Jonny's Cult Films: THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER makes Blu-ray & Steelbook debut!

Thursday, 8 August 2013

THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER makes Blu-ray & Steelbook debut!

WORLDWIDE PREMIERE!

BLU-RAY & STEELBOOK – 26TH AUGUST 2013

DIGITALLY RESTORED!

Arrow Video is pleased to announce the UK Blu-ray debut of Roger Corman’s 1960s American horror classic THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER on Monday August 26th.

When exploitation maestro Corman hired Hollywood legend Vincent Price to star in his adaptation of a classic tale by Edgar Allan Poe, he set in motion a series of Poe-influenced movies that would redefine American cinema history.

When Philip Winthrop (Mark Damon) visits his fiancée Madeleine Usher (Myrna Fahey) in her crumbling family mansion, her brother Roderick (Price) tries to talk him out of the wedding, explaining that the Usher family is cursed and that extending its bloodline will only prolong the agony. Madeleine wants to elope with Philip, but neither of them can predict what ruthless lengths Roderick will go to in order to keep them apart.

Richard Matheson's intelligent, literate script is enhanced by Floyd Crosby's stylish widescreen cinematography, but it's Vincent Price's anguished conviction in one of his signature roles that makes the film so chillingly memorable over half a century on.

The special features included in this Arrow Video release are as follows: - High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation of the feature, transferred and restored using the original film elements by MGM.

- Original uncompressed 2.0 Mono PCM Audio.

- Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.

- Audio commentary with director and producer Roger Corman.

- Legend to Legend: An interview with director and former Corman apprentice Joe Dante.

- Interview with author and Gothic horror expert Jonathan Rigby.

- Fragments of the House of Usher: A Specially-commissioned video essay by critic and filmmaker David Cairns examining Corman’s film in relation to Poe’s story.

- Archival interview with Vincent Price.

- Original Trailer.

- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys [Standard Release only].

- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by author and critic Tim Lucas and an extract from Vincent Price’s long out of print autobiography, illustrated with original archive stills and posters.