Product Details

• Actors: Guy Chapman (II), Hot Pie
• Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0), English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0)
• Subtitles: English, Spanish, French
• Dubbed: French, Spanish
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 6
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: HBO Home Video
• DVD Release Date: December 7, 2004
• Run Time: 720 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (211 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0002YLC1U
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #48,072 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• Learn more about "Carnivale: The Complete First Season" on IMDb

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Carnivàle doesn't waste any time making its--wildly ambitious--aims clear. As carnival manager Samson (Michael J. Anderson, Twin Peaks' diminutive backwards-talker) notes in pilot episode "Milfay," directed by Rodrigo García (son of Gabriel García Marquez), "To each generation [is] born a creature of light and a creature of darkness." With that the story begins. The year is 1934, the setting the Oklahoma dustbowl. In short order, Ben Hawkins (In the Bedroom's Nick Stahl) loses his mother and his home. He's poor, he's alone--he needs a job. So he joins Samson's carnival, en route to the West. Hawkins, naturally, is the good guy. Waiting for him in California is the not so good Brother Justin Crowe (Clancy Brown, The Shawshank Redemption), a fire and brimstone preacher with supernatural powers and a fiercely loyal sister (Amy Madigan). Hawkins, as it turns out, has similar powers....

Created by Daniel Knauf (Wolf Lake), Carnivàle feels like David Lynch (weird, slow, occasionally kinky), plays like American Gothic (Shaun Cassidy's cult series about a good kid and an evil sheriff), and looks like John Ford's Grapes of Wrath. It features one of television's most colorful casts of characters. They include Sophie (Clea DuVall), who reads fortunes--with her comatose mother's assistance, the vaguely sinister Lodz (Patrick Bauchau), blind absinthe-drinker and mentalist (he can see both the future and the past), and Ruthie (Adrienne Barbeau), snake charmer, strongman's mother, and all-around maternal figure. By the final episode of the season ("The Day That Was the Day"), also directed by García, one of these characters will be dead. Carnivàle won five richly deserved technical Emmys for its first year, including awards for cinematography and art direction. Like HBO's edgy Deadwood, it's period drama for people who don't normally like period drama. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Product Description

1934. The Dustbowl. The last great age of magic. In a time of titanic sandstorms, vile plagues, drought and pistilence - signs of God's fury and harbingers of the Apocalypse - the final conflict between good and evil is about to begin. The battle will take place in the Heartland of an empire called America. And when it is over, man will forever trade away wonder for reason. See the conflict of good vs. evil played out against a pair of vivid and unusual backdrops: a traveling carnival working the American Dustbowl circuit, and an evangelical ministry in California.

DVD Features:
Audio Commentary:3 Audio Commentaries with Creator Daniel Knauf, Executive Producer Howard Klein and Directors Rodrigo Garcia and Jeremy Podeswa
Featurette:"Making of Carnivale" Featurette detailing how set and costume designers collaborated to achieve the look of the Dustbowl in the 1930s

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

306 of 321 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The first steps to trading away wonder for reason December 19, 2004

By Lawrance M. Bernabo HALL OF FAMETOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase

"Carnivàle" is part of small but growing number of quality television shows that are committed to the sort of lengthy and complex story arc that was once the province of the mini-series. But shows like "Wiseguy" and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" in the past and current offerings such as "24" and "Lost" have paved the way for television shows that emphasize the big picture rather than the more traditional episodic approach. As such, "Carnivàle" is most similar to "Lost," in that we are pretty sure we know what will happen at the end of the journey, but we have no idea how many seasons down the road that end game will be played out. Does creator Daniel Knauf ("Wolf Lake") have an ambitious five-year plan similar to what J. Michael Straczynski had in mind from the start for "Babylon 5"? We will have to wait and see.

With a show like "Carnivàle" it is easy (and fun) to play with various antecedents that explain the series in simple but readily understood terms. From the start I was thinking of the show as a cross between John Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath," Tod Browning's "Freaks," and Stephen King's "The Stand," all of which I consider to be classics in their respective genres. But there are other options as well (with Michael J. Anderson in the cast "Twin Peaks" becomes an obvious choice), which simply speaks to the potential of "Carnivàle" to resonate with its viewers.

The premise of the show is provided as the opening narration: "Before the beginning, after the great war between Heaven and Hell, God created the Earth and gave dominion over it to the crafty ape he called man. And to each generation was born a creature of light and a creature of darkness. And great armies clashed by night in the ancient war between good and evil.... There was magic then, nobility, and unimaginable cruelty. And so it was until the day that a false sun exploded over Trinity, and man forever traded away wonder for reason." The words are spoken by Samson (Anderson), who runs the traveling circus called Carnivàle, but answers to the unseen "Management" figure (voiced by an uncredited Linda Hunt).

While traveling across the Oklahoma Dust Bowl in 1934, the Carnivàle comes across Ben Hawkins (Nick Stahl), who has escaped from prison and returned home in time to watch his mother (Lucinda Jenney) die and bury here before the tractors level their shack. Management wants Ben to join the caravan and given his predicament with the law, he agrees. As the Carnivàle travels down to Texas we learn that Ben is plagued by strange visions of the trenches in the Great War and that he has the power to heal. Meanwhile, in the California town of Mintern a minister named Brother Justin Crowe (Clancy Brown) believes that God is telling him what to minister to the growing number of Okies and other migrant workers streaming west, fleeing the Dust Bowl. Those who oppose Brother Justin's plans find themselves punished for standing in the way.

Ben Hawkins and Brother Justin are the creatures of light and darkness foretold, and while their visions contain glimpses of each other, they are not going to meet during this first season of "Carnivàle." Their meeting is inevitable and clearly will constitute the apocalyptic conclusion of this series, but at this point they are still coming to terms with their places in this strange universe. Each man is trying to find out about their mysterious past, where they came from, and what they can do with their powers. Eventually they will have to decide what they should do with those powers and at the end of the first season they face what will certainly be the first of several escelating crucibles.

While the focus is primarily on Ben Hawkins getting used to his power and Brother Justin doing his work with his older sister, Iris (Amy Madigan), there is also life in the travelling circus during the Great Depression. Ben is of interest to Lodz (Patrick Bachauh), a mentalist who takes an active interest in the young man's powers and who is involved with Lila (Debra Christofferson), the bearded lady. Meanwhile, Ben has taken an interest in Ruthie (Adrienne Barbeau), the snake charmer who is also the mother of the strong man, Gabriel (Brian Turk). The person interested in Ben romantically appears to be Sophie (Clea DuVall), the tarot card reader who is also the medium for her comatose mother, Apollonia (Diane Salinger), who is pyschic. Jonesy (Tim Dekay), the manger of the rousties, is in love with Sophie, but he gets involved with the Dreifuss family that runs the Cootch Show, Stumpy (Toby Huss), the father who is the emcee, mother Rita Sue (Cynthia Ettinger), and daughters Dora Mae (Amanda Aday) and Libby (Carla Gallo).

One of the strengths of "Carnivàle" is that what is going on in that travelling circus is fairly interesting even without throwing young Ben Hawkins into the mix. There is something intrinsically fascinating about how carny folk milk the marks for money, and there is a sense of personal pride in their professionalism that gives them a certain level of dignity. In the short term, I do not know if I like the idea that not all of them are going to be alive next season. Then, of course, there is the whole look of the show. Suffice it to say "Carnivàle" won Emmys for Outstanding Art Direction and Cinematography for a One-Camera Series, along with those for Costumes, Hairstyling, and Main Title Design (you could do a pretty good master's thesis just decoding that last one).

The DVD series for the first season comes with three audio commentaries, a really short featurette on the making of the series, and a giant group discussion with the cast. The commentary for "Milfay," the pilot episode, is the most important one, and twice as good as the other two put together. It has Knauf, director Rodrigo Garcia, and executive producer Howard Klein on it, with the creator/writer and director doing most of the talking, who focus on how they cast the show and how the first episode evolved. We also get the "Previously On" and "Next On" bits that HBO created for each episode.

I recognize that "Carnivàle" is going to be a very maddening show to those who want things to move along at a brisk pace, and there will be those who will abandon the show long before it gets to the promised land (when the circus gets to California, probably in a couple of seasons). But for those of us who remember how "Twin Peaks" fell apart when the hook of "Who killed Laura Palmer?" became the line and (literal) sinker, or who felt "The X-Files" was adding to its mythology without getting any closer to a big finish, the idea that "Carnivàle" has been created with a definitive end point in mind provide some measure of comfort. This first season provides an initial level of confidence and the potential for more, but in the end how good this series is with come down to the quality of the final "blow off." Given that the origin of "carnival" goes back to the Roman festivals of Saturnalia and Lupercalia where there was a temporary subversion of civil order and that the term now refers to the holiday period of the two weeks before Lent, it could be something pretty good. Besides, it is not on television: it is on HBO. Read more ›

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A brilliant program December 28, 2004

By Robert W. Berg

Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase

In a short period of time, "Carnivale" has grown into my favorite television show. Structured like a dense, epic novel, the production values are sumptuous, the acting uniformly ingenious, and the central mysteries complex and involving. The series, ostensibly about the final battle between good and evil, as wonder gives way to reason, is so firmly rooted in a three-dimensional, realistic world with three-dimensional realistic characters that I would classify it as more magical realism than science-fiction or fantasy. The characters drive the plot, rather than the other way around, which is a difficult feat to accomplish in such a complex narrative that includes shadowy symbolism and prophetic dreams. There have been complaints that the first season did not wrap up any loose ends, but why should it? Season 1 is but the prologue to this novel-for-television, and narratives are never concluded in the prologue. Be forewarned, though, if you are looking for a television show that does not tax your intellectual muscles and does not ask you to do some work to understand it, this is not the show for you. If, on the the other hand, you are looking for a show that is fascinating, multi-layered (the symbolism alone could be discussed for hours), and intellectually stimulating, with fantastical situations that still manages to maintain a strong verisimilitude of character and the time period in which it occurs (1934, the Great Depression, in the Dust Bowl), I would urge you to watch this DVD set immediately, so you can be caught up for the second season, which premieres January 9th. The video quality of this DVD set, by the way, is among the finest I have ever seen. I would rank it up there with "The Lord of the Rings" Extended Edition sets for a near-perfect picture.

52 of 55 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best HBO Has To Offer October 15, 2004

By E. W. Mark

Format:DVD

Some may complain that "Carnivale" leaves too many loose ends. I would argue that these people are entirely missing the show's point. If you are the sort of person who likes things to be wrapped up all neat with a little bow, turn back now... Otherwise sit back, and let the pure magic of this show suck you in.

"Carnivale" has a plot that begs to be questioned, mysteries waiting to be theorized upon, and characters that you will truly love (or love to hate). It is a show you can discuss for hours on end. The joy of it is not discovering the answers through the plot itself, but by your own deduction.

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars "Somethin's building, Kid. I can feel it..." April 11, 2005

By Michael Crane

Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase

"Carnivale" has now become my favorite show. I didn't know much about it when I got the first season on DVD for Christmas. I just knew that it looked like something that I'd really like. It seemed to have that strangeness and darkness that I find so fascinating at times. I think it only took two episodes, and I was hooked. I finished the 12 episodes in less than two weeks. Never has a show grab my attention like "Carnivale." It is one of the most unique, beautiful and disturbing shows I have ever seen.

The year is 1934, a pretty dark and depressing time in history. A traveling carnival finds Ben Hawkins, a restless kid that has a lot of mystery to him. He turns out to have a rather remarkable gift of healing, but he has yet to learn the true power of it... or the consequences. States and states away is Brother Justin Crowe, a man of God. He has always tried to serve the Lord to the best of his abilities, until he starts finding out strange things about himself. A darkness within that reveals itself little by little until it is all clear what his real purpose is. This sets the stage for the ultimate battle between good and evil. Even though Ben and Justin have not met each other, they know their paths will meet eventually.

The first season is really a set-up of things to come, but boy does it ever hook you in. The show is so well-written and well-acted. At first, you're not entirely sure what's happening, but with each episode you learn a little more. It doesn't cheat, either. Everything is in there for a reason, even if it's not very clear at the beginning. Out of the 12 episodes in this first season, I did not find a single episode that I didn't like. All of the episodes are intense and mesmerizing.... Nick Stahl is terrific as "Ben Hawkins" and you really buy into his role right from the word, "Go." The showstopper, in my opinion, is Clancy Brown, who plays "Brother Justin." He is absolutely amazing in this show. One of the best characters from a series in recent years.

If you plan to check out "Carnivale," then you really have to give it a chance. You have to let it soak into you. It'll take at least two episodes to really pull you in. It is a very complex show, so if you're looking for something simplistic, stay clear from this. Also, the show can be extremely violent at times. While it's not gratuitous, there are more than a few uneasy and disturbing scenes that will get to you, so be prepared for that. The show looks BEAUTIFUL and the sound is superb. There aren't many extras, except for three commentary tracks and a making-of featurette. I really enjoyed the making-of featurette, but I suggest you watch that last.

"Carnivale" is a phenomenal show. It's really set my standards high when it comes to new shows, now. After seeing this, it's hard for any other show to really grab me. As soon as you finish the first season, you'll immediately want to watch the next season... hopefully that'll come out soon (if you thought this season was wild, you haven't seen nothin' yet!) If you're looking for a creative and challenging show, this is the one for you. Just be careful. There's no turning back once you cross that road. See how it all begins and witness the miracle that is "Carnivale." -Michael Crane Read more ›