digiboy

I can't see spending the bucks on the Criterion. Any opinions on the next best version on DVD for good quality?

devilpants

The Wade Williams Collection/Image version is clear as a bell. Cool looking cover, too. I think it costs twenty dollars less than the CC version, heh!

dave w

the criterion release is so far head and shoulders above any other that i say save your pennies,it will be worth it if you are a fan of the film.

mike45

Save and buy the Criterion.

garmonbozia

I agree. The Criterion has two different cuts of the film and I thought the special features on this one were especially interesting (particularly the stuff about the location).

ehonauer

The shorter version on the Criterion Collection has the best transfer of a B&W film I've ever seen. The image quality is shockingly good for a film that was made for 62 dollars.

celluloidwisdom

Yup.

Most of the time Criterions cost more because they're better than competing editions. The Criterion "Carnival of Souls" is packed with extras, including a reunion piece, which by itself is worth the upgrade.

Why couldn't Criterion do "The Bad News Bears." Now THERE'S a film crying out for a reunion documentary -- though sadly Matthau, Morrow, Ritchie, Lancaster, and Piazza have all since passed... But c'mon: who doesn't want to see what Engelberg or Ogilvie or Tanner or Lupus is up to these days...?

cinemaman

I can't believe ANYONE is praising Criterion for the extras on this disc. What a waste of space! Tractor Saftey? Dental Hygiene? History of Kenya? Are you kidding me?

And how many different ways did they show us the ONE important piece of information from the director "uh, we didn't have any hidden meaning with the film. we were just having fun."
Let me see.. in the insert... in the text on the disc... in the featurette.. and in what has to be the WORST commentary EVER recorded where the director reads word...for...word... what is in the insert!!!

Don't get me wrong.. the picture was stunning......for that it was worth it..

but please don't tell anyone to buy this for the extras!

siegfried

....but if all you want is a decent print and don't really
want to spend the money on Criterion, is the Image
version reasonable.?????

devilpants

Maybe the living dead didn't exercise proper tractor safety or died from improper dental hygiene.

ckolchak

there is a double feature disc with COS and a Christopher Lee movie (whose name escapes me at the moment). quality is decent and price is under $10.

the Criterion is one of my favorite discs and i while i like the examples of the saftey/industrial ed films that the company did, i would have rather have seen examples of the shorts geared more towards 'mental hygiene'.
other than that, the extras are wonderful for a film that will never enjoy a large popularity.

Ky-Fi

Yep, that's a double feature with Lee's Horror Hotel (also released separately as City of the Dead). I think I picked this up for $5.99---Horror Hotel is a great movie and this version is widescreen, although the picture is quite soft. The Carnival of Souls picture is crystal clear, however. If you don't care about extras, this double feature is well worth the super-cheap price.

Father Karras

The transfer of COS on the disc with the Horror Hotel double feature is very clean and very sharp. I had rented the Criterion version of this before I picked up the double feature disc and I counldn't see any difference in the transfer. The Criterion is a great DVD with some nice supplements but if your just interested in the film, this double feature disc is a great option (plus it's about $30 cheaper than the Criterion).