I'm in utter disbelief at the fact that the first time I watched this film, I barely liked it. My only conclusion would be that I saw it at the wrong time, as it's taxing for me to uncover its blemishes. The tight rope scene stalls a bit, and...um...well that's all.A feeling of sheer and absolute elation overwhelms me whenever I set my eyes upon that (unreasonably) hoity-toity, jealous, hopeful, and altruistic little tramp. And my heart, it shatters(!) the moment I see him in pain; when I see him constrained, watching the dropped-from-heaven sole bright spot of his life, being taken from him; or when he cowers away, out of fear of being seen for what he actually is; or when he's lonely. Which brings me to what I wanted to discuss — I wish I could say it was Chaplin, but I can only stretch out the compliments "he's funny" and "his physical comedy is the best I've seen, bar none" (Keaton has him beat in the gag department though) so far — the ending.Conflicted, conflicted, conflicted am I. One hand: I LOVE different. I was actually thinking about this days before; about how most of the silent comedies I've seen end with their protagonist, figuratively or literally, in the arms of a woman — and if not that, at least on a happy note. Which is why I appreciate The Circus' ending. To an extent. Because, on the other hand: I want the character, that I love so dearly, to be happy. I was teary-eyed at the sight of him all alone in that abandoned circle. I mentioned that I've seen this once before, and halfway through, while filled with joy, I was reminded of the not-so- happy ending that awaited me...and I didn't want it to be true. I hoped that I was mistaken, or that there was a clue, that I had previously missed, insinuating that he wouldn't be so alone. But, unfortunately...you know. Thankfully, it isn't too somber, as we get a glimpse of the Tramp's well-known optimism, but still...damn.

Okay, so I'm going with a 5 here and I'm sure Charlie deserves more than that. I like film and certainly respect the film making of this day, but this felt very long to me. The story line is so simple that I can almost guess what will happen in the end. If I was out of a school setting it probably would have helped. It is interesting how far we have come and the fact that it all stems from films like these. Definitely would make a good background movie during a party. If you really sit and watch it though you can see how much work he put into it. It was not a simple push and play effort of today. It was a real passion which I'm sure outreaches many actors currently at work. Definitely need more comfortable chairs in class. Definitely can't wait till the movies with speaking in them.

When watching the circus I was really expecting to be bored. I was very surprised when I was able to watch and be interested at this film. Some parts even made me laugh and I found it shocking that after almost 100 years the jokes still worked today. I felt that the cut scenes with writing were a little unnecessary. The things being said to the audience were really short and simple and were already being conveyed by the actors. Also they were written like how I imagine a caveman would talk. The film would have been fine without them or with slightly more complicated text. That being said by the end I was enjoying the movie and saw how these films influenced people making films up to present day. P.S. Charlie Chaplin is very creepy looking.

The circus, being my first exposure to silent movies, was surprisingly hilarious and even emotional. The comedy and hilarity is so easily projected by Chaplin in each zany and inadvertent moment after another. The comical chaos is very amusing to me, i never gave silent movies a chance before watching this movie and i was happily surprised at how easily i was engaged. The Circus' camera shots were inventive and unique, such as the mirror maze scene, and the movie gave the characters depth in a way i thought a silent movie couldn't. Chaplin's performance is true Chaplin, brilliant and hilarious. I even identified with his character and was completely drawn in especially during the end which was surprisingly emotional and for me, relatable.