Come one, come all, to The Greatest Show on Earth!  Brad Braden (Charlton Heston) is the manager of the Ringling Brothers-Barnum and Bailey Circus.  To secure a full season run, he brings in The Great Sebastian (Cornel Wilde), who is known just as much for his prowess on the trapeze as he is for his womanizing.  His introduction to the show brings lots of tension as his competitive relationship with Holly (Betty Hutton), the former star trapeze artist, becomes more and more romantic, pulling her away from Brad.   

In his penultimate feature, Cecil B. DeMille steps briefly away from the bible to take on the modern American spectacle of one of the best-known traveling circuses.  The 153-minute film released in 1952 by Paramount Pictures has all the excitement of sitting under the big top yourself, you just need to bring your own cotton candy and popcorn.  Much of the film is comprised of long performance sequences, so your mileage may vary especially given our modern understanding of animal routines.  Regardless, there are some breathtaking stunts – with the lead actors all performing in their own acts – that manage to unlock that childlike wonder and awe in us all.   

There is also great cut away footage of the crowd during all the shows with excellent bits of comedy that keep the energy of scene.  Many of the audience members are cameo appearances from the stars of the day, and the auxiliary acts are performed by members of the actual Ringling Brothers Circus.  The bombastic, sequined colors that fill the screen as the main storyline of dueling trapeze artists are never far off camera and help to add a bit of framework to the otherwise chaotic three ring extravaganza.  It is an excessive delight, if not a little bloated, and gives DeMille ample opportunity to show his mastery over giant casts and epic backdrops.   

As DeMille himself will narrate: The performance ends, but the drama never stops… 

Despite the massive cast, DeMille exercises a great ability to balance the multiple story arcs that drive the film.  Unfortunately, there is not a lot of narrative behind the spectacle, but the stories are interesting enough to hold our attention.  The main plot revolves around a love triangle originating with Brad, Holly, and Sebastian.  As the trio becomes more and more intertwined with themselves, the plot stays very simple almost like it is afraid to delve into the lust and love that would make this a far more interesting film to watch given its runtime. 

Heston in the lead is the do-no-wrong manager of the circus.  The script constantly makes him solve problems but there is little weight to his actions once the scene ends.  The problems that arise, while interesting in the moment for our shining moral hero, hold little weight in the grand scheme of the film.  It is a little frustrating as the opening hinges on the profitability of the circus which adds an overarching problem for the whole ensemble, but with the introduction of Sebastian the topic of profitability – and the financial stability of the performers – is never mentioned again.  A second main arc is loosely established between Brad and Harry (John Kellogg) as a midway conman, but it is never really explored in any significant manner despite its reoccurrence and role in the finale.   

The true force behind the film is the Brad, Sebastian, and Holly arc which eventually opens up to include Angel (Gloria Grahame) and Klaus (Lyle Bettger) and thankfully also brings a good bit of narrative tension.  To keep with the light nature of the film, it never gets too dark or deep into their tangled emotions, but it works well enough even in its simple nature.  Wilde gives a good performance as the superstar and adds depth when he can.  He does have the benefit of being the character that goes through some of the most changes in the story and we can never quite be sure where his motivations lie.  He operates only in the fulfillment of self, but which way that allegiance will take him is always up in the air and he is not without a few surprises. 

The scene-stealing star of the show, though, is Buttons the Clown (James Stewart) who never removes his face paint, and we will quickly learn is harboring a secret.  Stewart is extremely expressive in the role which keeps his face more or less obscured for the entirety.  It is also a physically demanding role, and while he is not one of the highflyers that occupy the lion’s share of the circus sequences, there are still extended slapstick and clowning routines of which Buttons is often leading the action aided by Emmett Kelly in his iconic Weary Willie attire.  Stewart brings a great presence to this role and steals every scene he is in.  If the love plots bog you down, Buttons’ arc is what will keep you invested. 

The film ends in a climactic third act that highlights DeMille’s affinity for epic storytelling.  He blows the doors off for a finale that could have been very tight, but the budget-busting approach does pay off.  It calls back to many of the issues Brad had worked to solve earlier in the film, but the stakes of the film still feel very low as the script does not support much more than an elementary look into the consequences of Brad’s actions.  That the characters never even question the inciting incident of the third act makes it all too clear that the purpose of the film is more a commercial for the circus than an actual narrative endeavor, especially when you take into consideration the flowery narration which has romanticized the life of circus workers throughout.  While the script never really challenges the characters, it is still a satisfying ending, and it is surprisingly nice to be out from under the big top as the film winds down.   

The Greatest Show on Earth may be a bit of a misnomer here, especially within the context of DeMille’s impressive filmography, but it still delivers some very entertaining moments in its showcasing of circus performers.  There is no denying that the film is entirely too long and the narrative crumbles under the weight of DeMille’s grandiose nature, but what it lacks for in substance it more than makes up for in style and is, undeniably, a thrill to behold.