A few thoughts: Easily my pick for the best-looking Corman/Poe film adaptation, and quite possibly the best performance Price gave in the whole bunch as well. A dark and gloomy, yet bright and well-lit film, fully capturing the vibrancy of colors (red in particular, of course, really pops in this one) while still blending in a gloomier look when the story requires it. Watching Price play such a smug and overly evil man is always entertaining, and this Devil worshipping egotistical madman is definitely a shining role in his career. While many of the supporting characters take up a decent amount of screen time and never feel fully fleshed out, the entire look and atmosphere more than make up for any flaws or weak spots it maybe have in the script and charzcterization, with these scenes ultimately serving as padding and even an almost unnecessary but slightly interesting juxtaposition (I already hate myself for using that word) with the villainous castle dwellers/aristocrats. Underrated, beautiful, and very cool.
Fans of Vincent Price, gothic horror, or Corman's higher brow entertainment. I consider it pretty essentially '60s horror.
My grade: B+
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