Search results
Oct 12, 2023 · While the writing is fun and the source material about as good as it gets, it helps “The Fall of the House of Usher” greatly that Flanagan reunited so many of his familiar faces. Everyone here is good; some people are great, particularly Greenwood and McDonnell. The former leans into his natural ability to command attention in a room, while ...
Oct 12, 2023 · House of Usher true Flanagan fashion House of Usher make Jigsaw blush ’s stomach-turning degloving sequence financial settlements and bankruptcy filings. House of Usher loose adaptation of ...
- Miles Surrey
Oct 12, 2023 · Our Take: While The Fall Of The House Of Usher is named after one of Edgar Allan Poe’s most famous short stories, Flanagan bases the series on a number of Poe works, and makes overt references ...
- 3 min
- A glitzy, gory Poe modernization
- Mike Flanagan's The Fall of the House of Usher: New Images
- What's your favorite Mike Flanagan project?
- Verdict
By Amelia Emberwing
Updated: Oct 13, 2023 7:39 pm
Posted: Sep 23, 2023 12:00 am
The Fall of the House of Usher premieres on Netflix October 12. This spoiler-free review is part of our Fantastic Fest 2023 coverage.
The first thing you need to know about Mike Flanagan’s The Fall of the House of Usher is that it’s not the story you’re expecting. Don’t take that to mean that reverence for Edgar Allan Poe isn’t front and center, though: Every minute of this series worships Poe. But rather than directly translating the author’s tale of a man whose internal rot is symbolized by his crumbling abode, Flanagan uses the short story as what could almost be described as the wraparound segment in an anthology, with each chapter tackling another one of Poe’s fables while mummified in the wrappings of “The Fall of the House of Usher.” What comes out of that mummification is some of Flanagan’s best work.
Which isn’t to say that the show’s story comes off as disjointed. What Flanagan and his team of writers did wasn’t just develop individual odes to “The Masque of the Red Death,” “The Black Cat,” “The Tell-Tale Heart,” and more – they married them together to create what is one of the most impeccable shows in recent memory. What makes this House of Usher decidedly not an anthology is the way that the writers intricately weave the main players’ stories throughout each episode.
The Usher family is quite big. This is thanks largely to Roderick Usher’s (Bruce Greenwood), well, let’s just say “appetite.” Only some of the mothers of his children are seen, but the matriarchs that matter to the story are Roderick’s sister Madeline (Mary McDonnell), and much-younger wife Juno (Ruth Codd), who you’ll hear called “child bride” quite often. Much of our attention is focused on the children, who fall into one of two camps: Tamerlane (Samantha Sloyan) and Frederick (Henry Thomas) are the only two direct Usher heirs born in wedlock, while media mogul and sex addict Camille (Kate Siegel), game developer and drug addict Napoleon (Rahul Kohli), surgeon Victorine (T’Nia Miller), and screwup Prospero (Sauriyan Sapkota) are “The Bastards.” There's also a granddaughter in the mix: Lenore (Kyliegh Curran). Joining the Effed-up Family of the Year in their complicated and messy lives are Mark Hamill as Arthur Pym, Carla Gugino as Verna, and Carl Lumbly as Auguste Dupin.
The point of prattling off all of these names is twofold. First, they offer hints for those with a keen eye for Poe’s work. And second? Every single performance listed above – and even some that are saved for later – is perfect. Without an ounce of sarcasm, hyperbole, or figurative speech, they are all just… perfect.
Doctor Sleep
The Haunting of Hill House
Hush
Midnight Mass
Ouija: Origin of Evil
Other. Tell us in the comments.
Mike Flanagan returns to form in The Fall of the House of Usher, delivering a deliciously macabre and contemporary reimagining of the works of Edgar Allan Poe. Classic tales marry with modern commentary in a limited series that delivers at every turn. You’ll scream, you’ll cry, and once it’s over you might just start it all over from the beginning ...
Oct 10, 2023 · Mike Flanagan takes on the works of Edgar Allan Poe in The Fall of the House of Usher, his final spooky outing at Netflix.The eight-episode series, which premieres to the streamer on Thursday, October 12, follows the bleak, gory, and darkly comedic downfall of pharmaceutical magnate Roderick Usher (Bruce Greenwood) and his richly diverse (and richly despicable) family.
Sep 26, 2023 · Half creative writing project tied to a freshman seminar on Edgar Allan Poe, half horror-filled karmic catharsis, Flanagan’s The Fall of the House of Usher is a bluntly entertaining exercise. It ...
People also ask
Is the fall of the House of Usher a good book?
Is 'the fall of the House of Usher' based on a true story?
When does the fall of the House of Usher premiere on Netflix?
How does 'the fall of the House of Usher' compare to other Netflix shows?
Oct 11, 2023 · Mike Flanagan's latest Netflix horror series, 'The Fall Of The House Of Usher,' is a twisted family drama guided by the writings of Edgar Allan Poe.
