Vivendi Entertainment

When people reminisce about the great match-ups of all time, talk will inevitably hone in on Ali vs. Frazier, Tunney vs. Dempsey, or, for boxing non-enthusiasts, Eckersley vs. Gibson. For film fans, talk will likely drift to Godzilla vs. Mothra, McClane vs. Gruber, or even Feddy vs. Jason. Well folks, a new movie has thrown its hat into the ring, and it is called Carny. What potentially legendary match-up does Carny feature, you ask? Why, nothing less than Lou Diamond Phillips vs. the Jersey Devil. Will these two foes unseat any of the classic brawlers mentioned above? Read on and see.

For those who haven’t heard of the Jersey Devil, it is sort of a rural East Coast Chupacabra-style legend. You may have seen it on the X-Files way back in its first season. It has been portrayed in various tales as a flying biped with hooves, a large owl, and, on The X-Files, as a beast woman. In Carny it is a large and vicious bat-like monstrosity that has some black hair but looks a bit too smooth and rubbery to be a living creature, as does Phillips.

Possessed machines are long-standing horror staples: Christine, The Car, Maximum Overdrive, etc. It’s easy to understand why. Imagine driving down the road in your comfortable four-door sedan when your seatbelt suddenly tightens around your chest and crushes you to death. Now, obviously, that wouldn’t happen in the real world, nor would a thin car window have enough force to decapitate someone. Regardless, these are the kind of things you can expect from Phantom Racer.

The story begins with two rivals, Cutter and J.J., who used to be friends until they pined after the same girl. They get into a racing wreck during a tournament and only one survives. The remaining racer cuts his losses, leaves town and brings his guilt with him.