Frequently Bought Together
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Product details
|
Reviews
Amazon.co.uk Review
Vincent Price brings a theatrical flourish to his role in The Fall of the House of Usher. He plays Roderick Usher, a brooding nobleman haunted by the dry rot of madness in his family tree. This being an Edgar Allen Poe story, there's a history of family madness and melancholia, a premature burial and a sense of doom hanging over the gloomy, crumbling mansion. Roger Corman sold stingy AIP pictures on the concept by claiming "The house is the monster"--or so goes the oft-told story. True or not, Corman (with the help of his brilliant art director Daniel Haller and legendary cinematographer Floyd Crosby) creates an exaggerated sense of isolation and claustrophobia with the sunless forest and funereal fog that holds the house and its inhabitants prisoner in a land of the dead. It doesn't quite look real (some of the effects are downright phoney, notably the apocalyptic climax), and none of the costars can hold a candle to Price's elegant, haunted performance (often speaking in no more than a stage whisper), but it's a triumph of expressionism on a budget. Shot in rich, vivid colour and CinemaScope, from a literate script by genre master Richard Matheson, this is stylish Gothic horror in a melancholy key. It was such a success that Corman reunited his core group of collaborators for the follow-up The Pit and the Pendulum the very next year. Thus Corman's "Poe Cycle" was born. --Sean Axmaker
Special Features
- Original theatrical trailer
- Interactive menu screens and chapter selections
DVD Technical Information:
- Soundtrack: English: 5.1, German: Mono, French: Stereo,
- Subtitles: French, Dutch
- Hard of Hearing: English, German
- Colour
- Region Code: 2
- PAL
- Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
- Widescreen Version: 16:9
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
the best one in the series.,
By
This review is from: Fall Of The House Of Usher [DVD] (DVD)
I personally think all the Roger Corman adaptations of E A Poe's short stories are unique, and have a special atmosphere of their own, but "The Fall Of The House of Usher" is the creepiest. A young man sets off into the New England countryside to find out what has happened to his beautiful fiacee, Madeline. When he arrives at the gloomy ancestral home he becomes convinced that her eccentric brother, Roderick, is holding her captive. The truth, is ever, is not that simple though. Roderick appears to have become obsessed with his family's evil history, and believes that Madeline has inherited the Usher insanity. As such she should never marry and reproduce, the line must die out with them.This isn't exactly a cheerful film. Living in the mansion, which is literally crumbling to pieces, set in a stagnant swamp, would be enough to drive anyone peculiar! But it still packs a powerful eerie punch. I particularly liked the scene where Roderick shows his visitor the unsavoury family portraits, and relates their terrible history. And the final shot of the ruined house abandoned in the fog-choked swamp is pure E A Poe.
17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fall of the house of usher,
By A Customer
This review is from: Fall Of The House Of Usher [DVD] (DVD)
fantastic classic horror, if you are into decrepid 15th century manor house chillers where the plot drips decay and impendig dread with every creeking floor board, then this is for you...loved it in the 70's and still do.
16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Spooky House with Vincent Price superb as Usual!,
By E. A. Redfearn "eredfearn2" (Middlesbrough) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER) (VINE VOICE) (REAL NAME)
This review is from: Fall Of The House Of Usher [DVD] (DVD)
One of a series of Edgar Allan Poe stories filmed on low budgets by Roger Corman makes a welcome addition on DVD. Like Pit and the Pendulam made afterwards, this is an all time classic. Very atmospheric with some very good sets (similar to Pit and the Pendulam which isnt surprising!) good set pieces and a fine eerie music score. Mark Damon arrives at the spooky Usher Mansion which is crumbling with decay to visit his fiance Madeliene Usher (Myrna Fahey) only to be warned off by her brother Roderick (Vincent Price) that they cannot marry due to the Usher curse of evil. Attempting to persuade Madeliene to escape the house results in her death and she is buried within the family tomb. From this point, the atmosphere really intensifies and the climax is wonderful to watch. Overall, its a fine production, despite its dated look. The actors hold the film together though, and is worth adding to any collection. Picture detail is quite good, sound isnt too bad either. A good buy.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews |
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
