[lilknivesguy]

What always struck me as somewhat interesting, yet oddly annoying, in Carnival of Souls was the incessant organ music. Like the movie, too artsy for its own good.

Some call the flic surrealist, and as experiments go, it ain't bad. Worth watching once, I suppose. "Is there death after life?" was one of the taglines of the film when it was released. And I suppose we're meant to go "hmmmmm" and "aaaaahhhhh" upon consideration of the disjointed narrative and visual cues that let us know we're somewhere between reality and limbo. But mixing the cerebral and the visceral should be done carefully. And Souls falls short.

About Carnvial of Souls, screenwriter John Clifford said he wanted "the look of a Bergman and the feel of a Cocteau." For the budget, I think they came close. But if you're looking for a scare, look elsewhere.

I do know this much after watching Souls. Utah in the early sixties looks like one scary place.