Vampire

CONDEMNED TO LIVE-1935-Two men and pregnant woman are trapped in a cave full of vampire bats by  some natives. The woman is bitten by a bat. Years later “in another land” a small village is terrorized by vampire like murders. The victims’ throats are torn open and their bodies drained of blood. Most folks say it's a giant bat but a guy name David (Russell Gleason) disagrees. He thinks it's a man. Professor Kristan (Ralph Morgan) warns everyone to stay indoors and be “protected by light”. He has a hunchback servant named Zan (Mischa Auer) and is a much admired resident engaged to the much younger Marguerite (Maxine Doyle) who seems honored by the arrangement but a little doubtful. Her childhood friend David doesn't like it. He loves her. Anyway it turns out that Kristan has a few faults. Like at night he turns into a creepy vampire and commits the murders that have the village so frightened! Though he complains about headaches and exhaustion, the good Prof. doesn't seem to know he’s the killer. His old friend Dr. Bizet (Pedro de Cordoba) comes calling and advises him about his engagement. Later when the vampire/professor tries to kill Marguerite, she's saved by Zan but the the villagers think he’s the fiend. When Kristan regains consciousness Bizet explains how the professor was born in a cave after his mother had been bitten by a vampire bat! After clearing Zan, Kristan jumps off a cliff and Zan follows him. Marguerite and David are free to have sex. 

This dark moody horror film from Invincible Pictures was directed by Frank R. Strayer who earlier made THE VAMPIRE BAT and other interesting but mostly forgotten horror films. Soon after this he became the usual director for the BLONDIE series of movies!

Thanks for reading!