What makes it different from others?

just watch it!

The movie is made so realistic it has a lot of that WoW feeling at the right moments and never tooo over the top. the suspense is done so well and the emotion is felt. Very well put together with the music and all.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Even thinking about this film enough to write this review is causing a burning sensation in my brain, similar to the night I forced myself to sit through it. I feel compelled to add this much-deserved one-star rating to help offset some other reviewers, (most likely the unfortunate victims of head injuries),who have given this film two or more stars. Watching this film should be considered as a torture replacement to the now frowned-upon 'water boarding'.I thought I had found the bottom of the movie-quality well with "Alien 3000", but "Carnivore" made me realize that the penny had much further down to fall. How do you portray an effective cat-and-mouse plot in a single family house!?!? There's only one hallway upstairs, yet the characters moved around each other like they were in some inter-dimensional Tardis. And those Federal "agents" who were supposed to be funny made me want to lay my face into a deli meat slicer and turn it on. I DO invite you to watch it, since misery loves company.....

To say Carnivore is a horror creature-feature is akin to saying "the Corvette is made by Hot Wheels." The statement holds truth in an abstract childish manner not unlike the official statements uttered by politicians. You know, statements that technically are correct, that intentionally carry a misleading implication. Hot Wheels does technically make a Corvette, and I guess Carnivore is technically a horror creature-feature.But don't hold your breath.Enter the world of K-mart blue light special cinema, and for once that's not entirely a figure of speech. Joseph Kurtz and Kenneth Mader literally shot a high percentage of the film with a cheap blue light dimmed down in an effort to create atmosphere and hide the limited production values. Problem? The characters explore this dinky little house with dinky little flashlights that give off a distracting white and orange glow. How distracting? The color contrasts so sharply with the blue world in which the characters live that the roaming white/orange spot becomes the focal point through entire dialogue scenes. I'm sorry -- that's not a problem. I forgot. The dialogue is inconsequential, and following the bouncing white spot has more intrigue than the Carnivore, itself.I also liked the fog that filled the house for no rhyme or reason other than yet another attempt to hide the limited production value of the spooky old house. It's funny how the dim blue lighting, the fog, and the obscure camera angles severely backfire and actually draw attention to the micro-budget. It's like watching 7 foot tall 800lb man trying to evade the police by hiding behind a barstool -- he would be better off just sitting on the barstool acting casual.Still on the technical level, Joseph Kurtz and Kenneth Mader actually manage a poor man's version of the "poor man's process." Where they shoot a car scene in, say, someone's garage and have technicians out of frame moving the car and passing the lights across the windshield to simulate motion when the vehicle never goes anywhere. In Carnivore's car scenes, notice the heavy fog outside the windows (hiding the technicians and the walls of the garage.) And observe how that mysteriously vanishes when the characters step outside the vehicle. Also watch the car occasionally not move at all, and let's not forget the static lighting on the actor's faces. Then decide for yourself if the vehicle looks like it's on the road in motion. I don't mean to nitpick, but poor man's process is the oldest trick in the book … how do you screw that up? I've commented heavily upon the technical merits of Carnivore (or lack thereof) primarily due to the noticeable absence of enthusiasm on the scripting and acting levels. Take for example the opening scene where "Connie" the Carnivore startles a scientist, and makes him inject the contents of a hyperdermic needle directly into his own heart. "Oh Connie. Look what you've done." spoken as though he spilled kool-aid on himself with the intensity of a Brady Bunch reject. I would imagine a needle piercing one's heart would prove quite painful and call for panic as hearts do not tend to react well to sudden injections of substances intended for monsters. Maybe it would call for raising of one's voice, perhaps a scream, at the very least a note of concern? I mean, people who spill hot coffee in their lap react with more concern than this guy.If a cast's performance ever had the subtext of, "Get through this. Get my money, and go home" this is that movie.So, now the deadly deadly Carnivore is on the loose in an abandoned house, and the government sends in another scientist with her two body-guards who stand around doing an uncanny Blues Brothers impression (complete with sunglasses and the suit … all they're missing is the hat and the "We're on a mission from God" line.) And, of course, a film with a spooky old house that doubles as the secret government facility (featuring duct-tape locks, no less) also needs a group of horny teens. Not just any horny sex-crazed teens. No, naughty sex-crazed teens who think creepy places would serve as fine destinations for a date (thank you, Friday the 13th ... bastards.) Didn't creepy places and dares stop being "cool" like, I dunno, around 5th grade? Will the scientist and her Blues Brothers body guards make it to the house in time to save the adults posing as teenagers? And more importantly: who cares? The film isn't even trying on a writing/acting level, making the question of who dies a rather moot point. "Who gets to go home first and wash their hands of this film?" I've said it in dozens of reviews, and I'll say it again -- suspense demands sympathetic characters. Otherwise, the Carnivore might as well crumple up a sheet of paper and toss it in the wastebasket which incidentally would be the sole image I would use to describe Carnivore were this a video-review.

this is the absolute worst movie i have ever seen well it is about a tie with Texas chain saw massacre 2. where to begin on bashing this film. oh well lets start with that gay monster. OK what kind of thing was this it looked like an albino furby on steroids. i almost cried when i saw what it looked like. next the acting. alright i wont even call it acting lets just say it was looking like a total douche in front of the camera. this was so stupid i mean all they do is get drunk have sex and probably get raped by the freakin furby. OK light work. what lights it was basically like looking in your attic with no light you cant see a thing. alright sound quality. i pretty much dubbed everything that they said because i couldn't hear it and i really didn't care what they said. so basically they waisted ten years of their life. i really hated this movie if you watch this i hope you can get your money back.

Version reviewed: 'Key DVD' distributed by 20th Century Fox, 2002, 80 minutes My recommendation rating OF THE FILM ONLY: 8 out of 10. Recommendation rating for this version: 2 out of 10Let's get the bad news out of the way first, then I'll explain my high rating of the film. The DVD box art says that Carnivore is a widescreen presentation that is 'digitally mastered'. The film is NOT in widescreen, and 'digital mastering' can only mean that either the master exists on some kind of digital medium, or worse, that the film was 'mastered to digital' in the sense that DVDs were made from the master (obviously, since the product is a DVD).The transfer is one of the poorer ones that I've seen (unfortunately it isn't the worst). It is extremely grainy (it looks like it was recorded from a VHS tape that had been rented about 300 times in the mid-80s, and then stored in a mildew-filled basement for 10 years), The sound has a lot of hiss and was equalized with far too much bass--you have to crank up the treble, crank up the volume, and you still can't hear dialogue in some scenes. I don't know what aspect ratio directors F. Joseph Kurtz and Kenneth Mader filmed in, but the framing suggests that it _wasn't_ filmed in 'full-screen' (1.33 : 1), which is the aspect ratio on this disc.Additional bad news is that the box art also promises a director commentary, a featurette called 'Carnivore Kills!', a trailer, and optional Spanish subtitles. None of these are on the disc. Instead, the disc has two menu options. One for 'Play Movie' and one for 'Scene Selection'--which gives you access to only eight chapter markings. This is either a serious case of false advertising or an equally serious screw-up on the manufacturing end. And in both cases, it would probably be best for everyone to send their copies of the DVD back to 20th Century Fox and demand a refund plus a free copy of the DVD when the corrections are made. Even if some of the problems (such as the sound) are rooted in the source material, these can be fairly easily rectified in a moderately-equipped recording/engineering studio, especially with a distributor like 20th Century Fox.And why might you want a copy of the DVD in anamorphic widescreen with remastered sound, a director's commentary, and other special features? Because this is a very fun and entertaining little horror film. At least if you have a taste for camp, and you're not one of those philosophically-challenged folks who conflates 'horror' and 'scary'. Carnivore is more likely to be enjoyed by someone who thinks that Killer Klowns from Outer Space is a masterpiece. Someone who thinks that two of the most underrated films of the 70s are Daddy's Deadly Darling and Carnival of Blood. Someone who has actually memorized a number of lines from Sgt. Kabukiman N.Y.P.D. and is proud of it. Someone who thinks that one of the biggest tragedies in filmdom is that Frank Henenlotter has only directed five films since 1982 (and none since 1992). If you have no idea what I'm talking about, and you're looking for scares only, do yourself a favor and pass this one up for now.Carnivore is one of those 'genetic experiments gone wild' films, with touches of the X-Files and an 80's slasher flick mixed into the stew. Yes, it has narration by a woman with a heavy Midwestern accent who is obviously reading. It has (sometimes intentionally) ridiculous performances. The monster is obviously a guy in a suit. For long periods of time, everything in the film is blue. However, as difficult as this may be for some people to understand, all of these elements are assets in a film like this, especially because it's obvious that Mader and Kurtz harbor no delusions that they're making something in the vein of Gone With The Wind. Instead, Carnivore plays like an impeccable, hilarious spoof of its influences, sometimes approaching a spoof of a spoof, and at the same time seems like a lost horror gem from 1985 (its authenticity in that respect is incredible). It pokes fun at the clichés and conventions, and yet embraces them at the same time--a feat only serious fans of the relevant eras of horror could achieve. There are serious aspects. There is plenty of tension. Some of the blue shots (and some others) are beautiful. The gore effects are well-done and well-shot. The sets are excellent, and even more impressive when you realize they were built in the basement of the director's rented house. It is clear that Carnivore is a low-budget affair, but the artistry and dedication apparent enables it to transcend any budgetary limitations.But please, give us a release on DVD that does the film justice! This would have been a perfect candidate for Troma, Lucky 13/Program Power, Something Weird, or anyone comparable. But the Key Video/20th Century Fox edition is horrible.