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The Greatest Show On Earth, a review by KinkyCyborg

The Greatest Show On Earth



Title:The Greatest Show on Earth
Year: 1952
Director: Cecil B. DeMille
Rating: NR
Length: 152 Min.
Video: Full Frame 1.33:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: Mono, French: Dolby Digital: Mono
Subtitles: English

Stars:
Betty Hutton
Cornel Wilde
Charlton Heston
Dorothy Lamour
Gloria Grahame

Plot:Extras:
Scene Access
Closed Captioned


This movie doesn't quite live up to it's lofty title but it was a very entertaining watch nonethless. More of a documentary style tribute to the Ringling Barnum & Bailey Circus, you get a fascinating behind the scenes look at the machinations of circus life and the incredible amount of time and effort that went into these big top productions which sadly have given away to indoor performances at arenas & stadiums.

Charlton Heston was good as Brad Braden, leader of the circus and Cornell Wilde was great as trapeze star, The Great Sebastien. I would have taken just about any other female lead over Betty Hutton as Holly, another high flyer. I didn't understand how this woman's character could be the object of both these mens affections as I found her unattractive and annoying, incessantly whining throughout the movie. On the other hand Gloria Grahame as Angel, part of the elephant act, was a complete knockout!  James Stewart as Buttons the Clown was good also as a man on the run from the law, hiding in obscurity behind the painted face and goofy clothes. All in all these sidebar stories took a back seat to the goings on of the circus itself.

I spotted Bing Crosby, Bob Hope & Van Johnson as uncredited crowd spectators. I'm sure there are others I missed.

The rest of the cast was filled out with the actual circus performers which brought total authenticity to the acts. The crowd may have been actors but the wonderment on their faces, especially the children would have been as real as can be as I remembered my first trip to a circus as a young boy which was minuscule in comparison to these grand spectacles. The elephant acts were nothing short of majestic! 

A little research revealed that the circus is still going strong, still riding the trains of the eastern seaboard with two parallel tours offering different shows at different times of the year so that people could take in both should they so choose. It's a shame this traveling phenomena doesn't make it's way up into Canada as I would love to take the family to see it.

A great movie to watch where the Circus itself if by far the star of the show.

KC

Rating:

(From KinkyCyborg's Random Reviews 2011 on May 24th, 2011)

Crossing Over, a review by Rich

Crossing Over



Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones films) is on a quest for justice as an immigrations agent investigating the case of a missing illegal. In a cross-fire of crime and bureaucracy, fraud and murder, he must race against time to try to save a family from becoming collateral damage in the fight for the American dream. Critics rave, "Harrison Ford is terrific. An engrossing, thoroughly entertaining movie with great performances from a first-rate ensemble cast" (Pete Hammond, Hollywood.com). Co-starring Ashley Judd (Twisted), Ray Liotta (Smokin' Aces), Jim Sturgess (21), and Cliff Curtis (10,000 BC), Crossing Over will keep you riveted until the final mystery unfolds.

Average fare with Ford showing his age, and with his constant broodiness seen in several recent films not carrying it particularly well. What has happened to Liotta, did he get a welder to perform his plastic surgery?

Guys only -
For Americans some of the questions raised, and ironies and hipocracies shown surrounding immigration, will probably be more poignant than they were for me. But this storyline has been overdone in recent years, and typically better, and this just misses the mark in too many ways, it actually felt like a dot the dot formula for such a plot design.
Best to leave this one at the border  


(From Riches Random Reviews on June 19th, 2009)

Tom's TV Pilots marathon, a review by Tom

Clarissa Explains It All: Season One (1991/United States) IMDb | Wikipedia Paramount Home Entertainment (United States) Length: 328 min. Video: Full Frame 1.33:1 Audio: English: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Subtitles:

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Plot:
Clarissa brought clarity to murky teenage waters for five seasons on Nick. Now enjoy all 13 episodes from the first season, featuring Clarissa, her annoying little brother Ferguson, health-nut mom Janet, architect dad Marshall, and welcome next-door neighbor, Sam.

Clarissa Explains It All
1.01 Clarissa's Revenge
Director: Kenneth Frankel
Cast: Melissa Joan Hart (Clarissa Marie Darling), Jason Zimbler (Ferguson Darling), Elizabeth Hess (Janet Darling), Joe O'Connor (Marshall Darling), Sean O'Neal (Sam Anders)

A teen series which surprisingly is still fun to watch. It stars Melissa Joan Hart before she went on to play Sabrine the Teenage Witch. Mostly because of her constantly breaking the fourth wall, I enjoy watching it. The pilot introduces the characters perfectly.

Rating:

(From Tom's TV Pilots marathon on March 31st, 2011)