Horror story maestro Mike Flanagan returned this Halloween with his latest chilling mini-series, “The Fall of the House of Usher.“ With his signature blend of atmospheric storytelling and psychological terror, Flanagan delves into the haunting tale of the Usher family, unraveling their dark secrets and unleashing a wave of bone-chilling suspense. Following his masterpieces like “Haunting of the Hill House,” he once again tried to captivate audiences with this series, yet couldn’t quite reach the same level of success.
The series “The Fall of the House of Usher” is named and inspired by the stories of Edgar Allen Poe, and it skillfully incorporates elements of Poe’s gothic horror into a modern setting. The series revolves around the affluent Usher family, who control the Fortunato Pharmaceuticals. The story starts with Roderick Usher, the head of the family, calling his former friend and now rival, assistant U.S. attorney C. Auguste Dupin, into his childhood home to confess his crimes. He talks about his terminal disease, “CADASIL,” and reveals that he knows how all six of his children died.
Roderick Usher and Madeline Usher are siblings who are illegitimate children of the owner of Fortunato Pharmaceuticals. After much hardship and their mother’s death, they both worked for the Fortunato Company. They were friends with Dupin at the time, and with Madeline’s vile plan, they betrayed him and committed a crime that changed their entire fate.
On New Year’s Eve 1979, they murdered Fortunato CEO Rufus Griswold, and while escaping, they met a mysterious bartender named Verna. Verna made them an offer that would alter the course of their entire lives. Intrigued by Verna’s request, Roderick and Madeline, desperate for a better life, decided to take the risk, knowing that this decision would lead them down a dark, twisted path.
Throughout the evening, Roderick envisions his dead children in the miserable form in which they died and haunts him with their ghostly presence. Dupin also hears banging noises, which Roderick explains are Madeleines. As the night wore on, Roderick’s sanity began to unravel, and he found himself tormented by guilt and remorse. The weight of his actions became unbearable, consuming his every thought and driving him further into the depths of despair. At the end of the series, the whole plot is revealed and embraces the ending of Poe’s original story, “The Fall of the House of Usher.”
The entire plot of this series contains many parts of Poe’s writings, such as “The Raven,” “The Cask of Amontillado,” and “The Premature Burial.” Tell,-Tale Heart,” The Murders in the Rue Morgue.” Flanagan drew character names from various stories and took inspiration from Poe’s works for some of the endings. Roderick’s six children died in other tragic and mysterious circumstances, mirroring the dark and macabre ends in Poe’s literature. The youngest son, Perry’s death by raining acid, is based on the story “The Masque of the Red Death,” in which a party’s guests die of a bleeding disease. Victorine’s death by stabbing her own heart is inspired by the story “The Tell-Tale Heart,” and the eldest child, Frederick’s death by swinging blade, is inspired by “The Pit and the Pendulum.” Each of his children lived an unusual and unsettling life, and their deaths reflect the psychological torment and eerie atmosphere in Poe’s stories.
When we compare the story to Flanagan’s previous works, it is pretty average. The idea of weaving Poe’s themes and elements into the narrative is quite intriguing, but the execution needs to be revised in creativity and complexity.
The story failed to maintain suspense throughout, and even for those who had not read Poe’s stories, the deaths and patterns became pretty predictable after one or two episodes.
When it comes to the characters, one of the things that turned me off was the character Verna. The character is based on Poe’s narrative poem “The Raven,” the Verna is an anagram of the word raven. Although the character’s role was clear, it was not revealed who Verna was or her motive. She appeared to be a supernatural being punishing the Usher siblings for their crimes, but the reason was never explained. Annabel Lee, Roderick Usher’s first wife, was also briefly shown in the series. In an episode, she was depicted dead, but it was unknown how she died- who killed her, or what happened to her. Aside from that, the other characters were reasonably well-developed and constructed. However, the deaths appeared to be hasty.
Flanagan, as usual, has done an excellent job directing this series by incorporating the central theme of Edgar Allen Poe’s literature into the stories, creating a haunting atmosphere, and exploring the depths of human guilt and punishment. Using symbolism and eerie visuals added an extra layer of suspense to the storyline, making it fun to watch. The production value was also top-notch, with dark set designs and seamless special effects that enhanced the viewing experience. Flanagan has the same cast that reappears in every series in different forms. The children’s characters were well played, and throughout the series, we see Carla Gugino (Verna), Bruce Greenwood (Roderick Usher), Mary McDonnell (Madeline Usher), and Mark Hamill (Arthur Pym, the lawyer of Roderick Usher) play their roles very well and deliver exceptional performances.
Overall, the series was an excellent attempt to blend the dark themes of Poe’s stories into a series. However, it couldn’t capture the depth, complexity, and psychological nuances in Poe’s original works. By attempting to adapt too many stories, they over complicated the situation and could not capture the true essence of each story.
Flanagan’s previous series, “Hunting of the Hill House,” “Hunting of Bly Manor,” and “Midnight Mass” were simple but engaging. It raised the audience’s expectations but The Fall of The House of Usher still needs to meet them.
Moreover, the series’ pacing was inconsistent; it felt rushed at times, sometimes slow, and exaggerated at some points. Despite these flaws, the series is an excellent addition to this year’s Halloween watchlist, and if you like horror and supernatural themes, you should give it a shot.
