Fantasia 2012: Come One, Come Two, Come All – The Devil’s Carnival Review

Yell! Magazine’s Review of The Devil’s Carnival: Hurry, hurry! Step right up! Don’t be shy, ladies and gentlemen, you won’t believe your eyes. Come on in to the greatest carnival this side of Hades. Witness the naive little frog as she falls for the charm of Machiavellian scorpion, only to feel the prick of his tail. Feast your eyes on the greedy pup who’s covetous ways lead her to a temptation that ends with a lash from the Lion Tamer’s whip. And you certainly don’t want to miss the tale of Grief, as he meets our own incarnation of Jupiter, and gets his due.

Head on over to the big top, where you’ll hear the Hobo Clown sing you a tale for a penny, Wick and her Woe-Maidens will entice you to Kiss the Girls, and the beautifully broken Painted Doll will tempt you to drink from her cup of scorn. Get your tickets at the gate, and don’t bother praying, for God has no place in our Carnival. Don’t beg for mercy, for it shall not be given, and above all else, do not break any of the six hundred and sixty-six rules we have here, lest you, too, find yourself face to face with the Tamer and his whip. There are repercussions for rule breakers, so listen to our Tamer and take heed, “There are consequences, morbid consequences, crueler than ever imagined. Oh yes, there are consequences, bloody consequences, when you don’t follow the rules.”

From the same fucked up, amazing minds who brought us Repo! The Genetic Opera, comes a hellish roller coaster of moral fables (as in Aesop), told from the other side of the tale. Morals have no business at the carnival though, so check them at the door, with your coat. The ensemble cast of carnies includes Bill Moseley, Dayton Callie, Paul Sorvino, Terrance Zdunich, Emilie Autumn (with a couple of her Bloody Crumpets), Sean Patrick Flanery, Alexa Vega, Nivek Ogre, Ivan Moody, Shawn Crahan, and more.

The Devil’s Carnival is what your typical parking lot circus would look like, if it was seen through the eyes of Tim Burton and Rob Zombie, and set to the music from Repo! The Genetic Opera. With jester jugglers and snake charmers performing their feats on a stage in front of you, it’s more than just a movie — it’s an experience. Make sure you check out the official website (thedevilscarnival.com) to see if this underworld event is coming to a town near you. If you’re interested, get your tickets fast, because the Big Top is sure to sell out quickly. We sinners love a good sideshow, don’t we? So come one, come two, come YOU, to the Devil’s Carnival!

Verdict:

I cannot express the pleasure I got from experiencing this experience. It was pure fucking magic, and if you don’t go see this when it’s in your town, you totes don’t even deserve to call yourself a sinner, so go back to Heaven and repent to baby Jebus, you fucking crybabies. The sole reason The Devil’s Carnival only gets four skulls instead of five is because it should have been longer. Coming in at only 65 minutes, I could have sat there for two hours, and I still wouldn’t have felt satisfied. I’ve finally found the circus that 10-year-old me wanted to run away and join.

Stay Scared, kids