Carnival of Souls/Dementia 13

Rating:
Summary: Two classic cult horror films for the price of one
Review: "Carnival of Souls" is a cult classic with a most deserved reputation that puts it almost (but not quite) on a par with dead George Romero's "Night of the Living Dead" in terms of shoestring productions. Mary Henry (Candace Hilligoss) accepts a car ride from a group of other young girls, only to end up in a drag race that sees the car go over a bridge with only Mary surviving. Having taken a job as a church organist in Salt Lake City, Mary heads for her new home, passing a deserted pavilion on the outskirts of town. Mary is drawn to the ruined bathing center/carnival, but has bigger problems since she keeps seeing a leering, corpse-like man (played by director Herk Harvey) watching her. Again and again Mary has the eerie experience of suddenly finding herself in a silent world where no one seems to notice her. Eventually she returns to the pavilions to come to the terrifying realization of what has happened. The overall effect is a nightmarish quality that makes you ignore the technical problems with overdubbing, campy performances by the supporting cast, and such.

"Dementia 13" comes to us from slightly higher up on the production ladder coming from AIP. Francis Ford Coppolla does the directing as part of producer Roger Corman's infamous "apprentice" program (Corman was shooting his own film and let Coppolla film on the same location). The story is set in Ireland and if it bears a strong resemblance to Corman's film adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe, well, DUH, but the ending is going to rip off a different horror classic. When her husband drops dead, Louise Haloran (Luana Anders) know she will be cut out of the Haloran family inheritance so she pretends he is in New York on business and heads off to the ancestral home in Ireland to try and get in good with the family. But at Castle Haloran the family is engaged in morbid rituals marking the death of John's sister Kathleen, who drowned in the pond six years earlier. The question of inheritance becomes more interesting once family members start being hacked to death by an ax-murderer. Despite this development "Dementia 13" is not a gory film, but more of a character study. This was Coppolla's first film but beyond pointing the camera in the right directions those interested in an auteur study should not get too excited about this one.

Of these two damsel in distress cult films, "Carnival of Souls" is the better. But the fact that you can get both on one DVD is certainly a nice incentive. You can certainly quibble about the quality of these respective films, but in terms of their reputations both of these are on the consensus Top 10 list of cult films in the horror genre. That means you should at least see them once for yourself and make up your own mind.

Rating:
Summary: Double Feature Of Horror
Review: CARNIVAL OF SOULS & DEMENTIA 13 are two of the creepiest low budget movies in the 60s. Marengo films gave both of these movies a ggreat treatment by putting them together on one DVD. And the transfer was very good! CARNIVAL OF SOULS starring Candace Hilligoss is one of those genuinely creepy movies that send a chill down your spine. Effectively chilling despite its low budget.

DEMENTIA 13 is Francis Ford Coppola's debut feature. He put together a very intense & engaging movie with a very respectable cast that gave very credible performances. The standout performance of this movie was the late Patrick Magee. It would have been interesting if someone like Vincent Price would have gotten Magee's role as Magee reminds me of Price in a lot of ways. Very graphic for its time, especially the ax decapitation murder, DEMENTIA 13 is a forgotten classic. Luana Anders & Mary Mitchel are very sexy in their respective roles, P>A great buy! Two horror classics for the price of one.

Rating:
Summary: NOT GOOD TRANSFERS
Review: I buy many DVD's form these smaller companies(Marengo, VCI, Roan and Platinum disc). I was satisfied with the transfers on this Marengo disc when I had nothing to comapare it to, but Platium Disc has much better transfers of both these movies. With Platium Disc you have to buy two DVD's. On one you get a great transfer of Carnival(plus 3 other movies). On the other you get a good transfer of Dementia(plus 3 other movies). You even save about three dollars.

Rating:
Summary: Two Classic 60's Horror Films on 1 DVD!
Review: I remember seeing Carnival of Souls about 10 years ago at an old movie theatre, it was one of those midnight shows, and boy did the film creep me out! This DVD Double Feature released by Marengo Films, a Dallas, TX based classic & cult movie company is the un-cut version and is one of the best looking prints I have ever seen out there by a small home video company. Dementia 13 is also a great classic and looks and sounds fantastic!

Rating:
Summary: Disturbing
Review: I saw this on vhs about ten years ago (by accident) and never forgot it. I have recommended it many times. It is a very good story and gave me the willys because it somehow felt real. We have all gone to a place sometime in our life, that just seemed too creepy for some unknown reason.

Rating:
Summary: Marengo Killer B Kombo Meal-Carnival Of Souls & Dementia 13!
Review: Marengo Studios had good sense to put these two black and white films together. The transfer is excellent as they both are digitally remastered.

Carnival Of Souls with Candace Hilligoss as church organist, Mary Henry, is a cult classic that was produced on a shoestring budget of $17,000.00 and was filmed in less than three weeks. Very creepy and nightmarish visuals with tons of suspension of disbelief scenes.

Dementia 13 is Francis Ford Coppolla's directorial debut. A great suspense filled horror film with creepy scenes that will delight.

Both of these films are highly recommended!

Happy Watching and Unpleasant Dreams...

Rating:
Summary: Marengo Killer B Kombo Meal-Carnival Of Souls & Dementia 13!
Review: Marengo Studios had good sense to put these two black and white films together. The transfer is excellent as they both are digitally remastered.

Carnival Of Souls with Candace Hilligoss as church organist, Mary Henry, is a cult classic that was produced on a shoestring budget of $17,000.00 and was filmed in less than three weeks. Very creepy and nightmarish visuals with tons of suspension of disbelief scenes.

Dementia 13 is Francis Ford Coppolla's directorial debut. A great suspense filled horror film with creepy scenes that will delight.

Both of these films are highly recommended!

Happy Watching and Unpleasant Dreams...

Rating:
Summary: TWO GREAT HORROR MOVIES
Review: T.A. HANSON must work for Platinum Disk... Craig Cosgray, President - Marengo Films. WE WORK HARD AT PROVIDING QUALITY FILMS... THIS IS A BARGAIN AND A FINE ADDITION TO YOUR COLLECTION.