The Fall of the Louse of Usher on AllMovie

Murder, mayhem, insanity, mini-skirted nuns, and inflatable doll orgies are only part of the fun in Ken Russell's predictably debauched ode to Edgar Allen Poe. Very freely adapted from Poe's The Fall of the House of Usher, Russell's low-budget DV-shot extravaganza is set in the sunny climes of Orange County, CA, where Roderick Usher, a popular yet deeply weird rock star, has been convicted of his wife's brutal murder. After being packed off for treatment at the County Lunatic Asylum, Usher is placed under the dubious care of the equally deranged Dr. Calihari (played by the director himself). When he's not tending to his patient with some decidedly questionable treatments, Calihari amuses himself with the fun-loving Nurse Smith. Somehow, between the skirt chasing, naughty nuns, and occasional musical number, the truth behind the murder of Usher's wife is revealed, as is the method behind Calihari's madness. The Fall of the Louse of Usher was screened at the 2002 Philadelphia Festival of World Cinema.