Review #239: 'Carnival of Souls' (1962)

Mary (Candace Hilligoss) is in the passenger seat of a car with her two friends when they are challenged to a drag race by some boys. The driver accepts, and the car ends up crashing over the end of a bridge, landing into the water. Several hours later, while the police investigate and onlookers gather, Mary emerges from the water apparently unscathed. She carries on with her life, and goes ahead with taking her new job as a church organ player in a nearby town. Things become strange as she keeps seeing the ghostly figure of a strange man, and Mary finds herself repeatedly drawn to an abandoned carnivale.

What is ultimately a micro-budgeted B-movie, Carnival of Souls has gained popularity as the years have gone by and is now considered a cult classic. With a budget estimated at around $33, 000, director Herk Harvey achieved stunning things with so little. The limited resources are visible on screen though, as the sets, cinematography and supporting actors do little to flatter the movie. But Carnival of Souls manages to overcome these relatively irrelevant limitations with a fine performance from Hilligoss, and plenty of atmosphere to boot. It's clear to see this must have been a big influence on the likes of George A. Romero and David Lynch.

The film also takes some brave stylistic and artistic risks. Mary finds herself staying in a small hotel with the strange and lecherous John (Sidney Berger). While at first he seems to be your typical idiotic B-movie supporting character, he soon becomes something far more sinister. In a rare scene where we leave Mary, we see John talking to one of his loser friends in a drunken frenzy, talking about how he'll soon have her. There's a real feeling that John is bordering on raping Mary, and remember, this is a 1962 American film., when things were unheard of. Also, Mary's emotionless responses to his advances may be touching on lesbianism. It may just be because of what is revealed at the end, but it seemed to me to certainly touch on this possibility.

It really hits its stride in the dream-like carnivale sequences. While the final few scenes are predictable and can be guessed in the first ten minutes or so, it's the execution that is so alarming and exceptional. The dead arise from the water, ghostly white and emotionless. They dance their waltz of the dead amongst the brightly lit fairground in several strange, soundless, and sped-up sequences that evokes the expressionist silent horror films of the 20's. It is truly beautiful, and has influenced a thousand lesser horror films. Truly one of the finest B-movies ever made, and a great example of how so much can be done with so little.


Directed by: Herk Harvey
Starring: Candace Hilligoss, Frances Feist, Sidney Berger
Country: USA

Rating: *****

Tom Gillespie