--- title: "The Greatest Show on Earth: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/the-greatest-show-on-earth/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/the-greatest-show-on-earth" critics_score: 61 critics_reviews: 7 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # The Greatest Show on Earth (1952): what the critics said Critics' score 61 from 7 reviews: 4 positive, 0 mixed, 3 negative. Most critics, certainly those writing on release, take the film as showmanship first and judge it kindly on those terms. The praise clusters on DeMille’s staging of the circus itself: acts filmed under a real big top with Ringling Bros., the colour and movement of the parades, the montage of the caravan on the road. Several find the Hollywood stars slot in convincingly among the working performers, and the train crash draws attention even from those unmoved by the rest. The reservations gather around the story. Even admirers concede the romantic triangle is a framework rather than a drama, and the harsher notices call the characterisation childish and the romances foolish, interrupting the spectacle and stretching a long film into tedium. The spread is wide, from the trade papers and daily press of 1952 near the top to Sight and Sound at the bottom, and the split follows the calendar: the later reviews are the coldest, though The AV Club spares a word for James Stewart’s understated clown. ## Los Angeles Times — Edwin Schallert Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 22 February 1952. Hails the film as one of DeMille's finest and a triumph of showmanship, celebrating its maximum entertainment value, glamour, authenticity from the real circus, thrilling narrative with appealing and spectacular climaxes, and the stellar cast. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/archives/story/2022-09-02/from-the-archives-greatest-show-demille-triumph) ## The New York Times — Bosley Crowther Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 11 January 1952. The critic praises DeMille's spectacular and authentic portrayal of the circus, highlighting its movement, life, dynamic montage effects, and the way it captures the excitement of the big top and its caravan. Strong performances from the cast are noted as enhancing the showmanship. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1952/01/11/archives/the-screen-in-review-de-mille-puts-greatest-show-on-earth-on-film.html) ## The Hollywood Reporter — David Hanna Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 2 January 1952. The critic praises DeMille for forging a fabulous, spectacular entertainment that captures the magic, color, and human drama of the circus with authentic detail from the Ringling Bros. partnership. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/greatest-show-earth-review-1952-movie-1174845/) ## Variety — Herb Golden Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 1952. Commends the spectacle, thrills, spangles, Big Top atmosphere, and seamless integration of Hollywood stars with real circus acts and authentic details, though notes the unsubtle story serves mainly as framework and some sequences feel like excess baggage. [Read the review](https://variety.com/1952/film/reviews/the-greatest-show-on-earth-2-1200417097) ## The AV Club — Noel Murray Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 24 May 2004. The critic calls it a bloated, hammy Best Picture winner with an overheated romantic triangle but singles out Jimmy Stewart's subtle clown performance and the authentic circus pageantry and acts for praise. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/the-greatest-show-on-earth-1798199630) ## The New Yorker — John McCarten Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 12 January 1952. Praises the engrossing circus sequences and DeMille's handling of the spectacle when not focused on plot, but criticizes the meagre, foolish romantic storylines that interrupt and make the long film rather boring overall. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1952/01/19/1952-01-19-083-tny-cards-000037634) ## Sight and Sound Fi1m's normalised score 20/100 (inferred from the text). The critic finds the film boring with childish characterization and dialogue, fake circus acts, and a lack of imagination, despite its scale. They single out the megalomaniac commentary and the destructive train crash sequence. [Read the review](http://old.bfi.org.uk/features/ultimatefilm/chart/details.php?ranking=32) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/the-greatest-show-on-earth.md