We're just about done reviewing the 51 movies that make up the revamped Tales of Terror subset of our Mill Creek 250-pack. And our final entry for Tales of Terror will be a four-film Tod Slaughter extravaganza.
First, however, come these three leftovers -- movies that, to be frank, we originally put off watching as long as possible -- and only one of which gets a proper review:
The Bat (1926)
Grade: B-
Does the world need our take on this fairly well-regarded silent, especially when it so clearly requests NO SPOILERS right from the get-go?
No, it does not. But, need is a funny word, and the movie charmed us just enough to merit a brief treatment (ahem, Mike Barbosa) to point out a few of our favorite things.
In essence, The Bat is a murder-mystery straight from the stage, with a large enough cast of characters that it was often difficult to sort them out. All the better to keep the viewer guessing as to the identity of the titular villain, something we both struggled with even on the second viewing (which, admittedly, was at double speed; we tried going faster at first, but even without dialogue the movie was so action-packed that we had to slow it down!)
The sets are pleasingly spooky, featuring lavishly trimmed, cavernous rooms (with absurdly large doors), and lots of dark corners from which one nefarious character or another skulks, stalks, or shoots at the assembled guests.
Shadow and light are used to striking effect, something that (for once) the quality of the Mill Creek print doesn't completely screw up. And, to our (perhaps disproportionate) delight, there's actual night-for-night filming!
... a brief medical lesson ...
... or (what we can only assume is) the genesis of the Bat-Signal ...
... then by golly gee, The Bat might not be such a dumb choice. (Just be wary if you're in a girls' dormitory, lest a real bat decide to go all werewolf on ya.)
Manos: The Hands of Fate (1966)
Grade: F
Does the world need yet another website offering up its take on this dull, sad, Grade-Z regional production often heralded as the "worst film ever made"?
No, it does not. Maybe we're being obtuse, but we've seen it twice each (once separately, once together), and have no interest in watching it yet again for a review. There's not much pleasure in Manos, and even less in a trashed, miscolored print like this one.
And:
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)
Grade: n/a
Does the world need our take on this acclaimed silent masterpiece -- especially when our assessment would be based on a fuzzy, nth-generation dub from Mill Creek?
No, it does not. But it's always validating to see someone else who's living with an acute shortage of right angles.
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