The Circus

This lesser-known Chaplin film is a slapstick delight. We first meet the Little Tramp hanging around the sideshow, stealing hot dogs from a baby. After a chase through a mirror-maze and a stint imitating an automaton to elude the police, the spectator finds himself part of the show. The hapless Tramp becomes an accidental clown, the hit of the circus—but only when he isn’t trying to be funny. The Circus analyzes the nature of comedy while also producing plenty of it, climaxing with our hero’s nightmarish debut on the high wire.