Review of The Circus (1928) by Jeremy J — 11 Jul 2009

The Little Tramp is being chased around a circus by the police for stealing a wallet when he enters the center ring and makes the crowd laugh. The ringmaster decides he would be a great cast member, and hires him to act in funny skits. Unfortunately he finds out that he canâ??t be funny on purpose, and pretty soon the Tramp is sent to be a janitor instead of a cast member. He manages to be funny by showing up to do his janitorial duties during the show, and the crowd loves him.

Charlie-chaplin-the-circus.

Tramp develops a crush on a trick horse rider, and tries to help her be happy when her father, the Ringmaster, abuses her. He eventually helps her find love and get married.

Itâ??s an interesting thing watching a silent movie. There are some very funny moments, but it can be hard to concentrate when no words are being spoken. I was laughing early on when Little Tramp was stealing food from a baby, and there are a few other scenes that made me laugh out loud. The music is light and fun, the little bit of written dialogue helps out when you canâ??t tell what is going on or being said in a scene.

I probably wonâ??t look for more silent films soon, instead moving forward ten to twenty years for our next comedy, but this one is good enough to recommend.