At the old, remote Fleming estate, desolate heir Richard (Arthur Housman) plots to frighten off its current occupant, Cornelia Van Gorder (Emily Fitzroy), so he can lease the land and make a quick buck.
What he does not count on is the Bat, a mysterious criminal with their own designs on the property…
I have heard of this film’s influence on Batman (including the 1989 film), but I was not prepared for how much of the iconography and style of the character is echoed here - from the opening shot of glowing eyes framed by suspiciously familiar pointed ears, to a bat signal projected against a wall.
One can also see the inspiration for the comic book hero in the titular character, an acrobatic figure in a cape and cowl. The big difference between the Bat and Batman is that the Bat is a villain, a diabolical mastermind who delights in murder as much as he does stealing fortunes.
There is some obvious influence from German Expressionism, lending the darkly comic tale an unsettling edge (the shaft of light down the stairs from the Bat’s torch as he guns down Richard is hilariously melodramatic).
Combined with the film’s stage origins, the exaggerated stylisation re-sets the story in its own unique cinematic world, one where the walls are as porous as the characters’ lies.
While the film is atmospheric, the film also packs some solid gags - in one scene, the startled maid sees the Bat, causing her employer to accidentally fire a gun into the floor. The maid then tries to hide under a bed that turns out to be a Murphy bed.
The story is a collection of familiar cliches: The main action is based around an old estate, where a collection of characters gather, and are slowly offed until the mystery is solved.
While the murder mystery premise is familiar, with the masked killer and visually striking murder sequences, the film feels more akin to a proto-giallo, where plot and character logic take a backseat to elaborate and dreamlike mise-en-scene.
Nothing is as it seems — the house with its secret rooms, the bat signal that turns out to be a moth, characters are not who they appear to be, the dead come back from the dead. The characters are all so self-serving and self-absorbed, there are points where the film feels like the gothic version of a farce, with wanton greed replacing erotic desire.
Based on a play, there are few points where the film betrays its origins.
I prefer the remake, which Roland West also directed, but on its own terms, The Bat is still a pretty effective horror comedy. It is not as transcendent as The Cat and the Canary, but it is worth a look.
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