Malatesta’s Carnival of Blood

Frank Norris, his wife, and daughter Vena arrive at a dilapidated carnival and are hired as employees. They settle into an RV on the grounds and start their new jobs. Unbeknownst to them, their real goal is to locate their missing son Johnny, who once worked at the park.

Mr. Blood, the park’s manager, leads the Norrises around the attractions and amenities. He projects a friendly, harmless image while the family quietly keeps an eye out for Johnny. The tour reinforces the eerie, decaying atmosphere of the place.

That night, a carnival employee is decapitated while riding the shut-down rollercoaster. A witness who saw the act is attacked by Sticker, the park janitor, who impales him through the head. The pallid, zombie-like employees haul the body into an underground chamber and begin feasting.

In the cavernous underworld beneath the carnival, the cult-like workers maintain their feast, reinforcing the sense that something horrific operates far from public view. The chamber serves as a grim dining room for the pallid cultists. The atmosphere is damp, claustrophobic, and ominous.

That night, Vena slips away from the RV to explore the park and meets Kit, a young tunnel-of-love worker who attracts her. Kit hints that the proprietors may be part of a cannibalistic cult and shares rumors about a vanished family. A cross-dressing fortune teller named Sonja tries to offer Vena a reading, which she declines.

During their brief interaction, Sticker attacks Kit and Vena, forcing them to split up and flee in opposite directions. The danger from the park’s eerie staff becomes immediately personal for Vena. Kit vanishes into the shadows, leaving Vena to navigate alone.

Vena encounters Bobo, a dwarf employee, who quietly warns her that danger is closing in and advises caution. His warning adds another layer of foreboding to the already ominous atmosphere. He provides little protection, but his warning sticks with her.

Vena wanders through strange prop rooms and rides until she reaches a cinema where pallid, zombie-like employees watch a silent film with Malatesta, their silk-caped leader. The scene underscores a ceremonial, otherworldly control behind the carnival’s façade. The sense of observation and control intensifies.

On the ferris wheel, Vena discovers Kit’s corpse in one of the cars, triggering a devastating nervous breakdown. The moment makes the danger feel personal and tangible rather than just implied. The park’s beauty becomes a terrifying trap.

Frank and his wife attempt to flee the encroaching cultists but are relentlessly pursued through the maze of carnival structures. They are eventually forced to contend with the park’s darkness up close, far from any help. The chase marks a turning point as the family is pushed deeper into the carnival’s abyss.

The next morning, Johnny discovers his parents’ RV still on the grounds and begins to fear for their safety. Mr. Blood tells Johnny that his family is 'at rest,' a statement that unsettles rather than soothes him. The attempt to placate Johnny only adds to the eerie mystery of the carnival.

Mr. Blood lures Vena into a cavern chamber with the intention of draining her blood. The atmosphere tightens as he begins the ritual, and the threat of vampiric consumption becomes explicit. Malatesta’s looming presence hints at further confrontation.

Malatesta confronts Mr. Blood in the cavern, and when Blood’s true nature is exposed, Malatesta overwhelms him. Blood dies after Malatesta bares his face, revealing a fierce, primal power beneath the smooth exterior. The immediate danger to Vena shifts as the power balance changes.

Johnny finds Vena in the caverns and rushes to her side, saving her from immediate danger. The siblings reunite in a moment of desperate relief, but the danger in the park persists. The rescue shifts the focus toward escaping the cannibal nightmare above ground.

Within the caverns, Mrs. Norris is stabbed to death by Bobo and eaten, while Frank is hunted and imperiled, his fate sealed in a hall of mirrors. Sonja locates Vena and claims he will lead her to her parents, but instead brings her to a freezer where their corpses hang, locking her inside. The movie closes on a bleak note as Malatesta continues to operate the carnival above, leaving Vena trapped and the danger unresolved.