(James Sibley & Melville Webber/USA/1928)
This 10 minute adaptation of the
Edgar Allen Poe story is an impressionistic and surreal interpretation that
utilises experimental techniques and artistic designs that would have been way
ahead of the time in 1928. It disposes of traditional narrative by inter-frame
titles and relies wholly on the audience piecing the story together from the
scenes presented. Some background knowledge of the Poe story helps in a full
understanding of what’s going on but it also works as a standalone sensory
cinematic experience. 
Full of multiple exposures and chiaroscuro lighting it resembles
a dream at times, or an opium reverie (the drug is referenced in the original
story). Some of the set design looks decidedly Cubist in style and is reflected
too in a lot of the shot framing. The clashing montage of stairs and the random
words appearing as things escalate perfectly portray the psychosis on screen. It
builds tension to its climactic scenes of the “fall” of the house in visuals
and music and is an amazing piece of cinema for its time.
(4.5/5)
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