1964 Directed by Roger Corman
Satan-worshiper Prince Prospero invites the local nobility to his castle for protection against an oncoming plague, the Red Death. He orders his guests to attend a masked ball and, amidst an atmosphere of debauchery and depravity, notices the entry of a hooded stranger dressed all in red. Believing the figure to be his master, Satan, Prospero is horrified at the revelation of his true identity.
i regret to inform that here in 2018 AD we now have a famously germophobic ruler who in making a pact with evil has sealed off the border to those fleeing death whilst amusing himself with games of cruelty and moral corruption directed at his courtiers who laugh uproariously as the whole of the world dies around us and it is not remotely as awesome as i had been promised. i await a refund and would like to speak to your manager.
woe betide those who believe stolen wealth and sufficient walls can keep from them that which awaits us all!
((tfw u get married to satan, drop a bunch of acid, die a thousand deaths and finally come down…
As colorfully stunning as just about any Hammer picture of its time, each scene pops vibrantly with beautiful camerawork from Nicholas Roeg, all while Vincent Price achieves the perfect mixture of devilish charm and insidious evil.
This top tier adaptation of Poe’s short story once again shows the often undervalued directorial efforts of Roger Corman—who achieves more with less than just about anyone. I think The Haunted Palace and this may be my favorite of his ‘Poe Cycle’.
"Why should you be afraid to die? Your soul has been dead for a long time."
I found this to be sadly beautiful. A superlative take on Edgar Allan Poe's short story. Price is at his peak, and this is arguably Corman's finest hour.
First off, all hail those evocative opening credits! I love the splash of red, and that's a cool effect with the rose. It immediately hints at the level of class this Corman production possesses as a whole. The tale has Prince Prospero dismissive of the provincial types of the village he oversees, which is now dealing with a plague known as the Red Death. He burns the location in an attempt to contain the sickness. Meanwhile,…
"Satan. The lord of flies. The fallen angel. [Vincent Price whisper the only way Vincent Price could whisper] The devil."
This the best looking of the Corman Poe adaptations (shot by Nicolas Roeg!) that I've seen, with a bold color palette leaning towards very-1964-modern psychedelic poster art shades of blue, teal and yellow (like this kind of), and of course deep, deep, deep red. Has almost the air of something like Fellini Satyricon, La Grande Bouffe or even Salo, ultimately less about Satanic evil and more about excess, greed, indulgence, wrath and cruelty: Real end of the empire human flaws that assure mutual destruction and total annihilation. These themes would resonate with Cold War era audiences as much as contemporary…
One of the greatest movies I’ve ever seen. My adoration knows no bounds. There are so many masters woven into its fabric: Buñuel, Bergman, Dreyer, Demy. A finale channeling the spirit of Isadora Duncan.
Its list of pleasures is endless...
opulent bath tubs, sword fights, ape suits, kick-ass dwarves, décolletage, arrows shot in necks, orgies, a campy Vincent Price, a scary Vincent Price, disease, metaphysical pondering, theological debates, amusing voice dubs, Paul McCartney’s cute-as-a-button girlfriend, Satanism, Christianity, Pantheism, vicious bird attacks, interpretive dances, body paint, face paint, rooms with energies, blood, candles, draw bridges, dungeons, costumed balls, peasants, poor animal impressions, noblemen, jump scares, atmospheres, animated credit sequences, a perfect score, a cinematographer determined to blow your God damn mind...
A director in complete control of his craft.
A pop art masterpiece designed to smother your senses and consume your soul.
Surrender.
Brightly colored gothic horror inspired by Poe (and coming a lot closer to the original story than, say, The Raven), this is an eerily beautiful film. I actually was a bit shocked when Vincent Price outright declared his allegiance to Satan; I expected some sort of work around, some sort of avoidance of the topic. Instead, Corman's film embraced the villainy, declared Satan the master of the universe and the death of God, and then toppled it all with the most gorgeous grim reapers ever (fuck off, Gaiman). This is pre-psychedelic kaleidoscopy painted on the grimmest classic horror. Vincent Price seems to relish his role here, which turns what would be hammy into the exquisite.
December count: 94/100
Probably one of the better camp Vincent Price roles but not one of the better performances. Deeply concerned with morality as a framework -- something of a counter-culture as 1% depiction of the gathered nobles in the castle, maybe? -- but there's absolutely no consequences to anyone's actions because Prospero arbitrarily kills or spares everyone.
Fab/macabre/grand looking horror from Roger Corman starring Vincent Price as a cruel/satanic lord. He beats up serfs, dodges the pox, holds a masked ball and chews on the set with devilish glee. Recommended.
"Inspired in equal parts by Edgar Allan Poe’s morbid fable and The Seventh Seal’s cloaked visage of death, Roger Corman’s rapturous rendition of The Masque of the Red Death is the most handsomely mounted of his eight Poe adaptations, seamlessly fusing the melodrama of Gothic horror to the existential malaise of world cinema."
Full review at Kinetoscope Film Journal.
This is movie #67 of October Horror Challenge and #12 in A History of Horror. This is based on probably my favorite Edgar Allen Poe short story and isn't a bad flick.
A feast for the eyes and VP is on point (more like MVP, amiright?). Gothic, creepy and a good pinch of camp thrown in there. Great vibe throughout and I had a blast watching it.
Another superior Vincent Price(THEATRE OF BLOOD,DEAD HEAT) starring,Roger Corman(HOUSE OF USHER[1960],THE ABOMINABLE DR. PHIBES) directed Edgar Allan Poe adaptation that is a thickly atmospheric story that has Price as the evil monarch Prince Prospero,a man who is as profane and immoral as he and his equally devious wife(Hazel Court[THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN,DOCTOR BLOOD'S COFFIN]) can be as he abducts a young woman(Jane Asher[DEEP END[1970],DEATH AT A FUNERAL]) who he includes into his corrupt kingdom as her boyfriend(David Weston[WITCHCRAFT{1964],QUEST FOR LOVE) attempts to rescues her amid the title plague that is on the loose as a red cloak clad figure looms around the premises as he aims to crash Prospero's costume party where murder,debachery,and decadence is occurring.preparing to deliver his own…
THE MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH is another successful collaboration between Roger Corman and Vincent Price based upon stories by Edgar Allan Poe. It was a film that Corman wanted to make earlier in his career, but he feared that he would be accused of plagiarism. Because of Ingmar Bergman's THE SEVENTH SEAL being popular at the time and containing some of the same imagery, he put the film on hold. Many consider it to be one of Roger Corman's finest efforts, and I would go so far as to call it his masterpiece. It doesn't go over the line in making Price a relentlessly unlikable villain like he was in WITCHFINDER GENERAL (aka THE CONQUEROR WORM), nor does it attempt to ape Poe's work for questionable purposes. It's a beautiful film that walks down familiar territory, especially if you watch these films back to back like I tend to do. It's definitely a gem in Roger Corman's filmography.
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