Edgar Allen Poe is the father of American horror. This is indisputable. Yes, Hawthorne's work influenced him highly. Some revisionists will want you to believe that Lovecraft had more influence on the next century of writers. Poe was, is, and always will be, though, the guiding force in the development of the American style of horror in the 1900s and beyond. His work has been repeated, stolen, ripped off and paid tribute to so many times, but I find that the current generation has a lot less knowledge of his work than the baby boomers and their children did as they grew up. It's natural, as we get further away from the publication of these stories, but a shame nonetheless, so it's great to see modern style animation being done with loving care paid attention to staying true to his source material. This is a movie that every high school English teacher should be showing.
The director came out of the Disney studio animation, so I was tentative about what style we were going to see in this format. I was blown away by how different each segment is, how vastly contrasting the art styles and that each works uniquely.
As with any portmanteau, the stories are interlaced with a "wrap- around segment" in this case, we have a raven (representing Poe) talking with a statue. The conversation introduces the segments while discussing the themes of Poe's work. It's a bit obvious, though, in the approach and maybe the weakest part of the movie as a whole.
THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER is done in a style of animation that reminded me a bit of present day advertisements. It's definitely computer, so lacks that cartoon/ comic book look, but not polished enough in its' design to be breathtaking. It's very polygonal, but it never feels cheap as much as a stylistic choice. This is a very difficult story to approach with a 10 minute cartoon, as the weight of the source story relies on mood far more than plot. I thought that this one did an adequate job, though, of conveying that sense of dread and presenting a Gothic feel.
THE TELL-TALE HEART is a starkly contrasting black-and-white animation, using a lot of negative space. It reminded me a good deal of SIN CITY. This probably suffered the most from the brevity of the format, as the story itself relies on that gradual building of tension and suspense that just isn't allowed to happen in this brief segment. It's not a total failure, though, as it looks great.
THE FACTS IN THE CASE Of M. VALDEMAR may be the least known story presented here. It's the most reminiscent of comic book style in the look of the animation. As a comic book geek, I appreciated the style and look. I thought that this segment worked really well. The story is given the time it needs to breathe and develop the sense of terror that it needs. There are some excellent "shots" where the animation really works to pull off a look or scene.
THE PIT & THE PENDULUM may have been my favorite. The look is absolutely modern video game design and maybe the "crispest" of the lot. Though there are some key pieces missing from the Poe story, I thought that this did a fantastic job of conveying the mood of the piece. It feels claustrophobic and frightening and we genuinely empathize with the characters mounting sense of terror at the situation he's found himself in and the tortures pressed upon him.
THE MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH is my favorite Poe story, but found myself much disappointed in the presentation. It's a beautiful water color painting style, but is almost void of any dialog or exposition. As a result a story full of decadence, terror and dread becomes just visual candy with no real feeling evoked.
In all, I really enjoyed this film. It's a shame that it's probably only going to get a minimal audience, but then it's a shame that Poe is becoming less and less relevant to our modern children. I don't want to sound like an old grump, but anyone claiming to be a fan of horror, ought to be familiar with Poe's best works. It's vital to understand our roots because they are the foundation of what makes up the current state, but enough of my soapbox. Here is a perfect opportunity to enjoy these stories.
The director came out of the Disney studio animation, so I was tentative about what style we were going to see in this format. I was blown away by how different each segment is, how vastly contrasting the art styles and that each works uniquely.
As with any portmanteau, the stories are interlaced with a "wrap- around segment" in this case, we have a raven (representing Poe) talking with a statue. The conversation introduces the segments while discussing the themes of Poe's work. It's a bit obvious, though, in the approach and maybe the weakest part of the movie as a whole.
THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER is done in a style of animation that reminded me a bit of present day advertisements. It's definitely computer, so lacks that cartoon/ comic book look, but not polished enough in its' design to be breathtaking. It's very polygonal, but it never feels cheap as much as a stylistic choice. This is a very difficult story to approach with a 10 minute cartoon, as the weight of the source story relies on mood far more than plot. I thought that this one did an adequate job, though, of conveying that sense of dread and presenting a Gothic feel.
THE TELL-TALE HEART is a starkly contrasting black-and-white animation, using a lot of negative space. It reminded me a good deal of SIN CITY. This probably suffered the most from the brevity of the format, as the story itself relies on that gradual building of tension and suspense that just isn't allowed to happen in this brief segment. It's not a total failure, though, as it looks great.
THE FACTS IN THE CASE Of M. VALDEMAR may be the least known story presented here. It's the most reminiscent of comic book style in the look of the animation. As a comic book geek, I appreciated the style and look. I thought that this segment worked really well. The story is given the time it needs to breathe and develop the sense of terror that it needs. There are some excellent "shots" where the animation really works to pull off a look or scene.
THE PIT & THE PENDULUM may have been my favorite. The look is absolutely modern video game design and maybe the "crispest" of the lot. Though there are some key pieces missing from the Poe story, I thought that this did a fantastic job of conveying the mood of the piece. It feels claustrophobic and frightening and we genuinely empathize with the characters mounting sense of terror at the situation he's found himself in and the tortures pressed upon him.
THE MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH is my favorite Poe story, but found myself much disappointed in the presentation. It's a beautiful water color painting style, but is almost void of any dialog or exposition. As a result a story full of decadence, terror and dread becomes just visual candy with no real feeling evoked.
In all, I really enjoyed this film. It's a shame that it's probably only going to get a minimal audience, but then it's a shame that Poe is becoming less and less relevant to our modern children. I don't want to sound like an old grump, but anyone claiming to be a fan of horror, ought to be familiar with Poe's best works. It's vital to understand our roots because they are the foundation of what makes up the current state, but enough of my soapbox. Here is a perfect opportunity to enjoy these stories.