I did not like Vincent Price as Roderick Usher. My patience was tested as no one in the house would tell poor Winthrop...What was wrong with Madeline? Why they couldn't leave the house? Why Roderick put Madeline in the casket? Where Roderick hid the casket? Etc., Etc.
I understand that this is a Poe story with a Horror icon in the leading role with a legendary producer and amazing screenwriter. I just didn't sense any Horror. Even the sense of dread they so desperately tried to portray just came off as flat. Up to this point, I'd say that this is my least liked Vincent Price role.
While the Edgar Allan Poe "adaptations" of the classic Universal horror era may kick some serious ass on their own with their peak Lugosi/Karloff-dynamic, when it comes to their "adaptation"-aspect... well, let me put it this way: The Black Cat has a black cat in it. The Raven has a raven and an E. A. Poe superfan obsessed with making Poe's murderous fantasies a reality. Murders in the Rue Morgue has both murders and a morgue. That's about it. The latter is also a shameless Cabinet of Dr. Caligari ripoff and overall the weakest of the trio.
So it feels a bit weird that the first bunch of somewhat faithful adaptations (in spirit, at least) of Poe's legacy i was gonna see were produced and directed by none other than the somewhat unfairly labelled "King of Schlock", Roger Corman. Let's call him a visionary of genre cinema instead, okay? Because schlock, this certainly ain't. Made on a budget? Yeah, sure. Occasional use of stock footage, obvious matte paintings and only the most rudimentary of special effects are the telltale signs here. In retrospect that only adds a certain retro charme to this landmark of american gothic horror. Apart from these minor nitpicks, everything else is executed so fucking rock solid here, starting from a straightforward and tight script. Sometimes, just getting the basics right can get you a long way in filmmaking. Also, you can't ever go wrong with vintage Vincent Price, whose madman performance in this can genuinely scare the shit out of you.
Great production design, scary paintings, lots of creepy imagery but it's dry and felt too long for the story it had. Mark Damon tried really hard but Vincent Price was so good and effortless! I liked his look with blond hair. Not my favorite gothic horror story.
Shout by TIM-O-THYVIP 2BlockedParent2023-09-26T02:05:15Z
This was a really well done movie, especially for its time. I’m not too familiar with Vincent Price, but he did great in this film and had a very strong presence. They also really did a great job with the dynamics of color during a dream sequence. As for Myrna Fahey, she had a good role, and her character really throws you for a loop in this film.