The Masque of the Red Death

IMDb RATING

6.9/10

17K

YOUR RATING

Vincent Price in The Masque of the Red Death (1964)

A European prince terrorizes the local peasantry while using his castle as a refuge against the "Red Death" plague that stalks the land.

Play trailer2:15

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Supernatural Horror Drama Horror

A European prince terrorizes the local peasantry while using his castle as a refuge against the "Red Death" plague that stalks the land.A European prince terrorizes the local peasantry while using his castle as a refuge against the "Red Death" plague that stalks the land.A European prince terrorizes the local peasantry while using his castle as a refuge against the "Red Death" plague that stalks the land.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.9/10

17K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Videos1

Trailer 2:15

Official Trailer

Photos131

125

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Jane Asher asked Roger Corman if a friend could visit the set and join them for lunch. She explained that her friend was a musician who was about to do his first gig in London that night. At the end of lunch, Corman wished him good luck with his concert. Corman had never heard of Paul McCartney until he read of the concert's success in the next day's newspapers.

Goofs
Despite Prospero warning the guests not to wear red to the masque, several people are wearing red: capes, hats, etc.

People ignoring someone's directions is not a Goof; it happens all the time and was even a significant plot point in Jezebel (1938).

Quotes
Man in red: Why should you be afraid to die? Your soul has been dead for a long long time.

Crazy credits
"And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all." Edgar Allan Poe [The final line of the original Poe story.]

Alternate versions
The original UK cinema version was heavily cut by the BBFC to edit lines of implied sexual dialogue, the killing of Juliana by the falcon, and scenes of burning people (including Alfredo in the ape costume), and to completely remove the entire black mass dream sequence. Video and DVD releases fully restore the BBFC cuts though the print used is an edited U.S version which misses some dialogue as well as a shot of Francesca being slapped across the face by one of Prospero's soldiers.

Connections
Featured in Aweful Movies with Deadly Earnest: The Masque of the Red Death (1971)

User reviews151

Review

Featured review

"The day of their deliverance is at hand."

Once again scripted by Charles Beaumont and produced/directed by Roger Corman, Masque of the Red Death is a much-beloved horror film from a lost era. Movies will never again be made quite like this. It's filled with the same mad characters, gorgeous sets, and colorful dream sequences we're used to seeing from Corman. Vincent Price, however hammy he may be, is perfect as the Satan-worshiping Prince Prospero. This very well could be the most evil I have ever seen Price. The cast is fine but Patrick Magee is definitely worth mentioning. He is delightfully wicked. And the character of the Red Death itself is cryptic and cool. This is one of the most colorful horror pictures ever made. The sets are grand, the story is marvelous, and the ending is brilliant. Masque of the Red Death is perhaps the most expensive Poe production, but it's still not Corman's best. I leave that honor to The Pit and the Pendulum.