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Amazon.com essential video An ultra-cheap B-horror movie, filmed in Lawrence, Kansas, in 1962, with areally creepy Twilight Zone-style premise and some great shoestring atmosphere.Wandering into a small town after an auto accident, to begin her new job as a churchorganist, young Mary Henry (Candace Hilligoss) begins to pick up strange vibes: none ofthe normal people in town seem to be able to see her, and she keeps being accosted byfreakish pasty-faced types who seem to be dead on their feet. The nightmarish finalebenefits from its one-of-a-kind "found" setting, an empty amusement park rising like aghostly castle from the prairie landscape. This is much less aggressive and violent filmthan George Romero's original Night of the Living Dead, but for sheer skin- crawling spookiness, it's in the same class. --David Chute --This text refers to an outof print or unavailable edition of this title. ... Read more Reviews (110) 
Unbelievable
Almost as eerie and unexplainable for me as the film itself, is the fact that this film has made it to DVD and by Criterion no less. This movie is close to my heart because I know Larry Sneegas, who played the young hood at the beginning who asks the girls "Wanna drag ?" (Larry was also part of the production crew for this and many other "industrial" films with director Herk Harvey). The historic Englewood theater here in Kansas City showed CARNIVAL a few years ago as part of a tribute to local film makers and what a treat to see it for the first time on the big screen! Larry has been gracious enough to loan me his VHS copy of THE MOVIE THAT WOULDN'T DIE documentary that Criterion has included ... some great background on this small-but-mighty film and I can't wait to see all the other "extras" on the disc as well. I've seen both versions of the movie (again thanks to Larry) and while they each work marvelously, who wouldn't prefer the director's "more zombies" cut? The reviews below really capture the film's essence, so all I can say is ENJOY !
Finally on DVD! One of the spookiest films ever made....
I had the great pleasure of seeing Carnival of Souls in its theatrical re-release in the mid-90s. Having seen it on video beforehand, I had some idea of what atmosphere the film created for the viewer. Seeing it in the theatre though was a completely spooky experience! Though the film may not be shocking or especially terrifying by today's standards, it still holds it own as an outre masterpiece of suspense. A thousand THANK-YOUs to Criterion for bringing it to DVD. What a great package to have both cuts of the film, plus all the extra features (especially the extended montage of outtakes set to that bone-chilling soundtrack!) The documentary featuring the cast reunion is another bonus, as is the very interesting history of the SaltAir Resort from which Herk Harvey took his inspiration for the story. The film is timeless in its use of stark black-and white, and light and dark to convey the extreme isolation felt by Candace Hilligoss' character, Mary the church organist. The soundtrack is quite eerie and used so effectively. It is obvious how many "horror" films have been influenced by Carnival of Souls, in particular NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD by George Romero. The jerky/choppy editing style, the b/w photography, hysterical/hyperkinetic acting are all mirrored by so many present-day films. CARNIVAL is and always will be a unique piece of film-making. The excellent presentation on DVD shows it to its best advantage. 6 stars out of 5!!!
crap
It sounds cheap. It looks cheap. There was nothing scary or entertaining about it. The plot doesn't make sense. People talk to her, everything blurs then they don't see or hear her. Dumb. I had to force myself and my friends to watch it. I love old horror films but this one was a dud. I don't understand the reviews saying how great this movie is. Don't waste your money.
Disturbing and Creepy cult classic comes to DVD!!!
Carnival of Souls was made on a shoe-string budget by industrial filmmaker Herk Harvey and stars the enigmatic and beautiful Candace Hilligoss as the lead character who manages to be constantly isolated from everyone around her. There are so many excellent transitions and shots in the movie it was obvious that who ever put it together had been an excellent film editior at the very least. As the film has been extensively reviewed here I want to focus on the DVD releases. Aside from the original cut of the film, 82 minutes, there where several prints that had been trimmed down both by the director and perhaps for TV although I have seen the complete film on cable as well as edited versions. The Image "movie-only" release (by the way Image also co-produced the Criterion Collection release) has the complete version of the movie and best print that I have seen. There is an active menu with some of the spooky organ music with icons for chapters and the films trailer. At first I thought the icon for "recommendations" was just a link to a one page marketing promo. However, if you click on the title boxes you get a trailer for each of the other Image releases shown. Quite a nice little "Easter Egg"!
I am glad I have the other versions as well because I think the edited prints are also interesting. The Alpha Video version actually has a slightly higher bit rate than the Image edition and only a tiny amount of pixelization here and there detracts from a very sharp picture, it clocks in at 77 minutes and is a great bargain. The Diamond DVD release has an identical running time, but a lower bit rate and still some pixelization in a couple of scenes. However considering that you get a copy of 1960's "Horror Hotel" with Christopher Lee included it is a great buy for just a few bucks. Curiously, the Diamond edition "Carnival of Souls/"Horror Hotel" is supposedly out of print yet I found a copy in a store recently and got another new copy on-line for my little brother's collection. Goodtimes has released "Carnival of Souls" with a high bit rate and sharp picture but a few more skips and pops. Also, the running time is the shortest, 75 minutes, as it cuts out a couple more scenes such as when Candace Hilligoss stops for gas and directions entering Salt Lake City. However, my Goodtimes edition is a two sided disc with "Carnival" on one side and a decent print of "Night of the Living Dead" on the other. For those of you who don't like two sided discs, Goodtimes has also released both films seperately for just a few bucks each. Criterion Collection has released the utlimate edition with two cuts of the film and loads of extras including a commentary. However, it you are on a budget you do have other options. So make some popcorn and enjoy the show. Thanks, CAL
"I'm not taking vows. I just play the organ."
Carnival of Souls is the horror movie Albert Camus might have made. It's a lot like George Romero's original Night of the Living Dead - - black and white, low-budget, a simple horror story that's really about human beings' isolation in their own skins. The acting ensemble in Romero's film is consistently better, but Carnival of Souls only has one real character, and Candace Hilligoss as Mary is very good. It's probably only her performance that has kept this movie around for over forty years. It's 1962 in a small town, and two young guys in a hot rod and three young women in another car are drag racing. They get to the bridge outside of town, finally going fast enough to feel alive when . . . . . . Mary crawls out of the river, covered in mud, the only female survivor. The other two girls paid the price for giving in to the thrill of the boys' challenge. Seemingly unaffected (almost in the clinical sense of being without affect), Mary follows her plan to go to another small town where she's been hired as a church organist. She doesn't believe in the church, though; she's a musician and playing the organ is just a job. Mary's drive to her new town is the scariest bit of filmmaking I've seen in a long time. Trying to settle into her new life, Mary starts to crack up. Besides seeing an apparition connected to an old ruined carnival, Mary is suddenly unable to hear the people around her. Three men say they want to help her - - a would-be boyfriend who's only interested in sex and leaves her when she lets her despair show, a doctor who violently shakes her and orders her to his office for his expert help, and the minister she works for who fires her when something possesses her and she "profanes" his church with carnival music. Love, science, and God all fail her. If Mary had only been able to hang on for five or ten years, maybe she would have found more satisfying work, or support from other women, or been stronger herself. In 1962 Mary felt the nothingness eating her alive, but she couldn't see a way out in time. She lost the race.
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Good classic time waister!!!