Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.0

The Devil's Carnival Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 6, 2017

Fans of the classic old Jay Ward series Rocky & Bullwinkle & Friends may fondly recall one of the regular features was a whimsical update on a certain storyteller and his tales, called “Aesop and Son”, which (somewhat similarly to “Fractured Fairy Tales” and even some elements of “Peabody’s Improbable History”) revisited well known sagas and gave them an appropriate (at that time, mid-century) updating. Something at least somewhat similar is on hand with the interesting but underdeveloped The Devil’s Carnival, a follow up of sorts to Repo! The Genetic Opera by collaborators Darren Lynn Bousman and Terrance Zdunich. As my colleague Martin Liebman noted in his Repo! The Genetic Opera Blu-ray review, that film featured “an interesting premise that suffers from questionable execution”, an assessment that could easily be ported over to The Devil’s Carnival as well. (For those interested, I reviewed the Blu-ray of Repo! The Genetic Opera when I was working for another site—a little Googling by perspicacious searchers should turn that up with little problem.) The Devil’s Carnival plays a bit like a musical episode of The Twilight Zone: The Complete Series, but it suffers from a rushed narrative that is haphazard at best and incoherent at worst. The fact that The Devil’s Carnival clocks in at less than an hour in and of itself suggests that this “film” might have been better served with an at least somewhat longer running time and bit more effort devoted to detailing the characters, both human and hellish.

The Devil’s Carnival’s “interesting premise” is kind of twofold. The foundational element is that three troubled individuals are given a one way ticket to hell, which in this formulation is like a hallucinatory circus. The second aspect is a little trickier, and is the one that certainly could have used a bit more development. Each of the three stories depicted is supposedly an “update” on a fable by Aesop, though the connective tissue between what’s on display and the supposed source material is tenuous at times. The lack of clarity extends to both the three sad souls who find themselves “down under” (so to speak) as well as to the denizens of the Devil’s Carnival itself. At least somewhat similarly to Repo! The Genetic Opera, The Devil’s Carnival features a slew of fascinating characters who are just kind of plopped down without any explanation or context, leaving the viewer to ferret out what’s happening.

The lack of clarity begins from the get go, when a character who isn’t adequately identified is working on painting dolls, which he isn’t able to do to his satisfaction, tossing the rejects into a big box labeled “Broken”. It was only in a later development that I realized this character (played by Paul Sorvino) was in fact supposed to be one Heavenly Father, evidently having a bit of a “creator’s block” in trying to give birth to something (are the dolls supposed to be symbols for humans?). That puckish sequence then gives way to very quick introductions of three characters in various states of distress. John (Sean Patrick Flanery) has locked himself in his bathroom, where it soon becomes evident he’s contemplating suicide, apparently after the death of his son Daniel (Tillman Norsworthy). Tamara (Jessica Lowndes) is involved in a fracas with her violent boyfriend, an interchange which ends with him pointing a gun at her. Ms. Merrywood (Briana Evigan) returns to her mobile home with a bunch of illicitly gained booty, with the flashing lights of police illuminating her abode. Without much fanfare (no pun intended, given that this is a musical), the three each meet their fates and are transported to hell.

I was already having some “metaphysical” issues with The Devil’s Carnival by this time. Unless one subscribes to a fundamentalist viewpoint that suicide is a sin that results in being consigned to the underworld, I had to wonder why a distraught father mourning his son would be sent to hell. Similarly, why would a young woman being threatened by her boyfriend end up there? Only the story of the thief seems to be appropriately “hellish”, though The Devil’s Carnival attempts (fitfully, it must be added) to at least slightly fill out the stories of the first two characters so that things are perhaps more “agreeable” for those who, like I did, question the underlying logic. In terms of John, a certain reprieve is granted (one that finally clarifies who exactly Paul Sorvino is supposed to be portraying), while the saga of Tamara in hell seems to suggest she’s a bit of a flirt (though even that hardly seems to warrant an eternity in a flaming pit).

There are all sorts of other questions that accrue throughout this short enterprise, including the also odd decision to have John’s son show up in hell himself, at least in hallucination form. And what exactly does the Devil have to do with Aesop's Fables? The whole supposed moral subtext of this piece is repeatedly undercut by inadequate detail being provided, and that leaves the film to coast by on its visual virtuosity, which is quite commendable, especially with regard to production design, and its music, which is a somewhat less satisfying element.

The Devil's Carnival Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Devil's Carnival is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Entertainment One with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. (For those who might panic at the packaging, Entertainment One has released this in a DVD sized case which includes both the Blu-ray and DVD.) The IMDb lists this as having been shot with the Arri Alexa, and with an understanding that this is a pretty relentlessly dark (as in dimly lit) offering, there's some excellent fine detail in any number of close-ups, where elements like the rubbery hair of a "Scorpio" (that's a little joke for those who watch the film) or the almost etched faces of a couple of characters, are revealed with precision and good clarity. That said, the overall murkiness as well as some aggressive color grading (in both the amber tones seen in Repo! The Genetic Opera, as well as some pea green hues) tend to tamp down general detail levels, especially in midrange shots. There are a couple of brief flirtings with banding, especially with regard to reds for some reason, but generally speaking this is a nice looking presentation.

The Devil's Carnival Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Devil's Carnival features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that provides regular surround placement of the musical elements, as well as some of the cacophonous sounds of the carnival in general. Whether this was done intentionally or not I can't say, but the mix in the songs really favors the lower registers, which are often pumping out massed low voicings and (especially) percussion, to the detriment of actually being able to hear whoever is singing (I personally had to turn on the subtitles to catch the lyrics of various songs). That said, everything is rendered with excellent clarity and this may have simply been a stylistic choice. Otherwise, dialogue is also cleanly presented and the track is not troubled by any damage or distortion.

The Devil's Carnival Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

As can perhaps be gleaned from screenshot 20, the menu titles on this disc are on the whimsical side, and that continues on to the submenus:

Devilish Documentaries

The Devil Made Me Do It: The Making of The Devil's Carnival (1080i; 49:41) is a fairly in depth piece featuring some good interviews with the cast and crew. It's kind of astounding to hear Bousman mention he had $12 million for Repo! The Genetic Opera and did The Devil's Carnival with only $100,000.

A Devil of a Time: The Devil's Carnival Road Tour (1080i; 31:12) documents two 2012 tours.

The Devil's in the Details: The Special Makeup and Prosthetic Effects of The Devil's Carnival (1080i; 13:45) is a good look at one of the film's more commendable aspects.

Possessed Previews

Theatrical Trailer (1080p; 1:55)

Road Tour Teaser (1080p; 00:58)

Painted Doll Web Teaser (1080p; 11:39)

Soundtrack Trailer (1080p; 00:58)

The Devil's Carnival Teaser (1080p; 1:34)

Encore Road Tour Teaser (1080p; 1:14)

Accursed Audio Commentaries

Audio Commentary with Director Darren Lynn Bousman and Writer/Actor Terrance Zdunich

Audio Commentary with Actors Emilie Autumn, Briana Evigan, Sean Patrick Flanery and Mark Senter

"A Repo Reunion" Commentary with Darren Lynn Bousman, Bill Moseley, Ogre, Paul Sorvino, Alexa Vega and Terrance Zdunich

The Devil's Carnival Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Devil's Carnival is, to quote a certain reliable pundit, "an interesting premise which suffers from questionable execution". Bousman and Zdunich have evidently followed up this offering with a second Devil's Carnival film, one that I haven't seen but which I hope more fully develops some of the interesting ideas and characters this film features. While the actual main offering on tap here has issues, it's visually quite impressive (especially on such a miniscule budget), and some may enjoy its stylistic proclivities even if they don't quite get what the story is trying to accomplish. The supplementary package here is also quite enjoyable.