Redwarmin This movie is the proof that the world is becoming a sick and dumb place

Nonureva Really Surprised!

PiraBit if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

Roman Sampson One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Jerry The owner and ringmaster of a bankrupt, downtrodden circus visits his ex-wife when it stops in his home town. While away, his girlfriend, who rides a horse in the traveling show, has a sexual encounter with an actor in a local theater troupe. He gets a tearful confession after threatening her later the same day in their caravan, then contemplates suicide. Instead, he takes it out on the sickly circus bear and the show goes on as planned. When the actor shows up for the performance that night it leads to a brawl. There is not a happy character or relationship to be found anywhere in this bleak, disturbing circus show. It starts with a surreal flashback that threatens to overshadow everything that follows. The gun play is unsettling as is the violence shown towards circus animals, although the worst occurs off screen. I wanted to like the film more, and the cinematography by Sven Nykvist is peerless, his first work with Bergman, but my tolerance for violence towards animals is rather low and impeded my enjoyment.

ozjeppe Silly, boisterous and badly outdated story of a traveling circus in turn-of-the-century southern Sweden and the demise of its owner/ringmaster (Grönberg) as he comes back from a 3-year tour abroad. Intriguing circus setting, very similar to Fellini's "La Strada" but this is not even remotely close to that film's masterful emotional quality and character/story development. Here, it's just so cheaply and sloppily executed that almost nothing works in terms of dialog (the scenes between diva actor Ekman and Andersson are terribly unconvincing), coherence (the final 20 minutes are just embarrassing: messy, loud, melodramatic and annoyingly overacted) and character motivation - particularly from Grönberg's mistress Andersson. Grönberg himself IS memorable and the bit where he visits his wife at the tobacco store, stirs up interest momentarily... but this is easily the crappiest piece of Bergman I've seen so far. Stark, moody cinematography is among its few virtues.To illustrate my disappointment: the opening sequence with the tale of the clown Frost's wife taking a nude swim in front of a military squad relates to absolutely nothing that follows (and again, ridiculously overacted), so what exactly is the point of including it in the first place? So, Bergman aficionados: the emperor CAN be naked... VERY naked indeed! 2 out of 10 from Ozjeppe.

christopher-underwood I first, and probably, last saw this wonderful film over 40 years ago. It has not been easy to catch again and then I think that when the time since you have last seen a favourite gets too long you begin to have concerns as to whether it will live up to your memory of it. There was particular concern here because, although in the 60s and 70s I would bore people by going on about this film whenever talk of Bergman's more well thought of films came up, this was never considered to be one of his best. Having just watched it again I am blown away all over again. I cannot believe how much of the fantastic visuals I remembered and the extent to which the power of the film is still so affecting. There is not a wasted frame, this is pure cinema throughout. The acting is stupendous, the cinematography outstanding and the bitter sweet tale so seemingly simple, yet so devastatingly all consuming. I know Bergman has made more poetic films and more profound ones but I still think this one is hard to beat for so eloquently presenting those basic issues that matter to everyone.

Claudio Carvalho While traveling in caravan through the country of Sweden, one member of the decadent Alberti Circus tells the owner and ringmaster Albert Johansson (Åke Grönberg) a sad story about the clown Frost (Anders Ek): seven years ago, his wife Alma (Gudrun Brost) was surprised by him bathing naked in a lake with a regiment. When the circus arrives in the town where Albert's wife Agda (Annika Tretow) and sons live, he decides to pay a visit with his young mistress Anne (Harriet Andersson) to a famous local troupe to borrow some capes, hats and vests for their tonight show. They are humiliated by the director Mr. Sjuberg (Gunnar Björnstrand), but he lends the pieces, and the lead actor Frans (Hasse Ekman) gives an unsuccessful pass on Anne. When Albert decides to visit Agda, the jealous Anne meets Frans, who seduces her with an apparently valuable necklace, and they have a love affair. Anne finds that the necklace is actually worthless and returns to the circus. Meanwhile, Agda refuses to accept Albert back and he sees Anne leaving the theater and going to the jewelry. During the exhibition, Albert and Anne are submitted to humiliations by Frans."Gycklarnas Afton" is a dark and unpleasant story of the cruelty of mankind, where losers, desperate people without any perspective in life, are humiliated by the cruel human beings, reaching the lowest human condition. The clown Frost and his decadent wife Alma; the aging and tired owner of the circus trying reconciliation with his former wife to have a stable life; the mistress Anne trying to find another man to support her; all of them stuck together in a decadent circus due to the lack of perspective in life and courage of committing suicide. The cinematography in black and white is amazingly beautiful, and the introduction sequence, with the caravan moving in the dawn, is very similar to Brazilian classic "O Cangaceiro" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0045595/), of the same year. Harriet Andersson is extremely sexy and gorgeous in the role of Anne. My vote is eight.Title (Brazil): "Noites de Circo" ("Nights of Circus")