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Post by wmcclain on Dec 31, 2020 14:01:48 GMT
Carnival of Souls (1962), directed by Herk Harvey. After inexplicably escaping drowning in a car crash, a young woman wanders in a dreamlike and disassociated state. Sometimes her world goes silent and sometimes other people can't see or hear her. Ghoulish figures stare and menace her. She is drawn to a ruined outdoor pavilion where dead figures rise from the water and dance. She begins to see herself as one of them... Spooky happenings but otherwise plotless. Patterns but not a real story. It is a micro-budget effort from industrial filmmakers who wanted to try something more exciting. They were going for a Euro art-film look and some of the photography is striking. The actors are amateurs and students and semi-pros; they project and enunciate in stage voices. Initially it played only at drive-ins through the South and then the distributor went out of business. It's become a cult feature since and is valuable as an example of low-budget amateur filmmaking. As a horror feature on it's own merits: not so much. Young George Romero liked it. I've heard David Lynch suggested as a fan. The sound is often only roughly synced, most famously with her echoing footsteps, done at the studio with high heeled shoes rapping on a plywood board. The director says he wanted to do better but there was no time or money. A fortuitous error: it adds to the dreamlike quality of those scenes. Filmed in and around Lawrence, Kansas and the ruined Saltair pavilion in Utah. The pavilion was the origin of the story: they wrote the film around it. Criterion 2-disc DVD set. The restored theatrical version is vastly better than the public domain copy I had seen before. It looks more like a serious film now. The set includes the director's cut which is 5 minutes longer but poorer quality. That version has a commentary track by the director and writer. I has some good info but also long silent stretches. Later: available on Blu-ray from Criterion. My thumbnails are from the DVD.
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Post by TutuAnimationPrincess on Dec 31, 2020 23:12:03 GMT
Only saw this once but I remember enjoying it. A truly fascinating film viewing experience.
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Post by BATouttaheck on Dec 31, 2020 23:18:17 GMT
I watched this once upon a time in the olden days ... posted in the What Did You Watch thread that i did NOT enjoy it ... was dragged over the coals and told that I was a tasteless buffoon not to have loved this cinematic masterpiece.
I watched it again to see what had been missed .... as far as I can tell ... nothing ! <shrug>
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Post by hi224 on Jan 1, 2021 0:27:11 GMT
Carnival of Souls (1962), directed by Herk Harvey. After inexplicably escaping drowning in a car crash, a young woman wanders in a dreamlike and disassociated state. Sometimes her world goes silent and sometimes other people can't see or hear her. Ghoulish figures stare and menace her. She is drawn to a ruined outdoor pavilion where dead figures rise from the water and dance. She begins to see herself as one of them... Spooky happenings but otherwise plotless. Patterns but not a real story. It is a micro-budget effort from industrial filmmakers who wanted to try something more exciting. They were going for a Euro art-film look and some of the photography is striking. The actors are amateurs and students and semi-pros; they project and enunciate in stage voices. Initially it played only at drive-ins through the South and then the distributor went out of business. It's become a cult feature since and is valuable as an example of low-budget amateur filmmaking. As a horror feature on it's own merits: not so much. Young George Romero liked it. I've heard David Lynch suggested as a fan. The sound is often only roughly synced, most famously with her echoing footsteps, done at the studio with high heeled shoes rapping on a plywood board. The director says he wanted to do better but there was no time or money. A fortuitous error: it adds to the dreamlike quality of those scenes. Filmed in and around Lawrence, Kansas and the ruined Saltair pavilion in Utah. The pavilion was the origin of the story: they wrote the film around it. Criterion 2-disc DVD set. The restored theatrical version is vastly better than the public domain copy I had seen before. It looks more like a serious film now. The set includes the director's cut which is 5 minutes longer but poorer quality. That version has a commentary track by the director and writer. I has some good info but also long silent stretches. Later: available on Blu-ray from Criterion. My thumbnails are from the DVD. interesting in my opinion how the director and lead actress never did another movie.
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Post by hi224 on Jan 1, 2021 0:30:13 GMT
Carnival of Souls (1962), directed by Herk Harvey. After inexplicably escaping drowning in a car crash, a young woman wanders in a dreamlike and disassociated state. Sometimes her world goes silent and sometimes other people can't see or hear her. Ghoulish figures stare and menace her. She is drawn to a ruined outdoor pavilion where dead figures rise from the water and dance. She begins to see herself as one of them... Spooky happenings but otherwise plotless. Patterns but not a real story. It is a micro-budget effort from industrial filmmakers who wanted to try something more exciting. They were going for a Euro art-film look and some of the photography is striking. The actors are amateurs and students and semi-pros; they project and enunciate in stage voices. Initially it played only at drive-ins through the South and then the distributor went out of business. It's become a cult feature since and is valuable as an example of low-budget amateur filmmaking. As a horror feature on it's own merits: not so much. Young George Romero liked it. I've heard David Lynch suggested as a fan. The sound is often only roughly synced, most famously with her echoing footsteps, done at the studio with high heeled shoes rapping on a plywood board. The director says he wanted to do better but there was no time or money. A fortuitous error: it adds to the dreamlike quality of those scenes. Filmed in and around Lawrence, Kansas and the ruined Saltair pavilion in Utah. The pavilion was the origin of the story: they wrote the film around it. Criterion 2-disc DVD set. The restored theatrical version is vastly better than the public domain copy I had seen before. It looks more like a serious film now. The set includes the director's cut which is 5 minutes longer but poorer quality. That version has a commentary track by the director and writer. I has some good info but also long silent stretches. Later: available on Blu-ray from Criterion. My thumbnails are from the DVD. Harvey shares a hometown with me.
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Post by phantomparticle on Jan 5, 2021 1:59:18 GMT
Candace Hilligoss was certainly an intriguing personality as the lost and vacant accident victim. A dancer and stage actress, her only other movie was Curse of the Living Corpse, in which she had a small role, and some television work, mostly uncredited.
She was born in 1935, is divorced with two children and, as of this post, is still alive.
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Post by TheOriginalPinky on Jan 5, 2021 17:32:10 GMT
This is a particular favorite of mine, having first seeing it as a very young child - in a drive-in with the family!!! My most recent review: Carnival of Souls (1962) Haunting classic that still has very gripping creep factor and scares. The low budget production only adds to the chilling effects. Although parts of it are cheezy, this can be forgiven for the overall mood created. Candace Hilligoss plays vulnerable and fragile commendably. Fun Note: Herk Harvey, who directed the film, also plays the creepy evil guy who plagues Mary. 9/10 Candace Hilligoss Herk Harvey Frances Feist Sidney Berger
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Post by petrolino on Jan 24, 2021 16:28:15 GMT
Spellbinding.
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mgmarshall
Junior Member
@mgmarshall
Posts: 2,052
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Post by mgmarshall on Jan 25, 2021 11:05:23 GMT
Love it. Love everything about it. The inescapable eeriness of that organ score. Candace Hilligoss' terror-stricken eyes. The dead carnival, looming on the horizon like a gigantic tomb. Herk Harvey is in your house, in your car, in every window and every corner leering out of the darkness. The sleazy, sexually intimidating neighbor who actually manages to feel like like a source of safety and comfort when compared to the alternative. The dancers, circling and circling back and forth forever. When I first saw it, it felt like an inexplicable nightmare. I recognized no actors (most of whom didn't do much else outside of this); it didn't look like any movie I'd ever seen before, and it certainly didn't sound like one. It was hard to shake off afterwards, and it's still an impression that sticks with me more than a decade on.
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