Tweet
Released by: Windmill Films
Released on: 9/20/2003
Director: Christopher Speeth
Cast: Herve Villachez, Jerome Dempsey, William Preston, Lenny Baker, Janine Carazo
Year: 1973
Purchase From Amazon
The Movie:
Languishing in obscurity for the better part of three decades, Malatesta's Carnival Of Blood has finally been given a home video release for the first time on this DVD which was produced by the writer and director of the film, Christopher Speeth.
An odd man named Mr. Blood runs a carnival that's seen better days. It's decrepit and not in very good shape and most of the employees at this particular carnival are weirdos. Mr. Blood is employed by the owner of the carnival, Malatesta - yet another mysterious and bizarre older man.
A younger lady named Vena and her parents move into the town where the carnival is situated and hope to join up as they own and operate a shooting gallery that would fit in quite nicely. Vena is also awaiting the impending arrival of her boyfriend, but while he's en route, she discovers the studly man who runs the Tunnel Of Love at the carnival and strikes up a 'thing' with him in the interim.
Much to the surprise of Vena and a few of the other people in and around the carnival (notice I said 'a few' and not 'all') there is a pack of cannibals living beneath the carnival in the caves that lay beneath the area it was built upon. It seems that the Tunnel Of Love is the in/out door for the cannibals and that Blood and Malatesta are actually the leaders of the pack. While Vena and her family figure it all out in time to get out with their lives or will the end up on a snack tray for Malatesta's evil crew?
This movie is a trip. Now, I openly admit I watched it rather inebriated and that may have added to my enjoyment of it all, but alcohol induced fever dreams aside, there is some seriously messed up action going down in this film. The settings plays as big a role in the mood and feel that this film creates as any of the actors or actresses do and if you ever thought that carnivals were creepy, this movie will go a long way to reinforcing that for you.
Performances are rather pedestrian for the most part, with Herve Villachez (Tattoo from Fantasy Island, who is really only on screen for five or ten minutes combined, standing out in his own little way. I'd have been happier had there been more midget action, but even with Herve in what could be considered a supporting role at best, it still benefits from his magnificent presence.
Adding to the weirdness that permeates through every frame of this movie are a few odd things worth mentioning. Vera's father talks about revenge more than a few times in the film but it is never once made clear who or what he's going to get revenge for. The carnival, which has obviously been around a while, never really has any patrons. It's basically just the people who work there that we see. And speaking of the carnival, why is it that so many of the rides and attractions are covered in colored bubble wrap? None of this is addressed at all in the film and I honestly don't know if it was intentional or not but it does make the whole experience quite a bit stranger in spite of itself.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Non-Anamophic 1.85.1 is the order of the day on this transfer and surprisingly enough, this disc looks pretty sharp. There is a constant display of print damage and scratches that make them selves known throughout the duration but it's all minor for the most part. There aren't any compression issues, just some very mild edge enhancement in a couple of scenes. Blacks could be a bit darker but most of the color scheme is well rendered and given the obscurity of this movie, it looks as good (if not better) as anyone can really ask.
The Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono soundtrack is perfectly acceptable, if unremarkable. There are one or two scenes where some hiss creeps through the track but for the most part the dialogue is plenty easy to understand and there aren't any serious issues with the audio on this release.
Aside from the main feature there are two extras on the disc. First up is a selection of outtakes from the film that runs about two minutes and forty seconds and includes a couple of extended gore shots and a few other odds and ends. There's also a gallery of black and white production and promotional stills set to the theme music used in the movie.
The Final Word:
Certainly one of the more bizarre films I've seen in sometime, Malatesta's Carnival Of Blood is very much worth a look if you're okay with some surrealism in your horror. While the midget factor is unfortunately overplayed by the cover art, it still has enough weirdness working in its favor to recommend it.