Fall of the House of Usher from Netflix This is not your average horror film adaptation. Again, Mike Flanagan He used his favorite formula: reinventing the story for a new audience. He has already done this in his previous works. WITH The Curse of Hill Housee, based on the novel by Shirley Jackson, explores the moral anguish of its characters from a contemporary perspective. On the other side, The Curse of Bly Manora reimagining of Henry James’s plot centered on greed, with a down-to-earth edge despite its supernatural overtones.
But with this adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s horror story, Fall of the House of Usherthe director went even further. He took the story of a family conviction that spanned several generations to reflect on ethics and cultural responsibility. He even delved into the opioid crisis currently being discussed in the United States to bolster the case for its production. The result is a series close to Continuity than a horror story. But even so, it retains the meaning that Poe wanted to give to his story of monster men destroyed by ambition..
However, with its adaptation Fall of the House of UsherMike Flanagan also pays tribute to the American author’s legacy throughout the ten chapters of the miniseries. These are all the references to the work of Edgar Allan Poe that you can find in each episode. And also a reference to the story on which it is based and which he included in the script. Low bow to the writer and his devoted readers..
First episode: Gloomy midnight
In the first chapter Fall of the House of UsherThe most obvious reference is, of course, the characters’ names. Roderick and Madeline Usher They are the main characters of the original story. Just like the plot of the Netflix series, Both live among the ruins of what was once a significant estate.
Additionally, the title of the episode is based on the first verse of the poem Crow. The other extreme is the name Verna (Carla Gugino) – An anagram of the word “crow” in English. What is clear is a series of symbolic bird images surrounding the mysterious figure. Likewise, granddaughter Roderick, Lenorewas baptized with the same name as the beloved – dead and deceased – at the heart of the dark poem.
Other link include C. Auguste Dupindetective in Crimes on Morgue Street, The Mystery of Marie Roger And Stolen letter. In the series Dupin (played by actor Carl Lumbly) is much more than just a police expert. He is also the narrator who listens to the long and horrific story of the Ashers who are about to die due to the consequences of their actions.
A little wink to readers: these are memories of the resurrection Eliza Asher (Annabeth Gish), which also appears in the story. Only in the literary original does Madeline undergo a painful process.
Mike Flanagan even paid homage to Poe in the series’ music, he does this by using the theme Another Brick in the Wall Pink Floyd, which references the narrative Cask of Amontillado. In the story, the main character catches and kills Fortunato. This is the name of the company run by the family on the property. Finally, there is also a tribute to Poe’s personal life. The main characters’ mother’s name is Eliza, just like the writer’s.
Second episode: Mask of the Red Death
The original story that gives the chapter its title is reimagined to tell a modern story. As you may recall, the story told how Prince Prospero locked himself away in the midst of a plague and allowed his subjects to die while he himself enjoyed a kind of hedonistic retreat, half orgy, half endless feast. Eventually, Death in a red mask appears and infects him..
In this episode Fall of the House of UsherMike Flanagan transforms this premise into playboy who dies from toxic waste that his family didn’t take care of. The parallel is obvious, especially with Verna dressed in red from head to toe.
But the links don’t end there. In memory, A. Roderick Younger, played by Zach Gilford, recites the entire poem. Annabelle Lee. The latter is one of Poe’s first successes as a writer.
Episode three: Crimes on Morgue Street
In this case, the script uses characters from the original story to focus on the morality of greed and perversion. Camille L’Espanier, a character in the story played by Kate Siegel, becomes a way to understand the mismanagement of the Usher company. And, of course, he dies in the same way – or in a very cruel metaphor – as the literary figure of the same name. Mutilated by a cruel chimpanzee.
At the same time, the plot never ceases to remind us that this is the first detective story in literature. Dupin He appears more than once, and it is his voice that tells the story.
Episode four: Black cat
The links here are clear. Pluto This is a black cat Napoleon Houcherr (Rahul Kohli). But this time, instead of murder and arrest, the series recaps the narrative of animal cruelty – a focus on those sensitive to the topic – and, ultimately, poetic revenge.
This adds to the plot’s modern understanding of unethical scientific practices and how evil always returns to the hands of the villain. The main theme of the room was invented by Edgar Allan Poe.
Episode 5: The Tell-Tale Heart
This issue is also based directly on a story by Edgar Allan Poe. Fall of the House of Usher analyzes the center of the narrative from a bioethical perspective. Between the murder of a witness and the guilt of the main character, the plot develops in the same way.
Only instead of the victim’s beating heart, it’s a heart valve. This is heard until it drives you crazy and the sign of fear turns into morality.
Episode six: golden beetle
Great reference in this episode. Fall of the House of Usher gift to readers. Introduction to Arthur Gordon Pym (Mark Hamill) is a celebration of the work of Edgar Allan Poe. Besides the fact that the character is named after the main character of his only novel –Narration by Arthur Gordon Pym– the episode deepens and generalizes the plot of the work.
An interesting fact that is also included in this chapter is that Verna’s alter ego, Pamela Klemm, has the last name of the writer’s wife. Finally, the character’s address – 1849 Reynolds Street – confuses the year of the writer’s death with the strange phrase he shouted before his death.
Episode seven: Well and pendulum
From Verna reading the poem that gives the title to the chapter until the plot of the poem is included Berenice for the death of one of his characters. This is an episode from Fall of the House of Usher the most sinister and closest to the work of Edgar Allan Poe.
At the same time, he is the one who remembers that most of the writer’s legacy lies in his unhealthy symbols. How to lose teeth the fate of one of the main figures in the plot.
Eighth episode: Crow
Verna quotes a poem CrowEdgar Allan Poe in his entirety as he kills Lenore to finally put an end to the treacherous legacy of the Ushers. But the entire chapter itself conveys the plot of the poem and connects it with the plot of the poem. Fall of the House of Usher.
And this is the final scene Fall of the House of Usher It is identical to the one in the story and with the same meaning. about the complete destruction of a family doomed to darkness for their atrocities.
Source: Hiper Textual
