event
Cinematheque: The Bat Whispers
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Courtesy Wisconsin Center For Film And Television Research
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Sat Oct 31
7:30 pm
Cinematheque: The Bat Whispers at Vilas Hall
Nearly forgotten for decades, the creepy-doings-in-a-haunted-house thriller The Bat Whispers isn't much on its face, but historically, it has a lot to recommend it. It was one of the first talking pictures to be shot in widescreen, and was only restored to its original format 10 years ago; it's an early sound picture for Golden Age starlet Una Merkel; and it contains some special effects that were very innovative for their time. Most importantly to the latter-day nerd community, though, is the fact that the film, along with an earlier movie called The Bat, The Mark Of Zorro, and The Man Who Laughs, helped inspire the creation of Batman.
Vilas Hall 821 University Ave., Madison, WI
Nearly forgotten for decades, the creepy-doings-in-a-haunted-house thriller The Bat Whispers isn't much on its face, but historically, it has a lot to recommend it. It was one of the first talking pictures to be shot in widescreen, and was only restored to its original format 10 years ago; it's an early sound picture for Golden Age starlet Una Merkel; and it contains some special effects that were very innovative for their time. Most importantly to the latter-day nerd community, though, is the fact that the film, along with an earlier movie called The Bat, The Mark Of Zorro, and The Man Who Laughs, helped inspire the creation of Batman.
Updated 10/31/2009
