THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER (1928, original title La chute de la maison Usher) is the first adaptation of the Edgar Allan Poe story and a classic of silent cinema. Like many of the best silent films of the era, this one's all about the imagery: all close-ups of distorted faces, tombs, billowing curtains, shadowed corners, paintings, swinging pendulums and plenty more besides. In this respect it's almost a compendium of striking scenes linked together by the barest of narratives. Luis Bunuel worked on this both as writer and assistant director, which explains some of the stylisation. The story has been heavily altered from the original but it works a treat and always offers something to enjoy. I caught this one on Youtube in an unfortunately poor quality version.
Review of The Fall of the House of Usher
