The Masque of the Red Death

The Masque of the Red Death (1964)

Runtime: 90 minutes

Directed by: Roger Corman

Starring: Vincent Price, Hazel Court, Jane Asher, David Weston, Nigel Green

From: AIP

Needed for Spooky Season are Vincent Price, Roger Corman and Edgar Allan Poe. This was a recording made a few weeks ago on TCM; while the film is on the Criterion Channel, viewing it that way saved some bandwidth. Some say this is the best Corman adaptation of a Poe story; I’ve only seen a percentage so my opinion can’t be given. What I do know is that this is a Gothic delight.

Perhaps I shouldn’t say “delight” as the setting is Italy during a plague where Price portrays a pretty despicable prince who hangs out with other grotesque nobility in his castle where the peasants are made to suffer. He captures a family of them so they can humiliate themselves for his delight. For those familiar w/ Poe’s work, the short story Hop-Frog is also incorporated.

This was shot in England and was a lengthy/pricey shoot, at least by AIP standards. It looked rather marvelous, due to the sets and also the cinematography from Nicolas Roeg. The cast as a whole was solid, including “little person” actor Skip Martin and Jane Asher as Francesca-a young lady who was kidnapped alongside her lover and her father-but of course Price was tremendous playing such a vile character as Prince Prospero. The Red Death appears several times in physical form; it’s a random actor in the role but the voice it has is uncredited… but sounds suspiciously like Christopher Lee.

A movie imbued with strong atmosphere, bold colors, a bats--- insane dream sequence, a macabre story where the viewer is still given heroes to root for, and a pleasant musical score meant that this is a must if you enjoy any of the main talent involved, including Poe.