The House of Usher
Encyclopedia
The House of Usher is a 2006 thriller based on the Edgar Allan Poe
story, "The Fall of the House of Usher
". The film was directed by Hayley Cloake and written by Collin Chang. It stars Austin Nichols
, Izabella Miko
, and Beth Grant
.
) has not seen or heard from her ex-lover, Roderick "Rick" Usher (Austin Nichols
), or her best friend, Madeline "Maddy" Usher, for three years. One night, Rick contacts Jill and informs her of Maddy's sudden death. Her last wish was for Jill to attend the funeral. Conflicted, Jill returns to the family home of the Usher family. Her love affair with Rick is rekindled as she learns he suffers from the same malady that robbed his twin sister, Maddy, of her sharp mind before taking her life. His affliction is manifested in a rare nerve condition, which renders him hypersensitive. Under the watchful eye of the caretaker, Nurse Thatcher (Beth Grant
), Jill appears to be haunted by the ghost of Maddy. In the meantime, Jill becomes intimate with Rick and tells him she has missed her period. A pregnancy test confirms Jill is pregnant. In the meantime, Jill has discovered that the Usher family has practiced incest for the past five or six generations, right down to Maddy and Rick. All the prior generations had twins, who later became a couple and birthed twins of their own and so on down the line to Maddy and Rick, who were to continue the Usher curse of incest and inbreeding.
Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective...
story, "The Fall of the House of Usher
The Fall of the House of Usher
"The Fall of the House of Usher" is a short story by Edgar Allan Poe, first published in September 1839 in Burton's Gentleman's Magazine. It was slightly revised in 1840 for the collection Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque...
". The film was directed by Hayley Cloake and written by Collin Chang. It stars Austin Nichols
Austin Nichols
Austin Nichols is an American film, television actor and director who is perhaps best known for his role as Julian Baker in The CW drama series One Tree Hill. He is also known for his roles in films such as The Day After Tomorrow and Wimbledon...
, Izabella Miko
Izabella Miko
Izabella Anna Mikołajczak , better known as Izabella Miko, is a Polish-born actress, dancer, and environmentalist.-Life and career:...
, and Beth Grant
Beth Grant
Beth Grant is an American actress. She is known for often playing characters who are conservatives, religious zealots or sticklers for rules....
.
Plot
Jill Masters (Izabella MikoIzabella Miko
Izabella Anna Mikołajczak , better known as Izabella Miko, is a Polish-born actress, dancer, and environmentalist.-Life and career:...
) has not seen or heard from her ex-lover, Roderick "Rick" Usher (Austin Nichols
Austin Nichols
Austin Nichols is an American film, television actor and director who is perhaps best known for his role as Julian Baker in The CW drama series One Tree Hill. He is also known for his roles in films such as The Day After Tomorrow and Wimbledon...
), or her best friend, Madeline "Maddy" Usher, for three years. One night, Rick contacts Jill and informs her of Maddy's sudden death. Her last wish was for Jill to attend the funeral. Conflicted, Jill returns to the family home of the Usher family. Her love affair with Rick is rekindled as she learns he suffers from the same malady that robbed his twin sister, Maddy, of her sharp mind before taking her life. His affliction is manifested in a rare nerve condition, which renders him hypersensitive. Under the watchful eye of the caretaker, Nurse Thatcher (Beth Grant
Beth Grant
Beth Grant is an American actress. She is known for often playing characters who are conservatives, religious zealots or sticklers for rules....
), Jill appears to be haunted by the ghost of Maddy. In the meantime, Jill becomes intimate with Rick and tells him she has missed her period. A pregnancy test confirms Jill is pregnant. In the meantime, Jill has discovered that the Usher family has practiced incest for the past five or six generations, right down to Maddy and Rick. All the prior generations had twins, who later became a couple and birthed twins of their own and so on down the line to Maddy and Rick, who were to continue the Usher curse of incest and inbreeding.