Plantiana Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

Dotbankey A lot of fun.

Janae Milner Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

Paynbob It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

MartinHafer "Carnival Story" is a film in the public domain, so it can either be downloaded for free from the link on IMDb or you get can the disc from Netflix--which is ALSO rather washed out and in need of restoration. Considering that the film is not all that good, I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for a cleaner copy.This is an unusual film in that it's an American-German co-production. In fact, two different versions were filmed at the same time--one with American actors in the leads ("Carnival Story") and another with Germans ("Circus of Love"). It's about an American carnival (with circus acts as well) that has traveled to Germany. There, the show is a huge hit. Into this setting, a German lady (Anne Baxter) meets up with what SEEMS like a nice guy working with the carnival (Steve Cochran). He's really nice to her and she is smitten with him. Soon, a nice guy (Lyle Bettger--playing against type) teaches her his diving act and the two of them become a sensation. Soon, they marry but Baxter is an idiot and soon starts carrying on with Cochran behind her poor husband's back. What's going to come of this? See the film and find out for yourself.This is a moderately diverting film. However, I think it could have been written a bit better. In particular, Baxter's character seems very inconsistent and silly---and is definitely a weak point in the film. Even if this had been better, the film screams 'mediocre' throughout and is only mildly diverting...mildly.

Panamint This movie is mostly just a sordid wallow, but features some good actors who at least are watchable. The turgid melodramatic plot is set in effective circus/carny atmospherics. It has some tense moments, mainly due to the dangerous stunts and to the clawing (if predictable) emotions of the lead characters. Anne Baxter does a good job portraying a beautiful gold-digger in post-war Germany. Steve Cochran is very believable as a smarmy heel/conman/thief. You won't care about the characters, but together the lead actors manage to steam up the story enough to keep it interesting. Otherwise this movie doesn't have much to offer except for some good color filming and excellent nighttime photography.Baxter has the usual potboiler dialog along the lines of "I'm no good for you", "I'm just rotten", etc. but she really can play this type of over-dramatics as well as any actress.If you want to wallow for a while in a shallow, steamy potboiler for strictly entertainment purposes, this movie is for you. Enjoy it, just don't expect a classic.

Snow Leopard The believable atmosphere and some moments of real tension, along with Anne Baxter's starring performance, make "Carnival Story" worth watching despite its somewhat uneven quality overall. It has some strengths, but it leaves you feeling that it could have been improved without too much difficulty.The story has an interesting setting, with the drama and romance taking place in an American traveling show that is touring Germany, having attracted little interest in the US. Although the portrayal of the show and its players uses a number of clichés, in general the atmosphere is believable, and it supplies an effective background to the story. The world of the carnival is self-contained to begin with, and their presence in a foreign country emphasizes their isolation from the 'real world'. Jay C. Flippen plays the show's manager, and his character adds an appropriate air of run-down authority.Anne Baxter stars as the only German native among the main characters, an intense young woman who becomes involved romantically with more than one of the show's employees. In itself, the plot is the same as that in many other movies about romantic rivalry, with Baxter's character torn between the 'good' lover and the 'bad' lover. Baxter herself works well enough in the role, since her restless style fits in with her character here.Most of the other characters, though, remain one-dimensional, and some of the confrontations and tense moments lose something as a result. When the dramatic turns work, it is usually because they take place in an interesting setting, rather than because they have been filmed with any particular skill. The pacing likewise is inconsistent. There are a number of slow stretches that do little of note, but then it does make good use of the recurring high dive scenes, with the pageantry, danger, and tension that they bring.Overall, it has some definite strengths and some obvious weaknesses. It is essentially a formulaic drama about romantic rivalries, with a relatively interesting setting that hides enough of the weaknesses to make it worth seeing.

Parrotjer In many ways this is a strange film with Anne Baxter being the black widow of sorts. The screen seems to come alive only when she is on screen with Cochran.The plot is very simplistic and the characters not well developed and are even contradictory.However, any film with them in it is worthy of viewing. Maybe a better script would have enhanced this film.