The Devil's Carnival

A trio of lost souls wake to find themselves as guests at a hellish carnival where the performers proceed to involve them in the telling of three fables (as recounted by the devil).

They say that the devil has all the best tunes, but that's certainly not the case with this bizarre musical horror from director Darren Lynn Bousman: the songs in The Devil's Carnival, some of which are belted out by Old Nick himself, are absolutely atrocious—whimsical, tuneless tracks that seriously grate on the nerves.

The rest of the film isn't much cop either: the whole 'scary carnival' routine is extremely old hat, and when the show's grotesque characters aren't bursting into song, they're indulging in all manner of kooky behaviour that proves almost as irritating as their wretched warbling.

I was a big fan of Bousman's previous horror musical Repo! The Genetic Opera (2008), which I could happily watch again, but this attempt at mixing tunes with terror is a travesty that doesn't bear repeating.

3/10 for the colourful lighting, creative costumes and Briana Evigan.

I saw this movie last night as part of "The Devil's Carnival" road show. If you have seen "Repo! The Genetic Opera," then you are already a Terrance/Darren fan. This movie is the first in a series to be made. It deals with 3 people who die and land in Hell. Terrance Zdunich plays a very menacing Lucifer. Using Aesop's Fables, Lucifer associates one of the fables to each of the people, trying to discern whether or not they realize the sin that has brought them there. Lucifer picks specific members of his carnival to help act out the fables for the sinners. This is a musical and is beautifully done. I was not aware that Brianna Evigan had such a great voice. There are other stars that amazed me with song. I was mesmerized throughout her song. The make-up was well beyond expectation, especially for Lucifer and The Twin, played by Ogre of Skinny puppy. If you wait to see this movie on DVD, you will miss out on half of the enjoyment. The road show pulls you in and makes you very much apart of it all. If this showed in a local theater, I would see it again and again.

I loved Repo! The Genetic Opera so I thought I would at least like this. Did I?

Well, the concept was interesting and there were, like, two catchy songs (one that played in the middle of the end credits). However, I didn't feel anything for the characters and I found myself checking the time throughout most of it. As for the music, I guess I was expecting more rocky tunes like the ones in Repo. I quickly learned that this is nothing like the movie I saw 20 times (and counting).

The Devil's Carnival isn't the worst film ever, but it's not a film I would willingly watch again.

From Terrance Zdunich, creator of "Repo: The Genetic Opera", and Darren Lynn Bousman, director of the film adaptation of "Repo", as well as "Saw" II-IV comes the short film anthology "The Devil's Carnival", an insane, musical horror/comedy centering on three people who have died and ended up in Hell, where the must contend with various obstacles.

This is an entertaining, yet highly flawed film.

We follow John (Sean Patrick Flannery), a grieving father who committed suicide, Tamara (Jessica Lowndes) who trusts people too easily and was killed by her boyfriend, and petty thief Ms. Merrywood (Briana Evigan) whom was gunned-down presumably by police. All three awaken near the "Devil's Carnival", a twisted sideshow in Hell run by and populated by various demons, harpies and oddball characters, and of course headed by Lucifer himself. (Zdunich)

Meanwhile, Lucifer reads to a young child from Aesope's Fables, narrating stories that mirror the struggles of the three main characters as they are forced into dark, deadly tests.

The film is fairly simplistic and has a decent structure, and is populated by a handful of well-done musical numbers. (It is a bit of a Rock Opera, to be honest, similar to Repo) The musical numbers may not be too memorable, but they're an absolute blast, and are very well- written and performed.

Characters are developed just enough for it's short 50-or-so-minute run- time. Although the only character you will really care about is John, as he's far more sympathetic than Merrywood or Tamara.

The supporting cast (including Bill Mosely, Alexa Vega, Emilie Autumn and others as the cast members of the Carnival) are a lot of fun, but aren't really developed.

And the camera-work, though decent for a short film, is a bit too chaotic at times. During the titular musical number "The Devil's Carnival", the camera seems to randomly glide around rather than follow any sort of direction, which kind of distracted from it.

I also take issue with the pacing of the story. Well it is well- structured, the film bogs itself down too much in the first 10-or-so minutes, making the rest of the film feel needlessly rushed.

But for what it is, it's worth seeing. The music is good, the characters are memorable despite uneven development, and it's a fine little short film.

I give "The Devil's Carnival" a slightly-above-average 6 out of 10. Fans of Zdunich, Bousman or horror in general should check it out.

You will either like this movie or hate it - there is no in between. If a blend of Rocky Horror and the Twilight Zone sounds intriguing, then I urge you to give The Devil's Carnival a try. The story follows 3 of Aesop's Fables with 3 recently deceased individuals going to hell. Personally, the location feels more like purgatory - where persons are given an opportunity to relive past mistakes but make better decisions.

The music, costumes and makeup were perfect for the movie - not state of the art, but definitely above B horror flick. Except for Sean Patrick Flanery and Paul Sorvino, I didn't recognize any of the cast (although I know that Alexa Vega had a role). I actually like independent movies since they aren't polished and perfected.

Find a trailer and watch before viewing the entire movie. If the trailer sucks to you, keep on moving. But if you like weird things like I do, give it a try. You'll be glad you did.