Mary Henry (Candace Hilligoss) 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 (Herk Harvey). 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.

Filmed in Lawrence, Kansas and Salt Lake City, Carnival of Souls was shot on a budget of $33,000, and Harvey employed various guerrilla filmmaking techniques to finish the production. It was Harvey’s only feature film, and did not gain widespread attention when originally released as a double feature with The Devil’s Messenger in 1962.

Set to an organ score by Gene Moore, the film has been contemporarily noted by critics and film scholars for its cinematography and foreboding atmosphere. The film has a large cult following and is occasionally screened at film and Halloween festivals, and has been cited as a wide-ranging influence on numerous filmmakers, including David Lynch and George A. Romero.

“A bold film that plays like a perfect nightmare for everyone who’s used to standard structures in genre cinema. Still scary after decades.” – Federico Furzan, Cinelipsis

“It depends on crisp black-and-white photography, atmosphere and surprisingly effective acting.” – Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

“One of those unique horror movies where the low budget, gritty footage and rough performances combine to create not only an unsettling atmosphere of dread but also a study of existential angst in the face of unimaginable horror.” – Matt Brunson, Creative Loafing

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