The Fall of the House of Usher | |
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Genre | |
Created by | Mike Flanagan |
Based on | "The Fall of the House of Usher" and other works by Edgar Allan Poe |
Directed by |
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Starring |
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Composer | The Newton Brothers |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of episodes | 8 |
Production | |
Executive producers |
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Producers |
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Production locations | |
Cinematography | Michael Fimognari |
Editor | Brett Bachman |
Camera setup | Single-camera |
Running time | 57–77 minutes |
Production company | Intrepid Pictures |
Release | |
Original network | Netflix |
Original release | October 12, 2023 |
The Fall of the House of Usher is an American gothic horror drama television miniseries created by Mike Flanagan. All eight episodes were released on Netflix on October 12, 2023, each directed by either Flanagan or Michael Fimognari, the latter also acting as cinematographer for the entire series.
Loosely based on various works by 19th century author Edgar Allan Poe (most prominently the eponymous 1840 short story), the series adapts otherwise-unrelated stories and characters by Poe into a single nonlinear narrative set from 1953 to 2023, and recounts both the rise to power of Roderick Usher, the powerful CEO of a corrupt pharmaceutical company, and the events leading to the deaths of all six of his children. It stars an ensemble cast led by Carla Gugino as a mysterious woman plaguing the Ushers, and Bruce Greenwood as an elderly Roderick.
The first two episodes of The Fall of the House of Usher premiered at Fantastic Fest in September 2023 before the Netflix release the following month, being viewed over 13 million times in its first two weeks. It was met with positive reviews, with critics praising its production values, directing, and performances (in particular from Gugino, Greenwood and Mark Hamill), although they were divided on its narrative, notably in relation to the source materials.
The story of The Fall of the House of Usher starts in 2023, right after Roderick Usher the wealthy and powerful CEO of corrupt pharmaceutical company Fortunato Pharmaceuticals, lost all six of his children — from oldest to youngest: Frederick, Tamerlane (the only two not born from different mothers or outside marriage), Victorine, Camille, Napoleon and Prospero — within the span of two weeks. The evening after the final funeral for his children, Roderick invites C. Auguste Dupin, an Assistant United States Attorney who dedicated his career to exposing Fortunato Pharmaceuticals' corruption, to Roderick's childhood home, where he tells Dupin the true story of his family and progressively unveils the Ushers' darkest secrets.
The series follows two timelines in addition to the conversation between Roderick and Dupin, depicted onscreen when told by Roderick: the first, taking place from 1953 to 1980, recounts Roderick and his twin sister Madeline's youth and progressive rise to power, while the second follows all of the Ushers during the two weeks leading up to the discussion, revealing the truth behind the deaths of Roderick's children.
While the first episode's title consists of a phrase from the first line of Poe's poem "The Raven", the last episode bears the poem's title. The other episodes have the same titles as the following short stories by Poe: "The Masque of the Red Death", "The Murders in the Rue Morgue", "The Black Cat", "The Tell-Tale Heart", "The Gold-Bug", and "The Pit and the Pendulum".
No. | Title | Directed by | Teleplay by | Original release date | |
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1 | "A Midnight Dreary" | Mike Flanagan | Mike Flanagan | October 12, 2023 | |
Roderick Usher, the corrupt CEO of Fortunato Pharmaceuticals, has lost all six of his children—heir Frederick, entrepreneur Tamerlane, surgeon Victorine, gaming mogul Napoleon (Leo), PR head Camille, and socialite Prospero (Perry)—in a span of two weeks. He attends the funeral of his oldest three (the last ones to die), accompanied by his sister and Fortunato COO Madeline, his wife Juno, his granddaughter and Frederick's daughter Lenore, and his lawyer Arthur Pym. Roderick sees the ghosts of his dead children and collapses, muttering, "It's time." He invites his nemesis, assistant US Attorney C. Auguste Dupin, to his childhood home to confess his crimes and reveal the causes of his children's deaths. In 1962, Roderick and Madeline's mother, Eliza, died but resurrects and kills her abusive former employer, Fortunato CEO William Longfellow, their biological father. In the present, a trial begins to hold the Usher family responsible for the deaths of thousands of people who were taking Fortunato's drug Ligadone and for causing the opioid epidemic. Dupin mentions an informant from within the family; Roderick and Madeline force the children to sign non-disclosure agreements. Roderick recounts a fateful encounter with a mysterious woman named Verna, who foretold a life-altering change for the siblings during New Year's Eve 1979. | |||||
2 | "The Masque of the Red Death" | Mike Flanagan | Emmy Grinwis and Mike Flanagan | October 12, 2023 | |
In 1979, Dupin investigates mysterious grave exhumations linked to a drug trial. The younger Roderick, living with Madeline, his first wife Annabel Lee, and young children Frederick and Tamerlane, fails a pitch of Ligadone to Fortunato's CEO, Rufus Griswold, who succeeded Longfellow. In the present, Perry, Frederick, and Pym must deal with environmental concerns involving their properties. When Frederick insults Perry, Perry decides to host a masquerade-themed party at one of the condemned properties to prove his worth, using water from the facility's tanks to signal an orgy. Roderick, suffering from CADASIL, pins hope on Victorine's experimental heart mesh, while Madeline seeks to create AI using Lenore's memories. Perry invites Frederick's frustrated wife, Morella, to his party, planning to seduce her as revenge. Verna forewarns Perry of the consequences, telling the staff and Morella to flee, though Morella does not listen. The sprinklers' spray turns out to be corrosive chemical waste, the consequence being death for all the guests, including Perry. Verna gives Perry a kiss as he dies. | |||||
3 | "Murder in the Rue Morgue" | Michael Fimognari | Justina Ireland and Mike Flanagan | October 12, 2023 | |
In a flashback, Griswold takes credit for Ligadone. In the present, Pym identifies Perry's body and a badly-burned Morella, the only survivor. Roderick confesses to Dupin that he hid the corrosive waste in those tanks to avoid federal regulations; Frederick's negligence in removing those properties resulted in Perry's death, which could have been prevented. Camille discovers that Victorine's illegal heart mesh tests on animals were unsuccessful. Verna poses as the first human test subject for Victorine, who books the surgery without informing her girlfriend and co-worker Dr. Ali Ruiz. Verna also poses as an escort for Tamerlane's husband, Bill, to fulfill Tamerlane's cuckold fetish. Leo believes he accidentally killed Pluto, the black cat of his partner Julius. Camille encounters Verna at Victorine's lab, who asks why she hates her sister before stating that Camille and Victorine are in fact similar. One of the tested chimpanzees mauls Camille to death. | |||||
4 | "The Black Cat" | Michael Fimognari | Mat Johnson and Mike Flanagan | October 12, 2023 | |
In a flashback, Roderick meets Dupin during the drug trial investigation; Dupin shows Roderick documents with his signature, which Fortunato forged. In the present, Leo adopts a black cat resembling Pluto from Verna to deceive Julius. Camille's death triggers a family crisis as the family no longer has a PR leader. Roderick, Madeline, and Pym identify Verna as the culprit and Madeline recalls meeting her in 1980. Pym gives Frederick the locked burner phone Perry gave to Morella for the party; the phone and the absence of Morella's wedding ring causes Frederick to become paranoid that Morella was cheating on him. In an attempt to cope, he asks Leo for drugs. Roderick confides in Madeline about his diagnosis, similar to their mother's. The new Pluto torments Leo amid Julius' concern over Leo's excessive drug use due to his grief over his siblings' deaths. Leo brings Verna to take back the cat and accidentally gouges Pluto's eye, with Verna showing the same injuries. Julius finds Leo trashing their apartment to find Pluto, all of it being Leo's hallucinations. Leo eventually falls to his death from the balcony as the real Pluto reappears. | |||||
5 | "The Tell-Tale Heart" | Mike Flanagan | Dani Parker | October 12, 2023 | |
Roderick, Madeline, and Annabel Lee join forces with Dupin to uncover Fortunato's hidden files. The surviving Usher children devolve into jealousy over their father's favoritism. Frederick has the hospital discharge Morella into his care. Victorine admits that she forged Ali's signature to hurry Verna's surgery. Dupin admits he lied about the informant's existence to pit the family against each other. After an argument, Tamerlane and Bill break up. Roderick tells Victorine he needs her mesh for his condition. Victorine, who keeps hearing a ticking noise, asks if he can hear it too. Her memory of the argument with Ali comes back: After Ali said she was going to reveal what the Usher family had been doing during testing, Victorine threw a bookend at her head, killing Ali. Desperate, she used the heart mesh on Ali and was driven to madness by the mesh's chirping. Victorine commits suicide in front of her father. | |||||
6 | "Goldbug" | Mike Flanagan | Rebecca Leigh Klingel and Mike Flanagan | October 12, 2023 | |
In a flashback, Roderick and Dupin seek Fortunato files to expose Griswold. In the present, Tamerlane deals with hallucinations from prolonged insomnia and the fallout from her breakup with Bill as she prepares to launch her wellness package Goldbug. Madeline tries to convince Roderick that Verna is a threat after his children's mounting death count, trying to remind him of their deal with Verna back in 1980, though Roderick is in denial. Madeline pushes her scientists to develop an AI for consciousness mapping. Pym uncovers Verna's links to prominent families impossibly dating back hundreds of years. Morella begins speaking, leading Frederick to drug her back into silence, still believing she had been unfaithful. Lenore grows concerned when her father does not bring specialists for her mother as he had promised. At Goldbug's launch, Tamerlane is rattled by hallucinations of Verna and a sex tape of her, Bill, and an escort, and accidentally injures Juno. Madeline spots Verna, who turns to dust before her eyes. At home, Verna taunts Tamerlane through mirrors, which she smashes. Finally, the shards of glass impale and kill her. | |||||
7 | "The Pit and the Pendulum" | Michael Fimognari | Jamie Flanagan and Mike Flanagan | October 12, 2023 | |
In 1979, Dupin and Roderick rehearse for the court hearing to take down Fortunato. In the present, Madeline tries to convince Pym to elect her as CEO after Roderick is pushed out; she wishes to pivot Fortunato to a tech company focusing on artificial immortality. Frederick has been busy giving Morella paralytics and torturing her. In 1979, Roderick betrays Dupin at the hearing, saving Fortunato and earning the company's gratitude. Shocked and disappointed, Annabel Lee leaves him. In the present, Madeline talks to Verna about the deal they made on New Year's of 1980. Roderick refuses Juno's request to get off Ligodone, and admits he only married her because he was fascinated by her body's affinity for the drug; she leaves him. Frederick enters the building where Perry died prior to it being bulldozed. He snorts his cocaine and collapses; Verna arrives and reveals that she pushed him to add the paralytic to the cocaine. As the demolition begins, Verna reveals that she could've chosen another method of death, but chose this because of his decision to torture Morella. The collapsing infrastructure forms a sharp pendulum that bisects Frederick. Lenore discovers that her father has been torturing her mother and calls the police. Pym pressures Lenore to change her statement, but she refuses. Madeline thinks she can save herself if Roderick dies and convinces him to overdose on Ligodone to save them all. Verna, however, does not allow him to die, refusing to make it that easy for them. | |||||
8 | "The Raven" | Michael Fimognari | Mike Flanagan and Kiele Sanchez | October 12, 2023 | |
At a 1980 New Year's Eve party, Madeline serves Rufus amontillado and lures him to the basement, where she and Roderick chain him to a recess and wall him in. They plan to frame him and have Roderick replace him on the board. The Ushers establish an alibi at Verna's bar and make a deal with her for wealth and power; in exchange, the Usher bloodline will all die right before Roderick and Madeline. In the present, Verna offers Pym a deal for immunity for his crimes, but Pym refuses. Verna regrets having to kill the innocent Lenore and tells her that her mother will recover and form a beneficent foundation in her name, before granting her a peaceful death. Roderick admits to Dupin that Lenore's earlier texts were the word "NEVERMORE" from the AI bot of Lenore. Verna instructs Roderick to call Dupin, but before doing so, Roderick invites Madeline to the old house and kills her. At the end of his confession, a resurrected, demon-like Madeline appears and strangles Roderick, causing the house to collapse. Juno inherits and dissolves Fortunato, creating a drug rehab foundation with the funds. Pym is arrested and Dupin retires. Verna leaves a token on each Usher grave while reciting Poe's "Spirits of the Dead", with the raven flying away over their graves. |
In October 2021, Netflix announced that Mike Flanagan was developing a new miniseries based on "The Fall of the House of Usher" and other works by Edgar Allan Poe.[4] On December 9, 2021, Frank Langella, Carla Gugino, Mary McDonnell, Carl Lumbly, and Mark Hamill were cast.[3] Samantha Sloyan, Rahul Kohli, Henry Thomas, T'Nia Miller, Kate Siegel, Sauriyan Sapkota, Zach Gilford, Katie Parker, Michael Trucco, Malcolm Goodwin, Crystal Balint, Kyleigh Curran, Paola Nuñez, Aya Furukawa, Matt Biedel, Daniel Jun, Ruth Codd, Robert Longstreet, Annabeth Gish, and Igby Rigney were cast the next day.[5][6]
In April 2022, Langella was fired from the series after a misconduct investigation, with his role set to be recast.[7] By the end of the month, Bruce Greenwood was cast to replace Langella.[8]
Filming began on January 31, 2022, in Vancouver, Canada, and wrapped on July 9, 2022.[9][10][11]
The first two episodes debuted at Fantastic Fest in September 2023,[12][13] as well as a pre-screening at Flanagan's alma mater, Towson University. The series was released on Netflix on October 12, 2023.[14]
The Fall of the House of Usher was viewed 6 million times on its debut week, making it the most-watched English-language fiction program on Netflix that week, and third most-watched overall after the French-language series Lupin and the documentary series Beckham.[15] The next week, it was the second most-watched series on Netflix with 7.9 million views.[16]
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 90% of 99 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.9/10. The website's consensus reads: "Presenting vintage Poe stories filtered through Mike Flanagan's deliciously dark lens, The Fall of the House of Usher will get a rise out of horror fans."[17] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the show a score of 73 out of 100, based on 32 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[18] Its cast, production values, directing and editing were singled out, with the performances of Carla Gugino, Bruce Greenwood, and Mark Hamill being singled out by a number of critics.[19][1][20][21]
Ben Travers of IndieWire gave the series a B- and wrote, "As the absurdly wealthy destroy our only planet, our innocent pleasures, and our very lives, even a blunt, overextended allegory can deliver visceral satisfactions. Arguing billionaires should not exist has rarely felt so Biblical."[22] Reviewing the series for San Francisco Chronicle, G. Allen Johnson gave a rating of 3/4 and said, "The tonal difference between the books and the series? The makers of The Fall of the House of Usher are having way more fun."[23]
Olly Dyche of MovieWeb stated: "The series oozes with the [Flanagan]'s usual style of creepy imagery, effective jump scares, ample tension, and complex emotions. But perhaps what The Fall of the House of Usher does better than most horror series is its focus on character drama, and the deeply engaging mystery that will constantly ask more questions than it answers until the very end. The performances, as with Flanagan's usual projects, are all flawless, with Carla Gugino stealing the show."[21] Perri Nemiroff of Collider stated that The Fall of the House of Usher was "Another masterful series from Mike Flanagan", "A true dream for fans of Edgar Allan Poe's work" and "an expertly crafted combination of Poe-penned stories brought to screen via a slew of deliciously diabolical performances."[24] Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com stated that the series "can sometimes feel simultaneously overcrowded in its cramming in of various sources and narratively thin at the same time, but Mike Flanagan's craft and his assemblage of returning performers keep this pendulum swinging through eight grisly episodes."[20]
While other aspects were widely praised, the narrative received some criticism: Ajan Romano of Vox found it to be unable to blend its various source materials smoothly, and to lack "the most central element of all Poe’s works: Passion. The characters of Usher may be dying like they're in a gothic horror, but they're not living like it [...] There’s nothing of Poe's lingering mysteries, the giant unresolved questions of internal motivations and dreamlike logic that hang over his stories and their subjects".[1] Ed Power of The Telegraph called it "an over-stuffed and under-cooked horror bore", stating that "the characters are too bluntly drawn to elicit any of the sympathy we felt for the tragically awful Roys. The opiate plot feels tacked on, if not opportunistic. Nor does it help that the story is gory rather than frightening."[19]
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