"The Fall of the House of Usher" - Netflix Series Review
A worth-the-watch Mike Flanagan adaptation of Edgar Allen Poe's spooky catalogue
Netflix's latest Halloween special, directed by Mike Flanagan, continues the studio’s tradition of delivering a new limited horror series (consisting of just one season) every October. Following previous hits like "The Haunting of Hill House," "The Haunting of Bly Manor," "Midnight Mass," and "The Midnight Club," this fall season, Flanagan treats us to “The Fall of the House of Usher.”
Released a bit over a week ago on October 12th, my girlfriend Lauren and I decided to binge-watch “Usher” over a span of a few days. I’ll begin with an overview for those who haven’t watched, then go into spoilers and my takes later. (Don’t worry, I’ll give you a warning before I do!).
The premise of "Usher" revolves around a powerful family (reminiscent of "Succession”) who somewhat ineptly run a prominent pharmaceutical company named Fortunato. The patriarch, Roderick, is the CEO of the company, his sister Madeline is the COO, Arthur Pym (played by Mark Hamill of Star Wars fame) is their attorney/enforcer, and Roderick’s six children feature as “the family.” Throughout the season, the show incorporates references to various Edgar Allan Poe stories, including “The Fall of the House of Usher,” “The Raven," "The Tell-Tale Heart," "The Pit and the Pendulum," "The Masque of the Red Death," "The Cask of Amontillado," and more.
Essentially, a malevolent force is targeting the Usher family (who sells opioids, reminiscent of the Sackler family), and this force is now systematically eliminating Roderick’s children one by one. In the first episode, we are told there is an informant in the family talking to the feds about Fortunato amidst the criminal trial the company is currently facing. The narrative device to tell this story is through a retelling featuring flashbacks by Roderick, who recounts the entire tale to the prosecutor Auguste Dupin, who doubles as his long-time enemy. While he recounts the tale of Fortunato and the deaths of all his children, they sit in Roderick’s childhood home, now abandoned, sipping on a $4 million bottle of liquor at the CEO’s insistence.
"Usher" is a supernatural, slow-burning show. While it does have its share of jump scares, it leans more towards a plot-driven approach, focusing on the fate of the Usher children as they are picked off one-by-one. For those who haven't watched it yet, I'd encourage you to give it a try if you enjoy horror shows, Mike Flanagan's previous work, Edgar Allan Poe's stories, or perhaps if you liked "The Pale Blue Eye" with Christian Bale, which was another Poe adaptation on Netflix.
I recommend reading a few of the Poe stories that are adapted in the show to enhance your experience. In retrospect, I felt that I should have read more Poe stories before watching “Usher” (the titular story included). Familiarity with his works would likely have enhanced the viewing experience.
Here are some of the featured stories I’d recommend reading:
• "The Fall of the House of Usher"
• "The Masque of the Red Death"
• "The Raven"
• "The Cask of Amontillado"
• "The Tell-Tale Heart"
• "The Pit and the Pendulum"
• “A Rose for Emily”
Now, let's delve into my honest take on the show, including some spoilers and my reactions. If you haven’t seen the show yet but still want to, I’d recommend stopping now and returning once you’ve watched.
(spoilers ahead!)
In general, I found "The Fall of the House of Usher" to be moderately favorable. It boasts a decent director and cast, but falls in line with many other shows that premiere on Netflix with substantial hype and production (which is to say, mediocre). Still, I'd rate this one fairly favorably at a 6.8, but I think if you have an affinity for this genre and this type of storytelling one could conceivably give it up to a 7.8. If you don’t really have an affinity for the genre or the storytelling of this particular show, I think you could probably go as low as a 6.2. “Usher” is not a groundbreaking masterpiece, but it's far from a disaster.
I thought they did a great job with the first episode, setting up the plot and delving into the background of the top characters. The second episode, which centered around Prospero, surprisingly grew on me, and the moment where they all melted in the abandoned building was fairly satisfying for a gory end, harking to one of the great Poe stories "The Masque of the Red Death.” For the first death, it definitely “hit” in terms of starting things off.
A few of the episodes however, like the one involving the chimp beating the white-haired daughter and the “Goldbug” episode, where she got stabbed by her own mirrors, left a decent amount to be desired. They lacked the depth and intrigue present in other adaptations. The "Tell-Tale Heart" and the "Black Cat" adaptations were a bit better, following the respective Poe adaptations well, but still lacked that extra spark. Like “Succession,” they had an idiot eldest brother (but unlike Connor Roy, proved quite cruel) and also the next brother (Napoleon “Leo” from the cat episode) was kind of like Kendall Roy in that playboy and drug-abusing type of way.
One notable drawback I thought was the portrayal of Roderick's wife at the time of the murders, who was played by the same actress in"The Midnight Club," another Flanagan special. Her role as Roderick’s wife was hard to believe, even considering her great success story making her someone Roderick could show off. She was just… annoying.
Separately, Mark Hamill's character had an overpowered role, functioning as an attorney and enforcer while also somehow being a seasoned explorer (?). Certain elements though, like when he was taking property from the crime scenes and otherwise just how ‘good’ he was, seemed too far-fetched to me. Still, it was fun to have good old Luke Skywalker busting some chops and otherwise being a badass.
The naming of the company as "Fortunato" and the thematic referencing in that regard to "The Cask of Amontillado" was clever with their taking out the guy in the last episode, but the concluding deal with the witch seemed somewhat unnecessary. But the ending left something to be desired, as the two main characters ended up killing each other. While it's in keeping with a Poe story with a man menacingly coming up the stairs, it felt like the show could have closed out a bit better. But that’s just me…
In conclusion, "The Fall of the House of Usher" offers a decent horror series with elements of suspense and supernatural intrigue. While it may not be groundbreaking, it's worth a watch if you're a fan of Mike Flanagan's work, or Edgar Allan Poe's stories, or are just looking for a decent Netflix limited series to watch this Halloween season. Thanks for reading and let me know what you think of the show if you watch!