RETRO-ACTIVE: FROM THE CINEMA RETRO ARCHIVES.

"BIG TOP HILARITY"

By Raymond Benson

Finally! Chaplin fans can rejoice that The Criterion Collection has at last released the long-awaited missing entry in their run of excellent Blu-ray and DVD editions of the filmmake's feature films. For a while it appeared that The Circus, one of the auteur's best and certainly, arguably, his funniest picture, was forgotten, as it's been a few years since Criterion's last Chaplin release. Now, here it is. (The only features that remain to be given the Criterion treatment are A Woman of Paris from 1923, which didn't star Chaplin, and A King in New York, from 1957, his last starring vehicle. A Countess from Hong Kong, from 1967, perhaps doesn't count.)

The Circus was made just as Hollywood was beginning the transition from silents to talkies. There were still plenty of silent pictures being produced in 1928, and the move to sound wouldn't be seriously completed until 1930 (or, in some rural areas of the country, 1931!). Ironically, Chaplin chose to make an additional silent comedy in 1931, City Lights, and a semi-silent movie, Modern Times, in 1936!

Charlie is The Tramp, of course. Broke and penniless, he wanders near a traveling circus and, while eluding the police who mistakenly suspect him of being a pickpocket, accidentally finds himself in the Big Top ring in front of an audience. They find his antics hilarious, and the cruel and greedy proprietor/ringmaster (Al Ernest Garcia) hires him on the spot, mainly to take advantage of him. The Tramp does not realize he's funny and how much he's worth! Then there's the bareback rider (Merna Kennedy), with whom Charlie falls in love. He sets out to protect her from the abuse inflicted by the boss.

That's the story in a nutshell, but it's the collection of hilarious set pieces that make this film a classic. The opening pickpocket/sideshow/fun house sequence is inventive and clever. Charlie's introduction into the circus, and especially his unwitting messing up of the magician's act, provides belly laughs. But the real stroke of brilliance is the climax of the movie, when Charlie attempts a tightrope act and is beleaguered by a group of monkeys that have gotten loose. One of these primates, an impish cutie named Josephine, appeared in many movies of the period. How her trainer got her to bite Charlie's nose without hurting him is a marvel.

It's interesting to note that The Circus practically disappeared for decades until Chaplin dug it out again in the 1960s to provide the original score and title song, restore the feature, and re-release it. It had a reputation of being a lesser work, mainly because it had been made during a painful time in Chaplin's personal life and he may have suppressed it. The truth is that the film is underrated -terribly so. It's one of the genius's masterworks.

Criterion's new 4K digital restoration of the 1969 re-release version (the only one we can get, I presume) is beautifully presented with an uncompressed monaural soundtrack. Chaplin's own original score, complete with a vocal title song ("Swing Little Girl", sung by Chaplin himself) sounds terrific. A new audio commentary by Chaplin biographer Jeffrey Vance accompanies the feature.

Supplements abound. New to the Criterion edition include a fascinating interview with Chaplin's son Eugene (complete with home movies); a wonderful and eye-opening examination of the visual effects and production design of the film with film scholar Craig Barron ("In the Service of the Story"); footage of 1969 interviews on Chaplin's Swiss estate; an audio interview from 1998 with musical associate Eric James; and newly discovered outtakes of the Tramp and the Bareback Rider. There is also a nearly half-hour documentary from 2003, "Chaplin Today: The Circus", that provides insight into the troubled production; unused sequences with a new score by Timothy Brock and related outtakes; excerpts from the recording session of "Swing Little Girl"; footage from the 1928 Hollywood premiere with appearances by many celebrities; and re-release trailers. The package booklet sports an essay by critic Pamela Hutchinson.

The Circus demands to be reevaluated and cherished as a treasure from one of cinema's most important creative artists. This one's a must.

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