, perhaps he's wrong, and bloodsucking dead ones do rise from unhallowed earth to drink the blood of the living before dissolving into the mist--or turning into a bat. Who in the name of Vlad the Impaler could tell?

The town of Kleinschloss suffers from a case of perpetual night, but otherwise is just like any other average horror movie city of the period--made entirely of what seems to be huge medieval stone fortress-like blocks that are probably foam rubber in actuality. Herman (Dwight Frye) visits one of the victims for some reason, and we get a glimpse of a true master of creepy characterization at work--he speaks in broken English in the third person, saying things like "Herman no like fire. Fire bad! Herman scared!" (Okay, that's not actual dialog, but you get the picture.) Herman is suspected right off the bat (no pun), of being THE BAT BLOODSUCKER, because, well, Herman lives to collect bats, like some batty "Birdman of Alcatraz." (Everybody needs a hobby, right?) I suppose he lives in a belfry, as well.

The town lynch mob mentality goes into full swing, and Herman is chased into a cave, plummeting to his death over the edge, ending a life where his closest friends are flying rodents. But the exsanguinated bodies keep piling up, and Karl and his girlfriend Ruth (Fay Wray) continue to investigate the mysterious Dr. von Niemann (Lionel Atwill), who is a telepath who uses telepathy to control people telepathically. (One concept logically follows the other.)

He also seems to be "making monsters." But, what does he need all that BLOOD for?

The Vampire Bat is a vampire film with no vampire--which may leave the viewer feeling a little cheated. It's still an entertaining fifty-nine minutes or so (although it's a little slow, and seems longer). Adequate for the period, it has a few memorable things to let wash around in your head, but, ultimately, is like a belch at the end of a long meal started by Bela Lugosi and Todd Browning--with the undead ending nowhere in sight, presently.

I suppose that is all I should say about the picture--I['ve given away too many details already. (Alright, really I haven't, but do you want to WATCH the damn thing or have me describe it to you up until the point the credits roll?) I have about ONE HUNDRED words left to pour into this masterpiece of a monsterpiece, so I'll just wrap up by saying von Niemann, Lionel Atwill, was indicted for perjury once for lying to a grand jury about a swinger's orgy at his (presumably) Hollywood home. He, of course, is famous for playing the role of the tough and hilarious martinet of an inspector in Son of Frankenstein (a role parodied to great, comic effect by actor Kenneth Mars in Mel Brooks' film Young Frankenstein, from 1974), as well as in films such as Mystery of the Wax Museum and Doctor X. The idea of anyone wanting to have a sex orgy with Lionel Atwill is perhaps, more monstrous than any shambling horror he ever shared screen time with.

And I always seem to confuse him with George Zucco, who, according to Kenneth Anger's book Hollywood Babylon, either Volume 1 or 2, died in an insane asylum from dementia, raving that the "Great God Cthulhu" was coming to shove a tentacle up his ass or something.

In a final piece of trivia, Northern England Eighties punk rockers the Dog-Faced Hermans, who inspired Chumbawamba, (who, if you'll remember, had a single one-hit wonder skyrocket unaccountably to the top of the pop charts back around the year 1997, a song called "Tubthumping", which was also the album name), took THEIR name from a line from this movie. About Herman. Having a "dogface." But you'll already have guessed that I suppose.

Fin.

The Vampire Bat (1933) Public Domain Film.

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About the Creator

Tom Baker

Author of Haunted Indianapolis, Indiana Ghost Folklore, Midwest Maniacs, Midwest UFOs and Beyond, Scary Urban Legends, 50 Famous Fables and Folk Tales, and Notorious Crimes of the Upper Midwest.: http://tombakerbooks.weebly.com

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  • Randy Wayne Jellison-Knockabout a year ago

    A bit of delightful rambling fun. I may have to check it out. Thanks for the link!

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