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It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Of course I know it doesn't come close to the original film. I saw it years ago and didn't think much of it. Then a few years later I bought it on DVD as part of a set along with LEPRECHAUN and two of David Cronenberg's movies RABID and SHIVERS. When I revisited CARNIVAL OF SOULS the plot made a little more sense. But when I read the reviews on it's IMDb web page I noticed that this film was somewhat misunderstood.1. Like in the beginning of the film where Alex (Bobbie Phillips) drives her car into the ocean with Louis (Larry Miller) the man responsible for her mother's murder in the backseat. Right after this scene the film cuts to Alex waking up in her bathtub. Many seemed to have assumed she dreamed about the crash but that is not the case. When the film cuts to this scene it actually goes back a few days meaning Alex didn't dream about the crash it happened a few days later.2. There is another scene where Alex goes to see a psychiatrist and she talks to him like they've had several sessions together. But the psychiatrist reveals that he has never met Alex before. This is representative of the reality setting in of what really happened after that crash that took place which would lead us to the final revelation or the big twist ending. Of course at one point Alex is shown climbing out of the ocean and on to the pier she drove off where she sees the abandoned carnival grounds. In fact this is really Alex's soul climbing out of the water and on to the pier. The whole part between the crash and the twist at the end is really what we think is reality that slowly turns into what is actual reality.This is how I understand or interpreted it. CARNIVAL OF SOULS is really a thinking man's horror movie. You have to pay close attention to certain parts of the dialog to grasp what certain phrases actually refer to. Many plot elements are not presented in a very straightforward manner so it requires a long attention to figure out the plot.Overall, it's not the worst film I've endured. I also agree that the original is way better. But since this film strayed from the original I didn't really try to make comparisons.There is also an unofficial German remake entitled YELLA which is also better. and had it been an official remake it would be considered the more faithful of the two.

Although this movie claims to be a remake of the 1960s movie of the same name, it really isn't. It just borrows a few minor details from the original film, and spends most of its time doing its own thing. I wasn't really bothered by that, and I simply requested that this "remake" be good. But it isn't. As others here have reported, this is an extremely slow moving movie, where scene after scene of no real consequence happens. And when things do happen, it's often very confusing, not making it clear if what happens is in the imagination of the heroine or is actually happening. At the end, I was not quite sure what had indeed happened. I will say that the movie looks okay for what was reportedly just a two million dollar budget, but the decent look in no way compensates for the movie's shortcomings.

First, learn why a good chilling film is interesting. Watch the original COS after midnight with the lights out and on an old cold tube driven b&w TV. Goose pimples rise up, chills navigate your back, and the popcorn was really good.Now watch the remake. Begin sticking your fingers down your throat at any time. The feeling is identical to watching this mess. You will realize instantly that the taste in your mouth is not a dream, but nausea, now do your comparison.Lesson learned, leave well enough alone or don't mess with classic material and stick with making remakes of The real housewives of NJ.

"Wes Craven's Carnival of Souls" is a pretty dull affair with a few good moments.**SPOILERS**Years after their mother's death, sisters Alex, (Bobbie Phillips) and Sandra Grant, (Shawnee Smith) are still upset the day their father Louis Seagren, (Larry Miller) killed her in front of them. As adults, weird visions start happening to them, making them wish to leave their small-town home quicker. When the visions start to get more intense, she starts to seek comfort with nearby worker Michael, (Paul Johansson) and they start a relationship. As the past keeps coming back to haunt her, she finally gets the strength to stand up to it before it is able to completely control both their lives.The Good News: When this one tries, it's not that bad. The big one is the hallucinations and the visions, which here aren't that bad. This one here pretty much goes with these as the solid points since all of them are really entertaining and some quite frightening. The freak-out in the car wash is the freakiest one, since it slowly builds up the potential for something with the ominous focusing on the one employee and the shadows in the background playing havoc. When it turns into the big hallucination attack, the atmosphere is built up beautifully, for it does that change beforehand and comes through perfectly. Another freaky scene is the one in the bathtub, which doesn't even start off like it would but then quickly changes into a pretty frightening vision at times. That there's the brief ones scattered all throughout are also quite nice, as it changes them up and really tries to do something with them. That they can happen at any time is a fantastic quality, as there's a feeling of suspense in waiting for the next one to occur. That alone is pretty good and gives it a good reasoning for a viewing. The back-story is decent enough and has some really creepy ideas thrown in. The last positive is the big stunt scene, which is the only real action in the film and really gets over. These here are the film's good points.The Bad News: Despite it's good points, this one was really underwhelming. The complete and utter inability to make the main villain a source of fear is something to get over. This one has a main villain that fails to do anything in here that could cause fear in them. Popping up in hallucinations and day-dreams, which are obvious when they occur since the villain shows up, to attempt to torment the victims yet never laying a physical hand on them is quite shocking, since the actions prove that they're something to be reckoned with, yet the behavior does nothing and really hurts the villain. That is also done in with the never physical but only mental harming, and these really drop the film down a lot. The dragged pace is also somewhat troublesome, especially since the film decides to concentrate simply on the hallucinations for the shocks. It really stretches out the film and makes them feel like they're done in pretty infrequent intervals with boring filler in between. That isn't far off, as most of the time spent waiting for the hallucinations to come back offer nothing but boredom, and these are really problematic. There's little minor flaws, such as the sex scene being really sloppy-looking and not coming off at all realistic or believable or the fact that this one never really tries to capitalize on the notion of clowns being something to add fear to the film with their constant appearances, but the main ones here are the first two flaws. Those will be the ones that keep the film down the most.The Final Verdict: While it's not that spectacular, there is enough going for it to be entertaining that there is something worthwhile about it. If the boredom can be overcome, then this one could prove watchable, but those looking for more than a few shocks won't be terribly impressed with this one.Rated R: Language, Violence, mild incest themes and a clothed sex scene