El circo

Do not be mislead by the ne'er do wells who claim this movie as Chaplin's weakest.

The plot is not intricate, but Charlie doesn't need an intricate plot to make us laugh out loud. "The Circus" proves this.

Saying that this film is boring is perfectly ridiculous: there are many moments of pure Chaplin genius and, if nothing else, you simply must see this film for the tightrope-walking scene. No, it's not trick photography: that's really Charlie tightrope walking with no stuntmen of any kind. If THAT'S not exciting, I don't know what is.

Oh, and just as a side note, this film was made during a time when Charlie was going through a very dirty and very public divorce-- his ex successful at having his funds frozen during the divorce, he was sued for a million in back-taxes and faced possible jail time, AND the ENTIRE SET to the circus burned down in a fire.

He most definitely deserved the special Oscar he received for this film. That's right: OSCAR.

The Circus is probably Chaplin's most underrated film. It is (easily) one of the funniest movies ever, and the inventiveness of such shots as the Mirror Maze scene and the closing sequence are nothing less than brilliant. What separates Chaplin from other comedian filmmakers is his ability to evoke a sense of pity and/or sympathy for his character. How can you watch the closing scenes of this film and, even after all of the laughter, NOT sense a bit of melancholia welling up in your heart? Truly one of the greats.

Although movie buffs seldom mention `The Circus' in the same breath as Charlie Chaplin's more touted masterpieces (`City Lights,' `Modern Times,' `The Gold Rush'), this film contains some of his best work manifested in a number of ingenious sequences. Chaplin once again dons the role of the tramp, this time having all sorts of adventures (and misadventures) under the big top.

In order to evade the police who suspect him of being a thief, the tramp ducks into a circus tent and acts as if he is part of the show. The cops follow him into the tent and try to apprehend him, with comical results. The crowd goes wild, believing all this was planned ahead of time. The audience's reaction is so strong that the tyrannical circus owner hires him on the spot. When it is discovered that Chaplin cannot be funny intentionally, the owner gives him a job as a prop man, clumsily lugging equipment around the tent as part of the show. Again the crowd roars its approval at his inadvertent antics, and soon the tramp is the circus' main attraction. In the meantime, he falls in love with the owner's daughter, a bareback rider who herself loves the tightrope walker, and romantic complications ensue.

`The Circus' is an all-around Chaplin effort. In addition to playing the lead role, he wrote, directed, produced and edited it, and composed the music as well. It is a meticulous production on all counts, with each sequence choreographed to elicit the maximum capacity of laughter from the audience. The scenes in which the tramp is pursued through a hall of mirrors, trapped inside the lion's cage, and forced to double for the missing tightrope walker stand alongside his finest achievements. The ending sequence is especially heartrending, as many are in his films. Here is a movie to be cherished by all fans of Chaplin, but appreciated even by casual viewers. This is because it achieves a rare blend of comedy and poignancy through appealing, sympathetic characters and with genuine honesty adding a note of realism to counterbalance the clowning.

This is easily one of the best Chaplin Movies.It has a great sense of humour,very interesting cinematography and very well written characters.This movie contains some of the funniest gags I have ever seen in my life,and it is definetely one of the greatest comedies ever made. The whole movie was very interesting,it kept from start to finish.The script had a very good structure,filled with great characters that become even more interesting due to some awesome acting by everyone.Also the ending is epic.Chaplin sympolises the circus as the cinema that is heading into a new direction,while the Trump(being obviously him is just not coming with them,and continues with his life like he used to).It is so clever,yet so simple.And that is the magic behind Chaplin.He uses music,characters,gags,to express himself and in the end make you cry.

The Circus was both my first silent film and the first film I've watched by Charles Chaplin. Being my first silent film i thought for sure i would be bored to death, but was i wrong. The film was really funny, made me laugh out loud. The comedy in this film is very different to the comedy in films now a days. Now a days most comedy films are big on the special effects and just lame humor. In the circus the actors have actual talent, they have to be very good at showing there emotion, like facial expressions and things like that.I was amazed on how well the movie was, Charlie Chaplin is great and i hope soon i can get my hands on some more of his films. I almost wish they could make a films like this today just maybe with some color, i think it'd be a great idea.