House of Usher (1960)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

Roger Corman

Writers:

Richard Matheson (writer)
Edgar Allan Poe (story)

Release Date:

22 June 1960 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Edgar Allan Poe's overwhelming tale of EVIL & TORMENT

Plot:

After a long journey, Philip arrives at the Usher mansion seeking his loved one, Madeline. Upon arriving...

Plot Keywords:

Engagement | Tense | Ghost | Stylized | Heredity

Awards:

2 wins

US TV Schedule:

Sun. Oct. 19

1:30 PM

TCM

Cast

Vincent Price	...	Roderick Usher
Mark Damon	...	Philip Winthrop
Myrna Fahey	...	Madeline Usher
Harry Ellerbe	...	Bristol
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Eleanor LeFaber	...	Ghost
Ruth Oklander	...	Ghost
Géraldine Paulette	...	Ghost

Also Known As:

The Fall of the House of Usher (UK) (USA)
The Mysterious House of Usher (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

79 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Norway:(Banned) (1960 - 1974) | Netherlands:16 (DVD rating) | UK:15 | Argentina:16 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 (1974) | USA:Unrated | Australia:PG | UK:X (original rating) | Canada:PG

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Company:

Alta Vista Productions

Trivia:

This film was one of the early examples of American International Pictures' occasional practice of distributing a feature under two different titles. In some areas the main title, and the ad campaign, read "The Fall of the House of Usher." In other areas, the main title, and the ad campaign, read simply "House of Usher." This also carried over to the 16mm U.S. television syndication prints in which one, or the other title, would appear on the print itself.

Goofs:

Continuity: Early in the film, Winthrop leans with his hand on the banister, and the banister swings out precariously, nearly sending him to the floor below. When he pulls the banister back into place, he examines what appears to be sawdust on the top of it, in a very thick layer and showing no signs of disturbance from the near-fall or from his hand.

Quotes:

Roderick Usher: Madeline and I are like figures of fine glass. The slightest touch and we may shatter. Both of us suffer from a morbid acuteness of the senses. Mine is the worst for having existed the longer, but both of us are afflicted with it. Any sort of food more exotic then the most pallid mash is unendurable to my taste buds...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Schlock! The Secret History of American Movies (2001)

A Masterpiece of Gothic Horror Cinema

Roger Corman's brilliant adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe's chilling tale is one of the greatest achievements in cinematic horror. It's hard to pick one of Corman's Poe adaptations as the best, but this, the first, might be it.

The movie is fairly faithful to the story, but extremely faithful to the tone of Poe's writing. No one but the team of Corman and writer Richard Matheson could pull it off like this. Poe's deranged sense of dread and sardonic humor are all here, in every shot.

Vincent Price turns in one of his finest performances as Roderick Usher, a man who is glad that he and his sister, Madeline (the wonderful Myrna Fahey) are the last of their bloodline, as he believes the family is doomed to all eventually go mad. He also suffers from hyper-sensitivity, and must have quiet, dim light, soft clothing and bland food, otherwise he suffers extreme pain. Whether this is a physical or psychological anomaly is never confirmed.

Madeline's fiance Philip (Mark Damon) comes to the house to claim Madeline as his wife. Roderick forbids it, believing he and his sister should die together, thus ending the Usher line of insanity. But it may be too late, as Madeline is already showing signs of flipping out, and Roderick has some pretty twisted ideas of how to stop that from happening.

The movie leads up to a spine-tingling finale that's as intense and scary a climax as anything I've seen. HOUSE OF USHER is a great horror movie, and perhaps the most faithful adaptation of Poe, both in content and style, ever filmed.