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The Circus
Directed by
Charlie Chaplin
G
1928
72m
Comedy
,
Romance
,
and more
8.1
97%
93%
Add to Watchlist
The Tramp finds work and the girl of his dreams at a circus.
More
Where to Watch The Circus
Darkroom
Free
Fawesome
Free
Freevee
Free
+10 more
Cast of The Circus
Charlie Chaplin
A Tramp / Director / Writer / Producer
Al Ernest Garcia
The Circus Proprietor and Ring Master
Merna Kennedy
The Proprietor's Step-Daughter Merna, a Circus Rider
Harry Crocker
Rex, a Tight Rope Walker
George Davis
A Magician
Henry Bergman
An Old Clown
Tiny Sandford
The Head Property Man
John Rand
An Assistant Property Man
Steve Murphy
A Pickpocket
Albert Austin
Clown (uncredited)
Chester A. Bachman
Cop (uncredited)
Eugene Barry
Cop (uncredited)
Jack Bernard
Man in Circus Audience (uncredited)
Stanley Blystone
Cop (uncredited)
Heinie Conklin
Clown (uncredited)
Toraichi Kono
Man in Circus Audience (uncredited) (unconfirmed)
H.L. Kyle
Man in Circus Audience (uncredited)
Betty Morrissey
The Vanishing Lady (uncredited)
Jack Pierce
Man Operating Ropes (uncredited)
Wyn Ritchie Evans
Woman in Crowd (uncredited)
Hugh Saxon
Man in Circus Audience (uncredited)
Doc Stone
The Prizefighter (uncredited)
Armand Triller
Clown (uncredited)
Max Tyron
Pickpocket Victim (uncredited)
The Circus Ratings & Reviews
Varun
January 9, 2025
Chaplin is a genius, some of the gags here are completely insane. He learnt how to walk a tight rope and also put himself in a cage with a real lion. The story was well thought out, and has a great meta commentary on his career as a comedian. Combined with the beautiful music, I really loved the altruistic ending. There’s always a sublime quality to the moments of sadness Chaplin directs. And to think he managed to make this movie despite the innumerable intense turmoils he went through with the production and his personal life at that time, he has so much vision and dedication for the art form. Chaplin is like an alchemist because the heart and soul he pours into the craft of moviemaking is completely visible to the audience, and it’s a powerful and inspirational experience. The Tramp is by no means a perfect person, his feelings often lead to selfishness and a fake facade, but despite his desires and predicaments, he has a good heart and chooses to be noble. The notion of being morally good but poor, rather than evilly scheming your way to riches is best exemplified by Chaplin in a lot of his movies, his choice of kindness in this cruel world always brings a sense of serenity to one’s heart.
InSession Film
Brian Susbielles
It took two years to finish and the result was the same as his other classics: a film about love, fantasy, and daily mischief from Chaplin's legendary alter ego.
LIFE
Robert E. Sherwood
Suffice it that Charlie has gone back to the elementary principles of custard pie comedy, and has proved that it is in this simplified, unpretentious form that his genius is most thoroughly at home.
Photoplay
Shadow Stage
Charlie Chaplin turns circus performer in a story which teems with spontaneous humor and yet maintains the plaintive heart interest we have learned to expect from Chaplin.
Gone With The Twins
Mike Massie
Though not without striking qualities by itself, it serves best as a poignant stepping stone to the auteur's later, more famous projects.
The Retro Set
Nathanael Hood
...one of [Chaplin's] most unforgettable and melancholy films, one filled to the brim with unforgettable gags and set pieces.
Q Network Film Desk
James Kendrick
while it is hardly Chaplin's best film, The Circus is packed with enough memorable moments, a few of which rank among Chaplin's greatest comic achievements, to stand firmly on its own
From the Front Row
Mattie Lucas
A sad clown masterwork that masks its tears with a smile.
Salon.com
Andrew O'Hehir
It's a brilliant combination of light and darkness, tenderness and violence and, yes, laughter and tears.
Slant Magazine
Christian Blauvelt
The Circus may be the film that most definitively silences critics who claim that Charlie Chaplin's movies aren't cinematic.
Village Voice
Aaron Hillis
Innovative and timelessly hilarious.
DVDJournal.com
Mark Bourne
In some ways The Circus is Chaplin's Stardust Memories, his reflexive self-observation in which Woody Allen's line, 'We like your earlier, funny movies,' flashes subliminally among the frames.
Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews
Dennis Schwartz
Chaplin's slapstick comedy worked to great effect.
EmanuelLevy.Com
Emanuel Levy
Receiving his first Best Actor Oscar nomination, Chaplin is brilliant in this slapstick comedy, set in a milieu that fits him like a glove.
Combustible Celluloid
Jeffrey M. Anderson
It's a beautiful film and perhaps more personal that anyone might have suspected at the time.
Old School Reviews
John A. Nesbit
most overlooked film . . . contains some of the Tramp's best comic moments
Pasadena Weekly
John Esther
Hilarious-ness-ness
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
Ken Hanke
An undervalued Chaplin masterpiece.
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