Time: 80 Minutes
Age Rating: R16
Cast:
Candace Hilligoss as Mary Henry
Sidney Berger as John Linden
Director: Herk Harvey

Virtually the only thing I knew about Carnival of Souls was that it was regarded as a horror classic, its title, and the fact it was released in the 1960s, so I could only gather that it was a ghost story and involved a carnival in some capacity. And with that, Carnival of Souls ended up being a very surprising film, and certainly lived up to its reputation.

This unsettling story really puts you in the headspace of the main character throughout. It really emphasized the feeling of loneliness and the oppressive experience of being haunted. There’s also a good use of ambiguity in what is shown on screen, so you don’t know for certain whether it’s real or just in the protagonist’s head. It is a short movie at 78 minutes and it worked as such, it was as long as it needed to be, and has a solid conclusion in which it particularly escalates the horror in its final act.

Candace Hilligoss is fantastic in the lead role, the whole movie follows her and she carries it excellently; we feel that we are on this journey with her. She expresses fear very well and delivers a believable performance. Director Herk Harvey actually has an acting role here too, and does well playing a man who is haunting the protagonist.

It is actually amazing that Carnival of Souls is a directorial debut for Herk Harvey, and that he wouldn’t make another film afterwards. You definitely feel its low budget, but this, and the lowkey directing helped if anything. Harvey creates a strong, haunting, and nightmarish atmosphere, with an otherworldly feeling. This is helped by the gothic black and white cinematography, with simple yet horrifying imagery, and the harsh lighting and simple yet effective editing. Additionally, the organ score from Gene Moore is very eerie and creates such dread which hangs over the movie and never lets up.

Carnival of Souls is an effectively creepy psychological horror film, greatly directed, and with a stellar lead performance from Candace Hilligoss. It’s no surprise that it ended up being such an influential film.