SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

ChanFamous I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

Erica Derrick By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

DarthVoorhees 'At the Circus' is without a doubt one of the Brother's lesser films if we are comparing it to the heights of their career. It's a odd picture which I don't think really understood the talents of the Marx Brothers and how to best utilize them to their full effect. The Brothers are always entertaining and always have their moments but 'At the Circus' does not put them in the best positions to deliver their humor. It mainly has to do with the thin plot but also MGM's insistence on molding the Brothers to their formula.One does not go into the Marx Brothers films to enjoy a gripping narrative. In all honesty it can be argued if the Marx Brothers films were ever really about anything. The Marx Brothers are always about a formula and rhythm. The formula was chaos. The Brothers are at their best when they upset the established order and ridicule snobby figures who think they have great dignity. Stefan Kanfer makes an excellent point in his biography of Groucho that 'At the Circus' is crippled by the fact that the circus is a lowbrow dirty place. The Brothers don't really loudly stand out. The picture has some nice moments in the circus. Harpo has fun pantomiming a strongman act and Chico and Groucho have a great bit about finding an incriminating cigar but the humor in the first part of the film isn't bold and it isn't loud. It's just a lot of standard fare. It just seems really sort of odd to place the Marx Brothers at a place like the circus. They are at their best when they cause chaos with the upper classes. I say this but the movie eventually has the good sense to bring Margaret Dumont back into the picture. When Groucho goes to Margaret Dumont's mansion it is as good as ever. And I can't blast the circus setting entirely. The Marx Brothers actually had the audacity to blast her out of a cannon at the end of it.The mixed bag is that this is an MGM production. MGM was the gold standard of Hollywood at this time and it does have moments where it helps 'At the Circus'. The set pieces are all huge and the scope is far bigger than the arguably superior Paramount pictures. Groucho and the boys would never have been able to play with a huge Circus and have a floating bandstand in an earlier film. The trade off is the love story that Irving Thalberg insisted had to be included in every Marx film. The problem is Thalberg is in his grave by this point. I think even he would admit that Kenny Baker and Florence Rice's duet of 'Two Blind Loves' was nightmarishly sugary. The Marx Brothers are always entertaining even in a lesser effort. 'At the Circus' is really middle of the road. They made worse movies. Personally I prefer seeing Groucho torment Margaret Dumont or Sig Ruman at the height of his skill with a more subversive edge. See 'Night at the Opera' instead which is what 'At the Circus' aspired to be.

utgard14 So-so Marx Bros. effort is not in the same league as their earlier classics but it warrants a look if you have already seen those films. It's certainly better than most of their 1940s output. The plot's familiar enough: the Marx Bros. team up to help save a friend's business (in this case, a circus). The brothers are all in good form here, although they're mostly reworking old shtick. The scene in the midget's room is my favorite part. The obligatory lukewarm romance this time is supplied by Florence Rice and wall-eyed tenor Kenny Baker. The two also sing a couple of the movie's forgettable Arlen-Harburg tunes. The only good song in this is also one of the movie's highlights, "Lydia the Tattooed Lady," as performed by Groucho. A big plus in this movie's favor is the good supporting cast backing up the Marxes, including Nat Pendleton (in a Harpo wig), James Burke, Eve Arden, and the always fun Margaret Dumont. It's an enjoyable movie if one lowers expectations and doesn't expect something on par with Duck Soup or A Night at the Opera.

vitachiel Unnecessary unconnected scenes and totally out-of-place romantic musical numbers make this movie an awkward watch. It doesn't help when Groucho Marx is given almost nothing to work with; his usual lame and flavorless jokes now descend to a level where you can only feel sorry for the guy.Harpo and Chico do not have very inspired material to work with either, but the chemistry and pace of their scenes partly make up for that. In addition, their characters have a more sympathetic feel to them than in previous movies, which adds to their likableness.With a Marx Brothers movie entitled 'At the Circus', you would expect more quaint circus acts, especially when you have a clown as Harpo in your midst. Unfortunately, the only memorable circus scene is at the end, when a sensational trapeze act is performed by all three Marx Brothers ánd Margaret Dumont (!) As usual, my favorite scene involves Harpo Marx playing his harp. This is sheer original and bewildering music. He should make an album with these pieces, with Chico accompanying him on the piano… ;)

gridoon2018 Most Marx Brothers fans agree that their best film moments can be found in their 1929-1937 period, and that their career went a bit downhill after that, starting with "Room Service". Generally, I also agree with that opinion, though there are definitely many worthwhile moments in their last six films as well. And from those six, "At The Circus" is arguably the best (the only other possible contender is "A Night In Casablanca"). Although it suffers from the same flaws that plagued their other films of the period - mainly long, redundant (and, in at least two cases, even repeated (!)) musical numbers, and a frantic climax that is more chaotic than funny - it also gives them some good material (the badge skit, the reconstruction of the crime, the "entrapment" of the midget, etc.) and has a more energetic air than, say, "Room Service" or "The Big Store". Their frequent co-start Margaret Dumont doesn't appear until about an hour in; the two romantic leads are largely forgettable, but long-legged Eve Arden is notable for doing some of her acrobatic stunts herself. **1/2 out of 4.