The House of Usher (1960)

Roger Corman and Vincent Price do Poe

By Lawrance  Aug 7, 2001

Based on Edgar Allen Poe's most famous and successful short story, "The Fall of the House of Usher" uses a great script by Richard Matheson to inspire director Roger Corman and star Vincent Price to reach new heights. This 1960 film begins with young... Philip Wintrhop (Mark Damon) on his way to visit his fiancee, Madeline Usher (Myrna Fahey) at the ancient and sinister house where she lives with her brother Roderick (Price). The Freudian overtones of this "love triangle" are palatable. Roderick refuses to let the couple wed because of the tainted Usher blood, which represents a family history of murderers and madmen. Philip vows to save Madeline, but his beloved suddenly dies and is quickly entombed in the family crypt. That is when he learns Madeline suffered from fits of catalepsy and might not be dead, just entombed alive..."The Fall of the House of Usher" is one of those films where inspiration grips the cast and crew, most of whom perform beyond their past records. Director Corman love of the moving camera becomes transcendent in the hands of cameraman Floyd Cosby, art director Daniel Haller created an ornate and atmospheric set from Universal Studio leftovers, and even the paintings of the Usher ancestors by Burt Shoenberg are memorable. Roderick is the role that catapulted Vincent Price into a full-fledged horror star, but unfortunately the rest of the cast are mediocre at best. I would rate "The Pit and the Pendulum," the next Corman/Price/AIP effort to be a bit superior to this film, but in both cases the standout effort is how Richard Matheson turns problematic short stories by Poe into first rate scripts. Read more Less