Vincent Price's Masque of the Red Death has been embraced by horror enthusiasts as the perfect film for the 2020 Halloween season. Despite being made over 55 years ago, the film's themes and story seem to resonate with modern audiences this year, particularly in the United States.
Masque of the Red Death is based on a short story originally written by Edgar Allan Poe in 1842. The story details how an unnamed land was ravaged by a great plague that became known as the Red Death, because those who caught it would suffer "profuse bleeding at the pores" and "scarlet stains upon the body and especially upon the face" before dying of blood loss. The prince of this land, Prospero, arrogantly dismissed the plague as a problem for the poor people to worry about and elected to seal himself and his followers and servants away in his castle, where they could continue to live a life of excess and nightly parties. The story famously concludes with a gory masquerade, as the Red Death comes for the prince and his followers, proving that wealth is no shield against mortality.
The film adaptation of Masque of the Red Death expands upon the original story, adding in a subplot from another Edgar Allan Poe short story, Hop-Frog. The chief villain of the film, Prince Prospero, played by Vincent Price, is revealed to be a Satanic priest as well as a prince, who delights in corrupting all that which is good and innocent. He particularly enjoyed turning loved ones against one another, and attempted to seduce a devout Christian peasant woman (Jane Asher) while tormenting her father and husband. The film had broadly the same ending as the book, with Prospero mistaking the Red Death as an envoy of the Devil and being quite stunned when his loyal service to the power of Evil does nothing to save him from Death itself. Many American horror fans have latched on to Masque of the Red Death's message in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting the classic movie's rise in recent popularity. Because of this overlap with current events, it's a somber—albeit eye-opening—choice that's arguably perfect for an unconventional Halloween season.
Certain parallels could easily be drawn between Prospero and a multitude of prominent leaders who have downplayed the dangers posed by the Coronavirus since it has been announced as a global pandemic, and even before. There are even some figures who have gone so far as to suggest that it is better that some people should die rather than the economy and various industries should suffer because people are reluctant to patronize certain businesses, like movie theaters and airlines. Movie theaters like Regal Cinemas have experienced mass closures due to COVID-19 concerns. Ironically, many of these same figures have since then been diagnosed as having COVID-19 or died from it, despite their earlier proclamations that it was a hoax or otherwise not worth worrying about.
Apart from the comparisons to reality, there is another reason the classic horror movie has proven popular in 2020. Many enjoy scary movies because they provide a distraction from real world issues, even as they simultaneously parallel them, and offer people a catharsis when the threat of the movie is over. Author G.K. Chesterton once said that scary stories were important to read "not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten."
Even as adults, it's become a necessity to take comfort from the idea that it is always darkest before the dawn and that eventually the real world nightmares must come to an end. This is why the themes of Masque of the Red Death still resonate with audiences today and why it's the perfect horror movie to watch during Halloween 2020 celebrations.