This movie essentially begins with a man named "Dr. Matt Campbell" (Wood Romoff) being discovered in his laboratory by a delivery boy and in need of serious medical attention. Upon being notified "Dr. Paul Beecher" (John Beal) immediately rushes to the house but Matt dies only a couple of minutes later. However, before he dies Matt mumbles something totally incoherent and gives Paul a small bottle of pills in the process. Not long afterward, Dr. Beecher develops a migraine and accidentally takes the pills Matt gave him by mistake. The next day Dr. Beecher gets a call that a woman named "Marion Wilkins" (Ann Staunton) is extremely sick and this prompts him to go to her house right away. However, upon attempting to examine her she becomes extremely agitated by his presence before suddenly dying of an apparent heart attack. It's at this time that Paul discovers two bite marks on her neck--and it isn't long before more people begin to die of the same thing. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this was a different type of vampire film which bore a definite affinity to the "Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde" scenario. That being said, it didn't quite have the same character one might expect of a traditional vampire film but even so it was still entertaining to a degree and for that reason I have rated it accordingly. Average.

Dr. Paul Beecher asked his daughter one night to get him some aspirin out of his coat pocket. She did as he asked but she gave him the wrong pills accidentally - he had forgotten the other pills where still in his coat pocket. The other pills were experimental - a way to regress humans in hopes to reverse them into something that could help humans progress. These regression pills that Dr. Paul Beecher took were made from blood of a vampire bat that turn him into "The Vampire".This is a fun vampire film that has a slightly different twist. It's entertaining to those that enjoy the older styles of horror films.6.5/10

I have a feeling that some people who sit down to watch "The Vampire" will feel a little let down, at least when it comes to the movie's promise of delivering horror. It takes a long time for the first genuine moment of horror to come, and there are not that many moments of horror in the entire film! Also, while the movie runs an economical 76 minutes long, it does feel a little padded here and there. On the other hand, the movie does have its share of merit despite those shortcomings. The acting by all the participants is pretty decent; they manage to make their characters pretty convincing. And while the movie was done on a low budget, it never looks particularly cheap or tacky. The most interesting thing about the movie, however, is that the whole vampire plot can be seen as a parable for drug addiction, a topic that was still somewhat taboo when this movie was made. So if you can adjust your expectations so that you don't expect a lot of horror, this movie has some genuine interest.

Kindly small town physician Dr. John Beecher (a fine and likable performance by John Beal) gets transformed into a vicious predatory vampire after mistakenly taking an experimental drug made from the blood of vampire bats. Director Francis Lederer relates the engrossing story in an admirably taut and straightforward manner and neatly grounds the fantastic premise in a believable quiet small town setting, but unfortunately fails to generate much in the way of either suspense or creepy atmosphere. Moreover, the vampire make-up is regrettably shoddy and the pace a touch too slow. That said, this film still delivers a few tense and thrilling moments such as when Beecher chases after his loyal nurse Carol Butler (well played by the lovely Coleen Gray) through the dark streets. The climax is likewise quite exciting. Pat Fielder's concise and offbeat script offers a fresh and inspired non-Gothic modern scientific take on vampirism. The sound acting by a sturdy cast helps a lot: Beal makes for a sympathetic anguished protagonist, Kenneth Tobey is in typically fine form as the stalwart Sheriff Buck Donnelly, plus there are nice turns by Dabbs Greer as the cheery Dr. Will Beaumont, Ann Stanton as the terrified Marion Williams, and James Griffith as the aloof Dr. Henry Winston. Jack MacKenzie's crisp black and white cinematography boasts several graceful fades and dissolves. Gerald Fried's spirited shivery score does the shuddery trick. A rather flawed, but overall still solid and enjoyable movie.