The people of Cedar Creek, a small community in Maine who are trying to move on after an ecological disaster that occurred a few years ago, are celebrating a Halloween festival. But as soon as they start a pumpkin carving contest, they discover that they have to deal with a very violent (and very resourceful) mutant pumpkin that came to life and is seeking revenge against the humans that have destroyed several of its kind.

This is the premise for “Carved”, a film directed by Justin Harding that we had a chance to see at Screamfest 2024, and will be available to stream on Hulu on October 21.

Set in 1993, this horror-comedy opens with a very strong scene, and quickly lets us know that this is not a family film. There is gore, and a lot of blood, and after a few minutes we get thrown back a few hours earlier in the day, so we get a better idea of how this massacre got to take place.

The movie has very nice characters, and the acting was good. Of course there are characters that I enjoyed more than others, and sadly some do not stay for long on the screen.

I could be wrong, but I felt that while Kira (the main character) was a good, well balanced character (not a boss chick!), she seemed at times like she was the only one capable of thinking new ideas and figuring out what to do, even more than the full grown adults. I tend to dislike when films fall into this trap, because if said character is removed (regardless of being male or female), the rest of the cast is doomed. Also in this film most of the male characters were portrayed as not very clever and too prone to panic.

There are a couple of gay characters, but their relationship is handled very cleverly. They are not the but of the joke (no pun intended) and were very likable characters with depth. There are also SOME characters that get some development through the crisis. Have fun trying to guess which characters make it to the end.

I will say I was let down that the film held some of its punches, but overall I was satisfied with the body count and the ending.

The special effects were very effective, and although some CGI stands out, is nothing that will ruin the movie. I liked the mutant pumpkin’s design a lot, and I liked how the film showed the monster little by little and only in key moments, before the final showdown.

The humor works most of the time; it was refreshing to see a film that is just there to entertain you, give you some scares and laughs, and not to preach about what a horrible person you are for having a fun time.

The film left me with some questions though, and some ideas for a sequel. This film is one I regret not being able to see with a crowd in a theater because I think it would have been a very nice experience.

Check this film when you get the chance, it is a nice fun time. Beers are optional (not required)

“Carved” was shown at Screamfest 2024 and will be available to stream on Hulu on October 21.

The film was directed by Justin Harding (who also directed the short in which it was based on) and co-written with Cheryl Meyer.

In the cast we have DJ Qualls, Chrsi Elliott, Peyton Elizabeth Lee, Ted Ferguson, Sasha Mason, Corey Fogelmanis, Jonah Lee, Wyatt Lindeer and more.