The Big Circus (1959)

After losing his business partner, "Whirling Circus" manager Victor Mature (as Henry "Hank" Whirling) must borrow a half million dollars so that the show can go on - a US tour. He gets the money, but must accept two new staff members to insure a profitable return on the loan. Joining the troupe are full-figured publicist Rhonda Fleming (as Helen Harrison) and penny-pinching banker Red Buttons (as Randy Sherman). Having a female press agent irks Mr. Mature, but you wouldn't want to bet against a kiss before the closing credits. This being a circus movie, you might suppose a lion could be let loose, at some point. Also, figure on one or more mysterious accidents, which might actually be murder...This closely follows the circus picture pattern, especially Cecil B. DeMille's hit "The Greatest Show on Earth" (1952). "The Big Circus" has a smaller budget, but producer Irwin Allen makes less look bigger than expected. It's colorful and bland, but must have been a cool way to spend time in the summer of 1959. The cast member shining is former "silent" screen star Gilbert Roland (as Zach Colino), looking incredibly fit as the circus' main attraction. "Ozzie and Harriet" son David Nelson (as Tommy Gordon) is also fit, as a younger model. Bing Crosby's second wife Kathryn Grant (as Jeannie Whirling) is likewise sexy in tights. Looking sneaky and clownish are veterans Vincent Price and Peter Lorre.***** The Big Circus (1959-07-05) Joseph M. Newman ~ Victor Mature, Gilbert Roland, Red Buttons, Rhonda Fleming

OK, OK, so it's NOT a classic, but it IS entertaining. I take GREAT exception to SINGLE BLACK MALE's assessment of Victor Mature as an actor, a criticism I can only describe as...IMMATURE (LOL). Victor Mature turned in some EXCELLENT portrayals, notably in MY DARLING CLEMENTINE, KISS OF DEATH and THE ROBE. Also, let me clarify a couple of other comments posted for this film: The train wreck here is NOT the climactic set piece that the one in GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH was and ZACH's (Gilbert Roland) attempt to walk Niagara falls is not this film's climax. As for why Vincent Price was in the cast, here comes my spoiler: The saboteur in the circus' troop turns out NOT to be the often-cast-as-villain, Price, but rather the young, clean cut, all-American boy, fresh from the OZZIE AND HARRIET show, David Nelson. A nice "red herring" to throw the audience off the scent of the real villain. I also thought Peter Lorre's "Skeeter the Clown" was just fine, especially when he is asked what bank watchdog/accountant, Red Buttons' "act" is: "He's a juggler. Juggles figures". Plus, Kathryn Grant (eventually Mrs. Bing Crosby) and Adele Mara both look great in tights!

Unfortunately for The Big Circus, The Greatest Show On Earth by Cecil B. DeMille set the standard for circus films that will be pretty hard to match. One hasn't come out in many years now, probably the market isn't there. Pity too, in this age of computer graphics, the potential to out DeMille DeMille is there.This film can still stand on its own however as good entertainment. As in The Grestest Show On Earth, someone is out trying to sabotage the circus. The villain here isn't doing it for some nefarious scheme to enrich, it's a very psychologically disturbed individual who is not unmasked until the very end.The leads here are Victor Mature in the role of circus boss and he's got financial troubles. Working to help straighten out the circus's finances are Rhonda Fleming and Red Buttons. Both aren't quite used to the culture of the circus, but Vic works the old heavy lidded charm and he's got a sister in Kathryn Crosby who brings the circus out in banker Buttons.In The Greatest Show on Earth James Stewart took a supporting role as a clown because he always wanted to play one. Peter Lorre departs from his usual villainy to play a similar kind of clown, kind of a father confessor to the show.But my favorite in the film is Gilbert Roland. He plays the patriarch of a high wire act and the high point of the film is his walk across Niagara Falls as a publicity stunt for the financially strapped show. Roland is under a lot of pressure, his wife, Adele Mara, having been the only fatality in a planned train wreck. In fact The Big Circus took so much from The Greatest Show on Earth like the train wreck and other things that producer/director Irwin Allen was rightly criticized for a lack of originality. It seems he was just trying he could do the same things on the screen better than DeMille.Nevertheless The Big Circus is a fine film on its own, entertaining and colorful for children of all ages.

A typical Irwin Allen spectacle, this has its moments--the daring publicity stunt involving a tightrope walker crossing Niagara Falls is genuinely exciting--but for the most part is just too prosaic and small-minded to be the blockbuster it was undoubtedly intended to be. It would have helped if Victor Mature's shifty circus owner were either less of a jerk or an out-and-out villain, and certainly if Vincent Price (who seems to have been cast as the ringmaster simply because of his moustache) had been given more to do than to stand around in unbecoming leisure outfits. On the other hand, Peter Lorre (whose presence as a clown alienates both Lorre fans who view it as the ultimate insult to that ill-used actor's dignity, and clownophobes who see it as a confirmation of their worst fears) gives the film a heart and humor it wouldn't have had otherwise.