Warner-Pathé Distributors in England and American International Pictures in the US released The Masque of the Red Death on 24 June 1964.

It was in the Corman Poe Cycle. This is an 8-film series that Roger Corman directed for AIP. You’d think they were all based on stories from Edgar Allan Poe. And they mostly are. One just takes a title from Poe and tells a Lovecraft story. Close enough!

The Masque of the Red Death feels like it is the last of the cycle but it was actually made a year before The Tomb of Ligeia, which was the last. It’s good, but Red Death is my favorite of the series. But I often wonder why.

The Pit and the Pendulum is more consistent and generally more fulfilling. And Red Death has lots of problems. Let me name a few:

1. The heroine, Francesca (Jane Asher), is too good and too boring. The same goes for her father (Nigel Green) and boyfriend (David Weston).
2. The film uses Christianity for its mythology and it lays it on really thick in a way that is cringe. But in the end, it presents a kind of pagan mythology. It’s like the two parts of the film were written by different writers. And maybe they were!
3. The Juliana (Hazel Court) subplot doesn’t work at all. The character comes off as pathetic. The film would be fine if the character were simply removed. Little would need to change but we would lose the line, “She’s just married a friend of mine!”

But there is far more that elevates the film. In particular, Prince Prospero (Vincent Price) is gloriously evil. And it shows up on many levels. Especially nice is the way he treats his friends. He will just kill you if you are his enemy. But he is so much more cruel to his friends.

I keep coming back to the film because of the Hop-Toad (Skip Martin) subplot. Martin is fabulous in this role. But it’s more than this. I love the revenge he orchestrates. And unlike the three villagers who escape, I care that he and his partner (Verina Greenlaw) get away.

So I wouldn’t say The Masque of the Red Death is the most consistent of the Corman Poe Cycle. But it has the highest highs with no especially low lows. And if you haven’t seen it, you must!

Other 24 June Anniversaries

Filmmakers

This is a special day in RoboCop history. Its two stars were born on this day: Peter Weller (1947-) and Nancy Allen (1950-). They were also in RoboCop 2. I love these kinds of coincidences. And I started writing an article about it but it turns out to be hard to make work in a short article. But I thought it was worth highlighting.

Ambrose Bierce was also born on this day in 1842. He died around 1914; we don’t really know; he disappeared in Mexico. I bring him up mostly because he is the main character in From Dusk Till Dawn 3: The Hangman’s Daughter, the best of the series.

Films

• The H Man (1958): An oozing radioactive creature destroys people in Tokyo.
• 13 Ghosts (1960): A struggling family inherits a haunted house that may contain a fortune.
• Ruby (1977): Killing at a drive-in theater and an odd child.
• Sorcerer (1977): A group of men transports nitroglycerin through a jungle.
• Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983): Anthology film based on the show.
• Spaceballs (1987): Mel Brooks does Star Wars. If that sounds good, you shouldn’t be reading this site.
• Bewitched (2005): Feature film based on the show.
• Land of the Dead (2005): After the apocalypse, the zombies start learning things.
• Desert of Blood (2008): Vampire brought back in Mexico.
• Bad Teacher (2011): The worst woman in the world becomes a teacher and learns no lessons. It is one of the worst films ever made. Seriously.

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The Masque of the Red Death (1964) poster via Wikipedia under Fair Use.