The Vampire (1945)

In a world where nature conceals the eerie and the uncanny, our journey begins with a glimpse into the realm of the bizarre and the unordinary. The lens then escorts us to the heart of the Chaco forest, a hushed realm straddling the borders of Paraguay, Argentina, and Brazil. Here, amidst the whispers of the wild, dwells a creature of the night, the vampire bat, also known as desmodus rotondus. With an uncanny knack for stealth and precision, it stalks both the wild and the tamed, striking terror into the hearts of the smallest critters and the largest beasts alike. This creature of darkness, scarcely four inches long and boasting a wingspread of a full foot, is a marvel of dread-inducing efficiency. It meticulously shaves a patch of fur off its victim, then sinks its teeth, feasting on six or seven ounces of life-giving blood. It's a meal served cold, the victim often oblivious, thanks to the bat's possibly anesthetic saliva. The aftermath of its attack is fatal - an innocent bite that injects a lethal parasite into the bloodstream of larger victims. It's not just its deadly nature that chills the blood, but also its grotesque appearance. With a stub nose and a harelip, it's a creature born of nightmares, a genuine embodiment of horror. This is the tale of the vampire bat, a journey into the heart of nature's darkest corners, where beauty and dread exist side by side.

The Vampire is a documentary movie featuring Max Schreck.

The Vampire is currently streaming on Criterion Channel.