The black facts on Red Death
Thursday, October 17, 2013
Roger Corman's "Masque of the Red Death" proved to be a devilishly delightful foray into atmospheric costume drama horror, circa 1964. Fascinatingly, the film is chock full of symbolism, motifs and subtexts that speak to the intelligence of its original author and the filmmakers who adapted Poe's tale. Here's what we learned based on last evening's discussion:
THIS FILM IS REPLETE WITH SYMBOLISM AND MOTIFS. CAN YOU
CITE ANY EXAMPLES?
·
Man’s obsession with sex and death, as
exemplified by Prospero’s affection for Juliana and Francesca, and his
determination to keep the Red Death plague outside his castle walls
·
The color red, which also represents sex and
death in the form of:
o the
two redheaded women
o the
white rose turned red (innocence, beauty and purity turned to dark passion)
o the
last of the suite of colored rooms, this one black but lit with a rich red
light
o the
incarnation of the Red Death plague itself in the form of a mysterious figure
clad in crimson
· Man’s
bestiality, hedonistic tendencies and animal instincts: consider the mentions
of dogs and hounds; the man in the ape suit; Prospero commanding subjects to
behave like a pig, worm, or other creature; the falcon that kills another bird.
· Touching
as an act of desecration: the white rose that is turned red; the menacing of
the prone Juliana by weapons of torture; the bloody hands of the sick, terminal
party guests clutching out for Prospero at the end during the dance of death
sequence; the poisoned dagger sequence; the satanic cross branding; the falcon’s
attack on Juliana
· Freudian
symbolism, as exemplified by the running of Francesca down an eerie corridor.
In an interview, Corman said: The girl “must run down that corridor!” Corman
explained with a laugh. ‘That is very symbolic and extremely important. To me,
the corridor is, simply, a vagina. You must set up two things in the movement
down the corridor; I think it is a child’s approach to sex, in which he knows
there is something great and wonderful out there but that child has also been
told by the parents, ‘That’s bad—don’t do that!’ So to recreate that
feeling—because I think the sense of horror does have elements of sexuality
within it—you go down the corridor, and the audience must be saying to the
person—identifying with the person—‘Don’t take another step. Get out of there
right now! Don’t open that door! At the same time, the audience must be saying,
‘Open the door. We must see what is behind that door!’ If you set that sequence
up correctly, it never fails to generate an emotional response.”
· Dichotomy—the
contrasts between Francesca, symbolizing good, and Prospero evil; and vice
versus virtue.
·
The ultimate theme of the film is not good vs.
evil, however; it’s that death plays no favorites between the two—by the film’s
conclusion, only six random survivors are left, and good and evil characters
alike have perished.
HOW IS THIS FILM DIFFERENT OR SIMILAR TO OTHER OUTINGS IN
THE CORMAN/POE CYCLE OF 8 FILMS?
·
All explore the repression of sexuality, the
disintegration of personality, and the entry of an innocent character into a
realm of decay and corruption, from which the innocent prevails.
·
Most include some eerie dream sequence.
·
It is the first to explore Satanism, and also
one of the very first Hollywood films to dabble in this topic, preceded earlier
by Val Lewton’s “The Black Cat,” and “The 7th Victim”.
WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES TO ADAPTING A POE STORY TO
CINEMA?
·
Poe’s tales are often introspective, moody,
atmospheric stories that relay the inner thoughts and emotions of a character
and lack action, realistic characters and dialogue.
·
They’re also often very short, lacking enough
back story, character development and subplots to sustain a 90-minute or longer
film.
·
One advantage to adapting Poe, however, which
also attracted Corman: they are in the public domain and free to tinker with.
DOES THIS FILM REMIND YOU OF ANY OTHER MOVIES OR WORKS OF
LITERATURE?
·
Bergman’s The Seventh Seal, which also features
a dance of death and a mysterious figure of death that stalks the characters.
·
Poe’s short story “Hop-Frog,” a revenge tale
about a dwarf that Corman chose to weave into this tale to pad out the story.
·
Witchfinder General, also starring Price,
featuring an utterly evil, merciless torturer who has women burned at the stake
for supposed witchcraft
·
The story “Torture of Hope” by Auguste Villiers
de I’Isle-Adam, from which a sub-plot in Masque is taken.
OTHER FILMS IN THE POE CYCLE DIRECTED BY ROGER CORMAN
·
Fall of the House of Usher
·
The Pit and the Pendulum
·
The Premature Burial
·
Tales of Terror
·
The Raven
·
The Haunted Palace
·
The Tomb of Ligeia