House of Usher (1960)

Country of Origin: USA
Year of Production: 1960
Running Times: 79 mins
Format: colour 35mm CinemaScope
Ratio: 2.35:1
Sound: mono

PRODUCTION
Production Companies: Alta Vista Productions / AIP
Executive Producer: James H. Nicholson
Producers: Samuel Z. Arkoff, Roger Corman

SCRIPT
Script: Richard Matheson
Story: Edgar Allan Poe

DIRECTION
Director: Roger Corman
Assistant Director: Jack Bohrer

PHOTOGRAPHY
Director of Photography: Floyd Crosby
Stills: Frank Tanner

EDITING AND POST-PRODUCTION
Editor: Anthony Carras

MUSIC
Music: Les Baxter
Music Editor: Eve Newman

SOUND
Sound: Phil Mitchell
Sound Editor: Al Bird

MAKE UP AND COSTUMES
Make Up: Fred B. Phillips
Wardrobe: Marjorie Corso

SPECIAL EFFECTS
Special Effects: Pat Dinga

VISUAL EFFECTS
Process Photography Director: Larry Butler
Photographic Effects: Ray Mercer

DESIGN AND SET CONSTRUCTION
Production Designer: Daniel Haller
Props: Dick Rubin
Paintings: Burt Schoenberg

CAST
Vincent Price (Roderick Usher)
Mark Damon (Philip Winthrop)
Myrna Fahey (Madeline Usher)
Harry Ellerbe (Bristol)
Eleanor LeFaber, Ruth Oklander, Géraldine Paulette (ghosts)

PLOT SUMMARY

Philip Winthrop arrives at the foreboding New England home of his fiancée Madeleine Usher and her family. He is told by her brother Roderick that Madeleine is sick and that Winthrop must leave. Refusing to leave, he learns that the Ushers live under a terrible curse which manifests itself as a mystery ailment that causes hyper-sensitivity of the senses. Madeleine dies of the illness and is buried family crypt. But Winthrop realises that Madeleine actually suffered from catalepsy and that she may have been buried alive...

The first and still one of the best of Corman's Poe adaptations, with Price on fine form, capably supported by an excellent supporting cast. Richard Matheson's script is sharp and witty, the production design quite belies the meagre budget and Corman's direction is good enough to give lie to the persistent claims that he was nothing but a hack, good only for cheap, disposable low budget nonsense.

Australia
DVD Distributor: Control Productions

USA
Theatrical Distributor: AIP
Video Distributor: Warner Home Video
Laserdisc Distributor: Image Entertainment (ID 2596 OR – double bill with Pit and the Pendulum)
DVD Distributor: MGM Home Entertainment (Midnite Movies 1002050)

Argentina
Rating: 16

Finland
Rating: K-16

Norway
Rating: 16

UK
Rating: 15

USA
Rating: unrated

AWARDS

1961
Laurel Awards, USA
Golden Laurel Sleeper of the Year - winner

1960
June
22: USA – theatrical release

December
5: Denmark – theatrical release

1961
September
1: Finland – theatrical release

1973
August
17: UK - television broadcast (on BBC1)

1977
September
10: UK - television broadcast (on BBC2)

1990
May
14: UK - television broadcast (on BBC2)

1991
December
7: UK - television broadcast (on BBC2)

1992
September
11: UK - television broadcast (on BBC2)

1994
March
30: USA - laserdisc release (Image Entertainment (ID 2596 OR – double bill with Pit and the Pendulum))

2001
June
5: USA - DVD release (MGM Home Entertainment (Midnite Movies 1002050))

I heard her first feeble movements in the coffin... we had put her living in the tomb!

The House of Usher is no more - and the place whereon it stood is as if - it had never been.

He buried her alive... to save his soul!

Edgar Allan Poe's demonic tale of The Ungodly... The Evil House of Usher

La caída de la casa Usher - Argentinian / Spanish title
La chute de la maison Usher - French title
Dom Usherów - Polish title
The Fall of the House of Usher - UK title
Gäst i skräckens hus - Swedish title
Kirous - Finnish title
The Mysterious House of Usher - working title
Ondskabens slot - Danish title
Usherien talo - Finnish title
Usherin talon häviö – Finnish television title
Die Verfluchten - West German title
Vieraana kauhujen talossa - Finnish title
I vivi e i morti - Italian title

FOOTAGE INCLUDED IN
Madhouse (1974)
Bug Buster (1998)

SEE ALSO
La chute de la maison Usher (1928)
Dr Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine (1965)
Elvira's Haunted Hills (2001)
The Fall of the House of Usher (1928)
The Fall of the House of Usher (1949)
The Fall of the House of Usher (1966)
The Fall of the House of Usher (1982)
The House of Usher (1988)
El hundimiento de la casa Usher (1983)
Vincent (1982)
Zánik domu Usheru (1981)

MAGAZINES

Daily Cinema no.8368 (10 October 1960) p.3 (UK)
review

Entertainment Weekly no.599 (8 June 2001) p.54 (USA)
review (by Michael Flaherty)

Film Daily vol.117 no.121 (23 June 1960) p.6 (USA)
review

Hollywood Reporter vol.160 no.37 (22 June 1960) p.3 (USA)
review

Kine Weekly no.2766 (6 October 1960) p.19 (UK)
review

The Listener vol.123 no.3164 (10 May 1990) p.35 (UK)
review

Monthly Film Bulletin vol.27 no.322 (November 1960) p.151 (UK)
credits, synopsis, review

Motion Picture Herald vol.219 no.13 (25 June 1960) p.749 (USA)
review

Perfect Vision vol.6 no.23 (October 1994) pp.144, 146 (USA)
review

Quarterly Review of Film and Video vol.17 no.3 (October 2000) pp.221-227 (USA)
article

Variety 29 June 1960 (USA)
credits, review

KEYWORDS

buried alive, crypts, dreams, fire, houses, madness, short story into film, skeletons