It’s hard for me to explain the madness that occurs in Álex de la Iglesia’s latest cinematic effort, The Last Circus, without giving away the good parts. Luckily, even if I tell you what happens you’ll still have problems imagining it, which is why you’ll have to immediately go out and either rent or purchase this film. I say this because, let’s be honest, who doesn’t want to see a heavyset clown wielding a machete and cutting down all his enemies in his path?
Yup, that’s the type of crazy shit you’ll be in for when you sit down to watch The Last Circus. The following is a perfect summary of what the film is about.
1937, Spain is in the midst of the brutal Spanish Civil War. A “Happy” circus clown is interrupted mid-performance and forcibly recruited by a militia. Still in his costume, he is handed a machete and led into battle against National soldiers, where he single handedly massacres an entire platoon. This absurd and disturbing scenario raises the curtain on a twisted tale of love, revenge, and psychopathic clowns that could only spring from the mind of filmmaker Álex de la Iglesia.
Fast forward to 1973, the tail end of the Franco regime. Javier (Antonio de la Torre), the son of the clown, dreams of following in his father’s career footsteps, but has seen too much tragedy in his life – he’s simply not funny and is only equipped to play the role of the Sad Clown. He finds work in a circus where he befriends an outlandish cast of characters, but as the Sad Clown he must take the abuse of the brutish Happy Clown Sergio (Carlos Areces), who humiliates Javier daily in the name of entertainment.
It is here that he meets Natalia (Carolina Bang), a gorgeous acrobat, and abused wife of Sergio. Javier falls deeply in love with Natalia and tries to rescue her from her cruel and violent husband, unleashing Sergio’s jealousy. But Natalia is torn between her affection towards Javier and her lust for Sergio.
With neither man willing to back down, this twisted love triangle evolves into a ferocious battle between Sad Clown and Happy Clown, escalating to unbelievable heights in this absurd, shocking, irreverent and unforgettable film.
I’ve never seen a de la Iglesia film so I can’t compare it to any of his prior works but from what I hear this is his most complete and interesting work to date. The Last Circus has a very dirty and gritty feel to it, not only showing the scummier side of the circus but also how depressing it may have been to live during the Franco era. This gritty look coupled with some extremely CG heavy scenes makes this flick a visual feast for the eyes, regardless if you find the film good or not. If you tack on some amazing makeup work and great acting you end up having quite a visceral experience.
I found The Last Circus to be one of those love/hate kind of films. I say this because of how wacky the story actually is and how far the battle for Natalia’s love goes. The love story takes so many twists and turns resulting in horrific experiences for our characters and yet it somehow flows and maintains the continuity. As for the clowns’ battle, both the Happy and Sad Clown have a raging fire within them but show it in different ways until their intensity and 
depression are unleashed and all hell breaks loose. There is actually a point where the two almost swap roles only for the sad clown to make a poor decision and bring himself back down to Sergio’s level. It’s pretty disheartening to watch at times and a great example of how one can become careless and a tad insane when in love. Props to Antonio de la Torre for a great job transitioning his character from one we sympathize with to one we just pity.
Time to break down the blu-ray itself: First off, the film looks spectacular and that’s because it was shot in digital so there is no need to worry about any transfers. As for the special features, they are quite extensive and are really worth your time. The features include “Making of The Last Circus,” a “Behind the Scenes Segments,” a “Visual Effects” breakdown, the U.S. Trailer, the International Teaser, and the International Trailer. The three featuettes are rather long and dive into all facets of the production, showing you exactly how they filmed some of the craziest scenes, especially the ones that were practically all CG. The features alone make this film worth a buy.
Overall, The Last Circus is a film all genre fans must see. It has a story that flows regardless of how ridiculous it can be at times, it has some hardcore action sequences that you’ve never experienced before, and it delivers on its promise to give you something unique. While it may not necessarily be up there with the best of these types of films, I can promise you that this bizarre creation will eventually reach cult status simply for its iconic opening battle scene. So if you are completely fascinated by depressed clowns and the whole idea of how far someone would go to be with their love then this culty piece of Spanish cinema is for you. If you aren’t open to crazy visuals, demented characters and graphic gore then you may want to skip this.
Rating: Spanish clowns going insane over a sexy woman, what more do you need? (6/10)
The Last Circus is now available on blu-ray and DVD from the awesome label that is Magnet. You can pick it up from Amazon HERE.
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