A small town is suffering a rash of deaths that appear to be the work of a vampire ... wounds on the neck, blood drained, etc. Local cop Melvyn Douglas is skeptical, but the townsfolk are convinced and eccentric, bat-loving weirdo Dwight Frye is blamed. How is seemingly benevolent doctor Lionel Atwill connected. An enjoyable, brief little programmer with an impressive cast (Fay Wray is also here as a love interest for Douglas).

After several mysterious deaths around town, a town doctor and detective disprove the old town legend about vampires as the rising death toll suggests that vampire bats are the real culprit they band together to bring it to justice.This here wasn't all that bad and did have some good moments. One of the better features is that this here did get some rather atmospheric scenes at times, most notably the opening where a witness observes a figure leaving the scene of a crime on the rooftops from below though the trees. The combination of the setting and the scene taking place at night is a great combination and that there's other outside factors contributing to this one makes it all the better. The later confrontations inside the cave are quite fun which give off an air of suspense and creepiness, which is aided nicely by the sight of burning pitchforks and dogs barking off in the distance as well as features a lot of nice action since it's tagged off chasing scenes. Though these are presented as the follow-up scenes of many of these encounters, there's still plenty of energy here giving them some extra incentive to go alongside the rather fine mystery which is quite nicely layered with the attacks rousing the same local hysteria and mounting fear that's handedly played well with their dismissals and continued search leading them into fine territory with the action in the final half. These here are what make the film enjoyable though this here does have a few discernible flaws with it. One of the main ones is that this one doesn't know what kind of film it wants to be, as this one toys with vampires and killer vampire bats at several points, yet doesn't seem comfortable with either one as the villain. Despite strong evidence for both as the main target, they're automatically dismissed right when it makes sense at the time in the perfect opportunity given. The last flaw is that it doesn't really do much in the middle of the film. This is mostly relegated to talking about the situation on-hand and doesn't spend any time on the real heart of the story. That can make it seem like a drag, which isn't needed on a film this short. As well as the confusion over what happens in the finale, these here are what hold this one down.Today's Rating-PG: Mild Violence.

There have been a rash of killings in a German village. The victims have all been found drained of their blood. The villagers believe a local weirdo named Herman Gleib (Dwight Frye), who has an unnatural affinity for vampire bats, is responsible. However, as the story progresses, it looks like a scientist engaged in disturbing experiments might really be the culprit.This is a good little vampire/mad scientist mash-up horror film from the early '30s. Helped by a cast of greats, including Frye, Lionel Atwill, Fay Wray, and Melvyn Douglas. Made by Poverty Row studio Majestic, it looks pretty good since they were able to use leftover Universal sets. Majestic rushed the film into production in order to release it before Mystery of the Wax Museum, Warner Bros' big hit starring Atwill & Wray.

Apparent vampire attacks arouse villagers, causing local doctor to come to the rescue-- or does he.The movie comes across like a combination Dracula and Frankenstein, except we never see the monster. Heavy low-key lighting lends eerie effect, but movie has its creepiest moments with the hunched-over Herman (Frye) whose demented IQ appears capable of darn near anything. Watching him creep around the edges, mumbling some infernal thought makes the usually villainous Atwill seem positively benign. In fact, Atwill hardly changes expression the whole time making us wonder just what his deadpan scientist is really up to. But what guy really cares when we've got the gorgeous Fay Wray to ogle, just a year or two before that big hairy critter kidnapped her to the top of New York. Anyhow, it's a decent enough horror flick that manages a few chills, without being anything special, along with a rather tepid climax that doesn't help. Nonetheless, the very last scene still has me wondering and chuckling-- Epsom salts! Really!