Director: Joseph M. Newman
Stars: Victor Mature, Red Buttons, Rhonda Fleming, Kathryn Grant, Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, Gilbert Roland, David Nelson, Adele Mara
After splitting with his longtime business partner, Hank Whirling (Mature) is about to go on tour and successfully gets a loan, although he has to take on a new publicity agent and one of the bank’s employees. However, after a series of accidents they realize there’s a saboteur among them. Hank and his loyal friends have to battle the elements, a traitor, and the bank in order to generate new publicity to make back the money they owe to keep the circus alive.
I’ve always loved the circus and I’m always surprised at how unexplored they are in popular culture. There are only a handful of movies about them but The Big Circus is definitely one of the best. It’s populated with solid actors who give strong performances and a good plot that throws a lot of obstacles in the way of the determined Hank Whirling.
It’s colorful, glamorous and a lot of the acts are still breathtaking to watch even though they aren’t in person. There’s something just so magical about the circus that still comes through in a film.. There’s some good humor and I liked the added tension of a saboteur, although I do feel that it wasn’t as urgent as it seemed. For much of the film people didn’t seem to care that there was a traitor, so I felt there could have been more urgency displayed. But there’s plenty of drama and entertainment to be found here, and while I’d still rate The Greatest Show on Earth above it I believe The Big Circus is a great film with a lot to offer people, and I do wish that more films about the circus were made.
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