I’m surprised that I enjoyed this film because it’s from the same creators of Repo! The Genetic Opera. Both films look good on paper but only The Devil’s Carnival (TDC) turned out well as a film. Both movies are impressive and I have to give props to Terrance Zdunic for co-writing, composing, and acting/singing in both films.
The reason TDC is better is because it’s simpler, and actually, I think it’s even a little too short; so it’s easier to give more concentration to everything. The only other problems were that it also suffered from a scene where an actress had no nipples because the filmmakers covered them up but then shot her boobs, and in the scene where the thief is being punished the filmmakers use the same shots repeatedly.
The Devil’s Carnival centers around 2 Aesop fables and 1 fable often mistaken for an Aesop, that’s right ‘the Scorpion and the Frog’ isn’t by Aesop, but the nice thing is that even if you don’t know the fables you can understand that these three people are being punished based on their sins: stealing, trusting too much, and grieving too much.
The scene leading up to Tamara’s death was an example of a scene too short, it went a little something like this:
as quickly as it took you to read it that’s how quickly the scenes went
And then he sings this song (click it!) and she’s dead.
I found it hard to take Repo! seriously because of the singing/talking and Paris Hilton singing. If you want to see what I mean click this sentence to check out one of the worst songs (WARNING so not ok for kids). TDC isn’t all singing and transitions nicely into the songs.
2 thing I liked was that 1) God is a doll maker and sinners are broken dolls because it gives God some responsibility for some things wrong with the world and 2) the character ‘the Painted Doll’ first came off as being a pretty woman without a voice but she gets a nice long song so she doesn’t stay that way.
Finally, I don’t understand how a sinner being forgiven and thus sent to heaven means the Devil can invade heaven. Anybody get that?
Sweet n Sour Reviews 