The Masque of the Red Death Reviews

Price is really in his element here, playing a sadistic prince hellbent on bringing pain and suffering to his loyal subjects. (1964)

I don't know if there's a 1989 version, but I'm writing about the 1964 movie starring Vincent Price. Price is an evil ruler who torments people, he's a devil worshiper who thinks he can do what ever he wants and nothing bad will happen to him. Well, you can guess how that ends, but it's a pretty interesting movie anyway, I enjoyed it.

Price is at his most diabolical here, and the dazzling sets, costumes and cinematography help create a stunning gothic atmosphere in this great adaptation of Poe's story.

Vincent Price at his most malicious, gives one of his greatest performances as the evil tyrant Prince Prospero, a devil worshiper who enjoys the company of the sweet Jane Asher and the luscious Hazel Court.
One of the best written, performed and staged Poe adaptations.

Colorful and elaborate sets, costumes and cinematography. The story is a bit simple, with an evil Prince (Vincent Price) and his mistreatment of people in the land, being visited by a cursed Red Death cult during a masqued ball. It has gaudy and spectacular baroque set pieces. The excessive entertainment of the court adds to the grotesqueness of it all. I wish they had shown every one of the coloured chambers but didn't. The cruel prince deserves everything he gets. Some of the subplots of ladies, monks and peasants added meat to the simple tale. I liked the burning gorilla trick.

As faithful as "House of Usher" was to the spirit of Edgar Alan Poe, "Masque of the Red Death" is the very opposite. Fantastic sets, a great use of color and some very pleasing widescreen compositions cannot hide the fact that this has little to do with the short story that supposedly inspired it. Even worse, Roger Corman seems to have felt, on the heels of Usher's great success, that the more superficial Poe references he could cram in an hour and a half the better which leads to the film featuring (for no artistic reason whatsoever) a clock with a double-bladed pendulum, a royal dwarf named Hoptoad and his revenge, a gorilla (costume) and several black crows.

AIP's aping of the Hammer formula (even going so far as to give Hazel Court a lead role here) via Edgar Alan Poe is already on a downward slide here, and subsequent incursions would be of significantly reduced quality, even falling into the real of self parody. As a stand alone film it might be effective, but as an adaptation of Poe's greatest work it was most disappointing.

Three stars for Vincent Price (far creepier as the Red Death than Prospero), the gorgeous sets, the use of color and the dance of death sequence that climaxes the movie.

A conventional horror film.The vibrant use of colour in the sets and costumes, along with the high degree of stylisation in just about every department from acting to make-up, makes this one of Corman?s most prominent. Whilst The Masque of the Red Death occasionally veers dangerously close to the abyss of pretentious over-indulgence, its peculiar Gothic atmosphere, sinister quasi-religious undertones and Price?s chilling presence make it a classic of its genre.

Grim, dark, somber, pervading sense of dread. One of Vincent Price's more sinister performances. Hazel Court gives a strong performance, Jane Asher is excellent as the sullied innocent.

Oh my God I have seen this so many times but it is still as powerful. Great movie

Flixster does need to fix this page, this is a blend of the '64 version with Vincent Price and some weird '80s remake I've never heard of. Of the the 1964 version I will say that Vincent Price's cheesiness is as good as it gets here, enjoyably weird.

I only saw some on T.V. but wasn't impressed by the beginning. Magic was hokey, dialogue between witch and mortal son was dumb and while I often find monkeys to be funny the one dressed in a costume here just didn't do anything. Caught the ending and perhaps there's something here about a lesson pertaining to allegiances with evil and whatnot or being careful what you wish for but the movie just didn't do it for me. Glad I missed most of it.

Quite the tale of an evil prince who terrorizes his people with tales of the red death plague. Although his safe haven castle is far from anything but safe as he entertains in a grand masque of death and dealings with the devil.

psycho-a-trip dillio.but fun..you got to dig vincent..no matter how bad a movie vincent makes it all go away

My favorite Vincent Price film. For someone whose seen so many horror films, seeing this oldie was refreshing - don't miss this.

What's not to love about this one? Beautifully vivid sets, Poe and Vincent Price all add up to a true classic of the genre.

I love Vincent Price, but don't waste your time on this one, especially if you are a die-hard Poe fan like me. Just like the other Corman-treated Poe stories, this movie has almost nothing to do with the origional Edgar Allen Poe plague allegory. Very disappointing.

I couldn't resist the combination of Poe , Price and pestilence shown in bold rich technicolor

Typical Roger Corman. Not unwatchable, just very low-budget and campy.

"The Masque of the Red Death" isn't particularly scary, but Vincent Price really gives it all and the sets and costumes are very well done. The acting is great, and the speeches are fascinating to watch.

No one did like Vincent Price did it. One adaptation that is classics indeed.