Mystery and Imagination (TV Series) The Fall of the House of Usher (1966) User Reviews

Mystery And Imagination: THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER {TV} (Kim Mills, 1966) ***

[Bunuel1976 · 7/10 · 27 October 2013]

This is one of just 8 episodes out of an original 24(!) that still exist today from this classy British TV series; it is also the fourth one from it that I am watching – after FRANKENSTEIN (1968), Dracula (1968; with Denholm Elliott in the title role), and THE CURSE OF THE MUMMY (1970). Denholm Elliott, here essaying with maniacal relish the role of the deranged protagonist Roderick Usher, is joined by the beautiful Susannah York as his equally disturbed and cataleptic sister Madeleine; on the other side of the coin we have David Buck (as Roderick's boyhood friend, who is curiously named Richard Beckett – as had been the main character in J. Sheridan LeFanu's "The Room In The Dragon Volant" – a TV adaptation of which was also made for "Mystery And Imagination" but is now believed lost!) and Mary Miller as the couple who inadvertently falls under the sickly spell of the house of Usher. The only other two characters who appear are the Ushers' bald-headed, mute butler and the clueless doctor attending to Madeleine's failing health. The brooding black-and-white photography and production design (by Assheton Gorton) add immeasurably to the atmosphere of dread (real and imagined) and decay (moral and architectural) – although the literate dialogue does make for a rather heavy-going if decidedly stylish whole. Incidentally, among the missing episodes of "Mystery And Imagination" is another Edgar Allan Poe adaptation: THE TELL-TALE HEART (1968)...

"I'd rather die on the gallows than go back"

[hwg1957-102-265704 · 6/10 · 22 July 2023]

A good adaptation of the Edgar Allan Poe story with fine performances by the cast. Denholm Elliott and Susannah York are perfect as the Ushers, both haunted by the past, by fear and guilt. Made on a TV budget the sets are fantastic( thanks to Assheton Gorton), you can believe the titular groaning house is just about to collapse, being full of decay and cobwebs. David Buck and Mary Miller are also good as the interlopers and Oliver MacGreevy as the servant Finn stalks effectively in the background. The opening is quite startling with hands tearing at the lid of a coffin, from the inside! There is a sustained atmosphere of dread throughout, kudos going to the story adaptation by David Campton and the assured direction by Kim Mills. Only 50 minutes long but worth a watch if you like a creepy story.