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Carnival Of Souls on DVD (1962)

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Average rating: 64%
17276171020510
3.0
from 194 members
 
Starring: Candace Hilligoss, Sidney Berger, Frances Feist, Herk Harvey, Stan Levitt, Art Ellison
Director: Herk Harvey
Studio: ORBIT MEDIA LTD.
Run time: 75 mins
Certificate: 15
User collections: Creepy chills, Screams Of Laughter, Best non-classic status horror films
Genres: Horror
Languages: English
Subtitles: French, German
Released: 03/09/2001

Brief synopsis of Carnival Of Souls

Made in 1962 in Lawrence, Kansas for very little money, Herk Harvey's CARNIVAL OF SOULS has become legendary for its ability to create a tensely creepy atmosphere with virtually no special effects. A young woman (Candace Hilligoss) is involved in a car crash when her car falls off a bridge while drag racing with some friends. After she pulls herself from the river, she moves to a new town to take a job as a church organist. Meanwhile, a distinctly eerie and hollow-faced man in a black suit seems to be following her wherever she goes. The effective organ score enhances the film to great effect.

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Critics Reviews

Rating of 4 stars out of 5 Radio Times

A young church organist finds herself in a strange limbo, haunted by spectral ghouls, in the creepy cult classic that director George A Romero credits as being his major inspiration for Night of the Living Dead. Representing the ultimate triumph of talent over budget, Herk Harvey's sole film as director is a crude but compelling chiller evoking a genuinely eerie, Val Lewton-style atmosphere. Harvey also plays the lead phantom pursuing the heroine, played by the excellent, if oddly named Candace Hilligoss. Wes Craven produced a remake in 1999, but it failed to shake the reputation of this legendary shocker.

Time Out

The only survivor when a car plunges into a river, Mary Henry (Hilligoss) emerges on to a sandbank like a sodden... Read more on www.timeout.com

Halliwell's Film Guide

Absurd but occasionally compelling independently made horror film which would have been better in half-hour form.

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Members Reviews

Reviews Voted Most Helpful

Rated - 3 starsUnforgettable Cult Classic.

Atom7 from East Sussex , 19/12/2003

After apparently surviving, when the car she was plunged to a watery grave, Candace Hilligoss's church organist is pursued by both a malevolent, ghostly man in black and the lecherous neighbour in the rooming house she is staying in. She discovers an abandoned pleasure palace, where the danse macabre echoes the sterile date she shares with the neighbour in a seedy dance hall. Although the acting is stilted and amateurish, the imagery in the heroine's dreams and visions, starkly shot in primitive black and white, combined with the eerie church organ music she plays as accompaniment, make for an unforgettable cult classic.

  7 out of 7 people found this review helpful
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Rated - 1 starsWhat's the plot?

A customer from Deopham, Norfolk , 10/05/2005

Watched this through to the end but still couldn't work out the plot. Both the acting and the film were weird!

  6 out of 7 people found this review helpful
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Rated - 4 starsClassic cult film

kazcoigne from Greater London , 22/01/2004

This is a classic cult film which should be seen by everyone at least once, if not more. The sound may be slightly shaky and some of the acting is at best described as stilted but that is part if its appeal. The imagery and genuinely creepy atmosphere which permeates this film more than make up for any reservations you may have. Absolutely fantastic.

  5 out of 5 people found this review helpful
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Rated - 4 stars“You can’t live in isolation from the human race you know”

Clucky from Cardiff, Wales , 03/08/2005

After surviving a car accident, Mary (Hilligos) becomes plagued with visions of a mysterious white-faced man and finds herself drawn to an abandoned pavilion. Despite its low budget origins and flimsy script, Carnival of Souls is an atmospheric piece of cinema that will delight “old school” horror fans. With its crisp black and white cinematography (although you wouldn’t guess it from this shoddy copy) and art-house surrealism, this is a genuinely eerie and haunting title. With a cast of mainly amateur actors, performances are a little wooden but this is more than made up for in the visual department. However a word of warning, this version is in very poor shape but thankfully a more pristine edition is available from Criterion and is leaden with extras plus a longer director’s cut. A curious but visually interesting oddity – 3.5/5

  4 out of 4 people found this review helpful
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Most Recent Reviews

Rated - 3 starsUnforgettable Cult Classic.

Atom7 from East Sussex , 19/12/2003

After apparently surviving, when the car she was plunged to a watery grave, Candace Hilligoss's church organist is pursued by both a malevolent, ghostly man in black and the lecherous neighbour in the rooming house she is staying in. She discovers an abandoned pleasure palace, where the danse macabre echoes the sterile date she shares with the neighbour in a seedy dance hall. Although the acting is stilted and amateurish, the imagery in the heroine's dreams and visions, starkly shot in primitive black and white, combined with the eerie church organ music she plays as accompaniment, make for an unforgettable cult classic.

  7 out of 7 people found this review helpful
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Rated - 3 starsCarnival of Souls

Matthew Jones from England , 07/07/2004

Cheap, patchy, very weird rythym. And completely freaky. A fantastic horror film that is truly, unashamedly 'B' grade, and somewhat surreal as well. A really distinctive atmosphere that will either totally work for you, or you'll hate it. Take a chance!

  2 out of 2 people found this review helpful
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