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The Masque of the Red Death

The Masque of the Red Death

Drama · Horror · 1964

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

Movie details

The Masque of the Red Death

“Horror has a face.”

1964 Drama · Horror 1h 30m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.6 / 10

Community rating

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

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Masque of the Red Death?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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The Woman

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A lawyer puts his family in jeopardy when he captures the last member of a violent clan and tries to forcibly tame her.

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Castle Freak

Castle Freak

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John Reilly discovers that his family's newly inherited castle in Italy is haunted by a relentless, bloodthirsty creature.

Fear Street: 1666

Fear Street: 1666

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In 1666, a colonial town is gripped by a hysterical witch-hunt that has deadly consequences for centuries to come, and it's up to teenagers in 1994 to finally put an end to their town's curse, before it's too late.

The Seventh Sign

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Dracula: Prince of Darkness

Dracula: Prince of Darkness

Horror · 1966

Whilst vacationing in the Carpathian Mountain, two couples stumble across the remains of Count Dracula's castle. The Count's trusted servant kills one of the men, suspending the body over the Count's ashes so that the blood drips from the corpse and saturates the blackened remains. The ritual is completed, the Count revived and his attentions focus on the dead man's wife who is to become his partner; devoted to an existence of depravity and evil.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Roger Corman

Written by

Charles Beaumont · R. Wright Campbell

Vincent Price

Vincent Price

Prince Prospero

Hazel Court

Hazel Court

Juliana

Jane Asher

Jane Asher

Francesca

David Weston

David Weston

Gino

Nigel Green

Nigel Green

Ludovico

Patrick Magee

Patrick Magee

Alfredo

Paul Whitsun-Jones

Paul Whitsun-Jones

Scarlatti

Court is in session

Put The Masque of the Red Death on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Arthouse Gremlin

“Its refusal to behave is the point.”

The strange choices create the kind of friction that follows you out of the theatre and into the argument.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Oddness is not depth.”

A film can break every rule and still leave nothing behind but the memory of how hard it tried to be singular.