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Carnival of Souls

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Carnival of Souls

PG

Released Sep 26, 1962

1h 20m

Horror

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

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.

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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

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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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Sarah Boslaugh

TheArtsStl

The strength of Carnival of Souls lies not in the big reveal, which is obvious almost from the beginning, but in the unsettling mood it creates and the striking images Harvey puts on the screen.

Rated: 7/10

Mar 1, 2025

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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

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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

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Tom M

Eerie little low budget film. Everything about this is odd. The acting , camera angles, music...like an 'outer limits' episode.But quite a good one.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

05/13/25

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Charlie M

For the parts that are finished, good job! For the parts that aren’t finished, let’s just say there’s a good reason why they aren’t finished.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

02/17/25

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Leo P

Supposedly, the mother of all transcendental movies. A woman,the only survivor of a car crash, searches for peace and quiet, but to no avail. She is terrorized and attracted, at the same time, by the world of the dead. Then she starts to run aimlessly until she finds her way back to the underworld of her dead buddies. So, what we saw during an hour and a half, didn't really happen? Or it did happen? We just don't know what it was...

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/21/25

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Revolver 0

some interesting shots but poor acting ruins atmosphere

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/12/25

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Audience Member

I first saw this movie on TV in the early 1960s during my pre-teen years. At the time, I thought it was extremely scary. The organ music used for the soundtrack added to the creepiness of the whole thing. The fearful expression the main character had on her face for most of the movie intensified the impact of the story. As a kid, I couldn't tell if she was a ghost or if ghosts were chasing her around., especially the smiling guy with the eye makeup. As an adult, I watched it a couple of years ago. I realize that even though the acting could have been better, the story is pretty good and shows how a low budget is no barrier to creating a spooky cinematic experience. I bet this movie made an impression on many of those who watch "horror" and surrealistic movies.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

11/04/24

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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

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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

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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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