Directed by:
Roger CormanScreenplay:
Richard MathesonCinematography:
Floyd CrosbyComposer:
Les BaxterVOD (3)
Plots(1)
Hopeful Phillip (Mark Damon) rides up to the crumbling Usher estate to pick up his betrothed, Madeline (Myrna Fahey), and is coldly received by her brother, Roderick (Vincent Price). A most unwilling host, Roderick suffers from "morbid acuteness of the senses" and is convinced their family lineage--and the very house itself--is cursed by the evil deeds of their forebears. He is sworn to do everything in his power to keep his sister from leaving with Phillip--even burying her alive--to stop her from continuing their damned lineage. (official distributor synopsis)
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Reviews (4)
A traditionally charismatic Vincent Price with his unmistakable, delicious delivery. Beautiful, intimate stylization. Unlike other Corman movies, this one even follows the book it’s based on. Which, paradoxically, was a huge mistake. This excellent tale by Poe just doesn’t have what it takes to fill the entire eighty-minute running time. And so the story-making places are filled with Philip Winthrop endlessly roaming the Usher’s family home. He walks and walks, then talks with Roderick or some butler and then he walks and walks again, and if the movie hadn’t ended, he would still be walking to this day...
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One of Roger Corman’s best horror films, but nothing to write home about. It looks beautiful, but there’s not much happening, unfortunately. Thumbs certainly up anyway. 75 %
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House of Usher is the sibling of the previous year’s The Pit and the Pendulum, which relied on a very similar premise but contained a bit more mystery and suspense, and its ending was more escalated. But the set designs, costumes and actors are just as excellent here.
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I love the atmosphere of huge and gloomy houses, where a dark secret could be hiding behind every door. So when the unsuspecting Philip arrived at the House of Usher and the soft voice of Vincent Price as Roderick spoke for the first time, I purred with delight. When the master of the house grandly announced for the second time that the newcomer had no idea what was happening in the house, I glanced at my watch and thought it was about time that the supposedly terrifying "something" could show itself already. And yet as the story progressed solely through everyday plot twists followed by verbose dialogues, I realized that not every suspenseful story can be made into a gripping film. At least a well-graduated ending can offer breathtaking moments like the "hugely suspenseful scene full of evil faces in the paintings." It's not exactly disappointing, but it's difficult to find a pronounced surprise in the House of Usher.
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Gallery (64)
Photo © American International Pictures (AIP)
![House of Usher - Photos](http://image.pmgstatic.com/cache/resized/w663/files/images/film/photos/162/404/162404858_00cb26.jpg)
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