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Circo (2010)

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All Critics
Top Critics

Average Rating: 7.7/10
Reviews Counted: 26
Fresh: 24 | Rotten: 2

No consensus yet.

Average Rating: 7.6/10
Critic Reviews: 9
Fresh: 8 | Rotten: 1

No consensus yet.

audience

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Average Rating: 3.6/5
User Ratings: 448

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Movie Info

Aaron Schock's acclaimed film, which has appeared at many world festivals and is the most recent winner of the Jury Award at the Hampton's International Film Festival, is one of the most compelling documentaries seen in years. Set in the cinematically rich milieu of a century-old traveling circus in rural Mexico, CIRCO follows the family-run "Circo Mexico" as they struggle to stay together despite mounting debt, dwindling audiences, and a simmering family conflict. The hardscrabble founders, the

Unrated, 1 hr. 15 min.

Documentary, Drama, Art House & International

Directed By: Aaron Schock

Written By: Mark Becker, Aaron Schock

In Theaters: Apr 1, 2011 Wide

On DVD: Sep 20, 2011

Box Office:$77.5k

First Run Features

Circo Trailer & Photos

More Photos (5)

Critic Reviews for Circo

All Critics (26) | Top Critics (9) | Fresh (24) | Rotten (3) | DVD (2)

Circo takes you to the edge of human experience on a path none of this summer's superhero daredevils would ever consider taking.

July 22, 2011 Full Review Source: Globe and Mail

| Comment

Jennie Punter

Globe and Mail

Top Critic

It says as much about human nature as it shows about struggling entertainers.

May 19, 2011 Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune

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Colin Covert

Minneapolis Star Tribune

Top Critic

"Circo'' offers a fascinating mix of backstage drama and family dynamics.

April 21, 2011 Full Review Source: Boston Globe

| Comment

Loren King

Boston Globe

Top Critic

In "Circo," Aaron Schock documents the fearsome labor and intense willpower it takes to keep this shoestring show on the road, and the price paid by the family that runs it.

April 14, 2011 Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle

| Comment

Walter V. Addiego

San Francisco Chronicle

Top Critic

"Circo" is a marvel of a documentary, a clear-eyed and affectionate film that tells a remarkable story with both visual and personal sensitivity.

April 7, 2011 Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times

| Comment

Kenneth Turan

Los Angeles Times

Top Critic

The contrast between Schock's discreet approach and the family's stormy differences could have been powerful. But without much of the latter captured on film, Circo feels all too diffident.

April 1, 2011 Full Review Source: NPR

| Comment

Mark Jenkins

NPR

Top Critic

Circo is too all over the place to be more than just a missed opportunity.

September 21, 2011 Full Review Source: Slant Magazine

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Simon Abrams

Slant Magazine

"Circo" is an amazing feat.

June 3, 2011 Full Review Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch

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Joe Williams

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

The colors are vivid, the acrobats nimble, the animals impressive and the hard work of Ponce and his extended family has nobility and poignancy.

May 20, 2011 Full Review Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press

| Comment

Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)

St. Paul Pioneer Press

Running off and joining the circus won't seem like such a fun idea after watching Circo.

May 6, 2011 Full Review Source: Washington City Paper

| Comment

Tricia Olszewski

Washington City Paper

Circo ends somewhat arbitrarily and could benefit from a stronger conclusion, but its portrait of a lifestyle that's at once shabby and glittery is finely etched.

April 29, 2011 Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle

| Comment

Marjorie Baumgarten

Austin Chronicle

The real life the camera catches is naturally more dramatic and unexpected than any written scenario.

April 28, 2011 Full Review Source: East Bay Express

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Kelly Vance

East Bay Express

Sort of a modern-day version of "Toby Tyler," only without a frisky, mischievous Mr. Stubbs as comic relief.

April 21, 2011 Full Review Source: Seattle Times

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Ted Fry

Seattle Times

Circo is touching as a personal family story, but extraordinary as a visual document of an eroding world, thanks to Schock's second job as an amazing cinematographer.

April 20, 2011 Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix

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Gerald Peary

Boston Phoenix

Besides documenting the life of a rural traveling family circus, Schock looks at how traditions of the past are challenged in today's world.

April 14, 2011 Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews

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Laura Clifford

Reeling Reviews

...the kind of documentary that brings you to a different world and lifestyle.

April 13, 2011 Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews

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Robin Clifford

Reeling Reviews

Captivating, unflinchingly honest and poignant.

April 5, 2011 Full Review Source: NYC Movie Guru

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Avi Offer

NYC Movie Guru

Circo has the succinct haunting contradiction of a good Steinbeck story, perhaps something out of Tortilla Flat.

April 4, 2011 Full Review Source: Slant Magazine

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Chuck Bowen

Slant Magazine

The film engages sporadically but mostly fails to take advantage of its under-documented milieu.

April 2, 2011 Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine

| Comment

Vadim Rizov

Boxoffice Magazine

Undeniably beautiful and undeniably sad.

April 1, 2011 Full Review Source: IFC.com

| Comment

Matt Singer

IFC.com

More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for Circo

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Two circus movies in a row! What's next? A revival of BERSERK starring Joan Crawford? Anyhow, this one is world's apart from WATER FOR ELEPHANTS.This beautifully filmed yet dramatically hesitant documentary about a family struggling to run their traveling circus through the small towns of Mexico plays more like a

May 1, 2011

Glenn Gaylord

Super Reviewer

special features are worth watching as well

August 19, 2011

Darlene Moreira-Alberts

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