Carnival of Souls

PG

Released Sep 26, 1962

1h 20m

Horror

List

87%

Tomatometer

67 Reviews

73%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

Mary Henry ends up the sole survivor of a fatal car accident through mysterious circumstances. Trying to put the incident behind her, she moves to Utah and takes a job as a church organist. But her fresh start is interrupted by visions of a fiendish man. As the visions begin to occur more frequently, Mary finds herself drawn to the deserted carnival on the outskirts of town. The strangely alluring carnival may hold the secret to her tragic past.

Critics Consensus

Carnival of Souls offers delightfully chilling proof that when it comes to telling an effective horror story, less can often be much, much more.

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Geoff Brown

Times (UK)

For all its odd haunting moments, Carnival of Souls is best appreciated knocked off its pedestal.

Sep 26, 2022

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Glenn Kenny

Video Review

Its imagery evokes not a horror of blood, but a horror of loneliness.

Rated: 4/5

Sep 26, 2022

Full Review

Hugo Davenport

Daily Telegraph (UK)

If not quite a neglected masterpiece, it shows what could be done by atmosphere and suggestion before the days of slash and splatter.

Sep 24, 2022

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Howard Waldstein

CBR

What Herk Harvey's Carnival of Souls lacks in budget, it more than makes up for in inventiveness.

Jun 27, 2023

Full Review

Jorge Loser

Espinof

With a dreamlike spin, the film explores the dark side of the '50s American ideal of a perfect society... [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 5/5

Nov 14, 2022

Full Review

Kristy Strouse

Wonderfully Weird and Horrifying

Carnival of Souls isn’t a complete stunner for me (though damn close) but it’s a resonating, effective piece of work that nudges those feelings of lonesomeness we often face with a moody, nightmare-tinged quality.

Oct 31, 2022

Full Review

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nick s

Going for a certain creepy surreal feel, the movie didn't make an awful lot of sense to me. The recurring ghoul sequences were a bit disjointed and never really explained. The main character's situation is never explained. It's up to the audience to experience the movie and not ask too many questions. Some of the support actors (e. g. Priest and psychiatrist) were very wooden. However, the movie had some good points. The next door neighbour character was great, giving the movie a boost just as it started to drag. The pacing was quite good. Music and sound was also good. And I liked some of the artsy stuff. So I give it a pass but no medal.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

07/31/24

Full Review

Jeff F

Atmospheric, creepy, deliberately paced (read: slow). For those who have the patience for a movie that takes its time and doesn't feel the need to put jumps around every corner, this one is well worth seeking out.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

07/08/24

Full Review

Kam P

Surprisingly a decent movie with a good story line from more than 60 years ago. Quite suspenseful even without blood and gore. Would recommend.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

04/16/24

Full Review

Alec B

Yeah its hugely influential but it is still a compelling piece of surrealism aided by a fantastic central performance and a surprisingly funny screenplay

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/26/24

Full Review

Nathaniel C

I have a hard time rating this. On one had, kind of lame, rough acting here, even for the time. But some of the shots are extremely interesting and the movie kept me interested. I have a hard time deciding between a 6 (might be worth your time) or 7 rating (probably worth your time). I'll go with 7 with the idea that, whoever is remotely considering watching this is already interested in older films and if so, then this is probably worth your time. If you aren't into older films all that much though, maybe a 6. The music is interesting, but it makes me glad movies weren't that long back then. I find the ‘romantic' interest especially eerie because I can't tell how much of it is supposed to be creepy vs just a product of it's time.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/03/24

Full Review

Leaburn O

Bit of a classic horror but I'd be lying if I said it captivated me. Some brief hallucinogenic moments were fun but it was slow paced and had an unsatisfactorily underwhelming ending. Saw this one on Prime.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

11/10/23

Full Review

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Herk Harvey

Director

Candace Hilligoss

Mary Henry

Frances Feist

Mrs. Thomas

Sidney Berger

John Linden

Stan Levitt

Dr. Samuels

Art Ellison

Minister

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Synopsis

Mary Henry ends up the sole survivor of a fatal car accident through mysterious circumstances. Trying to put the incident behind her, she moves to Utah and takes a job as a church organist. But her fresh start is interrupted by visions of a fiendish man. As the visions begin to occur more frequently, Mary finds herself drawn to the deserted carnival on the outskirts of town. The strangely alluring carnival may hold the secret to her tragic past.

Director: Herk Harvey
Producer: Herk Harvey
Screenwriter: John Clifford
Production Co: Harcourt Productions
Rating: PG
Genre: Horror
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 26, 1962, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 1, 2012
Runtime: 1h 20m

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