#305 -- The Masque of the Red Death (1964)

Director: Roger Corman
Rating: 3 / 5

And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all.

To me, Edgar Allen Poe is like the Shakespeare of horror. You really have to think to understand exactly what it is he's trying to say. There are obvious points to his stories, but there's always a hidden meaning that is usually more terrifying than the obvious. He was a poet; whether you're speaking of his stories or his poems, all of his work is poetry. I read The Masque of the Red Death in high school, and I re-visited it after watching this movie starring Vincent Price. I felt something was missing from the movie, and felt the need to feel that which the original story had to offer. If you look into the meanings behind the story, you'll find that it is a very deep and terrifying tale, both things I didn't get from the movie. That's not to say that the movie is bad, because it's not; but to get the full effect of this story, you'll need to read Poe's original version.

This adaptation adds a little more depth to the character of Prince Prospero. In the story, he was simply a man who offered a safe haven from the plague of The Red Death, only to have it invade his castle and destroy everyone within. In the movie, however, he definitely had ulterior motives. Prospero (Price) was a devil-worshiper who planned to offer all of his guests as sacrifices to the Prince of Darkness. In the end, the unknown figure who showed up in the middle of Prospero's masquerade ball, once revealed, shared the Prince's face. I feel like this implied that Prospero himself was the Red Death, because he had brought death and decay to his constituents. Since it took place in the 12th century, his being the Prince gave him reign over all in the villages surrounding his castle. He was not a benevolent man; he was quite evil, cared nothing for his people and killed those who defied him without so much as blinking. In a sense, he was death.

The movie was filled with abduction, betrayal and murder. The part of Prospero was played wonderfully by Vincent Price, and Hazel Court (who played Price's wife in The Raven) played the part of Prospero's most faithful follower. The movie wasn't bad, as I said, but it was missing the depth of the original story. It did have a few deep elements: the implication that Prospero himself represented death. But the original was an allegory for the different stages of human life, with the personified "Red Death" representing an entity that one meets at the last stage. There was a tiny hint of this in the movie, but it wasn't explained quite enough. Yes, the story itself was quite vague and requires a bit of thought to fully comprehend (at least on my part). The movie was just as vague as vague, which I feel only brought it down. It is not a literary work of art; therefore it can't afford to remain so vague to its viewers, especially since it obviously wasn't a complete adaptation. It didn't take absolutely everything from the story; it threw its own plots and back-stories in there, so I feel that it should have explained things a bit better.

Even though they were both quite vague, I felt something deep and meaningful while reading the story that the movie couldn't give me.

#264 -- The Raven (2012)

Rating: 4 / 5
Director: James McTeigue

James McTeigue is a name I'd never heard before (not to mention a name that I can't even pronounce). Now I realize that he also directed Ninja Assassin, a movie I absolutely loved. And here is The Raven, a movie that I thought was beautifully made, wonderfully crafted, and incredibly interesting. Though I'd never known about him before, I praise him for the wonderful work that he does.

Every horror fan should be at least a little familiar with Edgar Allan Poe. I'll be the first to admit that I'm no Poe expert, but I know him, and I know that he created some of the most amazing stories ever written. And that's why I was so excited to see The Raven. It wasn't just based on one of Poe's stories, but it focused on a whole slew of them. Not to be mistaken with the 1963 movie of the same name, starring Boris Karloff, Vincent Price and Jack Nicholson (which was also based on Poe's story), it takes place after Edgar had had his run in the writing business. He couldn't get anything published, he was turned down in favor of his arch nemesis, he had no further inspiration for horror, and he just wasn't having any more success. That was, of course, until a serial killer emerged who killed his victims in ways described in Poe's stories. Poe himself was a suspect at first, but once he was ruled out, the police force enlisted him to help. He was the only one who could really gain an insight into the mind of the killer in order to stop any future murders. Poe and the police didn't have much luck to begin with, as the killer was always one step ahead of them. He was very crafty and cunning, and he knew his way around Poe's stories almost as well as Poe himself. When he kidnapped Poe's fiance, Emily, it really hit home, and he started to knuckle down and focus all of his energy on finding the murderer. The killer then started leaving clues with the corpses that would lead to Emily's whereabouts.

As I said, The Raven was a beautifully filmed movie. The set was absolutely beautiful, and it portrayed the era wonderfully. The set, the costumes, and the characters certainly seemed to belong there. John Cusack, who played the role of Edgar, did a fantastic job in portraying what seems to be a very sporadic personality. One moment, Poe was a crazy drunk; the next he was an upset failing writer with a bone to pick with his editor; and the next he was a romantic with a gentle heart. Cusack played all of these parts really well, and I really fell for the character. The other characters, as well, were portrayed wonderful. The part of the concerned investigator in need of saving the community from danger (Luke Evans), the part of the damsel in distress who was a stronger female than most of her counterparts (Alice Eve), and the part of the concerned albeit overprotective father with the notion that no one--especially a low-life horror writer--was good enough for his little girl (Brendan Gleeson). All of the characters were believable and real.

I was also surprised to see that the gore was quite impressive. These days, with so much technology available, it's no surprise that effects look good. But it's rare to find a horror movie with kills that are actually unique and inventive. This one utilized the elements of Poe's stories and crafted kills that were awesome and cringe-worthy at moments. The kills were also intelligent, which is even more of a rarity.

The only thing I didn't like about the movie was how stupid it made me feel. I consider myself a fan of Poe's work, but I never realized just how uneducated I am. I've read several of his stories, but it was still difficult for me to pinpoint them throughout the movie. However, it was definitely fun to try. The only ones I recognized before they were actually revealed were: The Tell-Tale Heart, The Cask of Amontillado, and The Masque of the Red Death. The others, though I have read them, seemed foreign. Still, it was interesting trying to figure everything out. Maybe this is my wake up call. Read more Poe!

In the end, I thought The Raven was definitely a light in the blackness that is Hollywood these days--especially when it comes to horror. In the era of a thousand remakes, it's nice to find a movie that's original, even though it does draw inspiration from other material. It doesn't copy, it doesn't re-boot or re-imagine. It is simply inspired, and it succeeded in being a story of its very own. I applaud the crew for creating something that wasn't Hollywood bullshit, and giving me a new release that I could actually enjoy.