Circus World (1964)

Directed by

Henry Hathaway

Genre

drama film, circus film

Country

United States

Runtime

2h 15m

Rated

NR

Rating

6.2 of 10 from 86 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A circus owner battles personal and professional crises as he tries to keep his traveling show going. The story follows his relationships with the women in his life and his struggle to maintain the circus in changing times.

melodramaticsweepingsentimentalold-fashionedgrandearnestslow

What happens

Circus World (released as The Magnificent Showman in the United Kingdom) is a 1964 American Western drama film starring John Wayne, Claudia Cardinale and Rita Hayworth. It was directed by Henry Hathaway and produced by Samuel Bronston, with a screenplay by Ben Hecht, Julian Zimet (writing under the pseudonym Julian Halevy), and James Edward Grant, from a story by Bernard Gordon and Nicholas Ray. The idea for Circus World originated from screenwriter Bernard Gordon. Nicholas Ray was initially assigned to direct the project until he suffered a heart attack while filming 55 Days at Peking (1963). He was replaced by Frank Capra who later entered into creative differences with co-writer James Edward Grant and John Wayne. By the summer of 1963, Capra was replaced with Henry Hathaway. Filming commenced in September 1963 and concluded in February 1964. Prior to the film's release, the financial failure of The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964) caused Samuel Bronston Productions to accumulate severe debts to financier Pierre S. du Pont III. It would be the last in a series of big budget epics produced by Bronston in Spain. The film premiered at the Loew's Cinerama Theater on June 25, 1964. It received mixed reviews from film critics and was a financial disappointment. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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