Review – The Masque of the Red Death (1964)

I admit that I have a weak spot in my heart (or maybe in my head) for these old sixties-era Vincent Price and Roger Corman adaptations of the short stories of Edgar Allen Poe. So I hope you all will forgive me if I enjoyed this picture more than I really should have. It’s the usual dreadful American International Pictures-style flick full of cheap sets (ideal for consumption by the hammy leads), nubile no-name British actresses and dreadful dialogue. I suppose I should hate what they’ve done to my favorite Poe story (not to mention stirring in bits from “Hop-Frog,” another one of my favorites). But for some reason I just have a hard time raising much rancor for Price’s ever-so-gosh-darn-earnest outings, even when they sink to the level of absurdity found in the ending of this flick. Verdict: mildly amusing