Circus movies and TV shows
The list contains the best, new and most relevant circus movies ordered by relevance. The recommendation service has sorted out surreal, stylized, serious, weird, humorous and atmospheric films and TV shows about / with circus, clown, friendship, escapades, elephant, dog, children, surrealism, carnival and magic plots mostly in Fantasy, Drama and Comedy genres shot in USA, UK, Canada and other countries.
563
TOP 10 movies tagged as circus: The Greatest Showman (2017), Carnivàle (2003), Water for Elephants (2011), The First of May (1999), Cirque du Soleil: Worlds Away (2012), Freakshow (2007), The Clown (2011), The Serpent's Egg (1977), Freaks vs the Reich (2021), Dumbo (2019).
Best films
List of circus movies
Genre: Biography, Drama, Musical
Country: USA, China
Duration: 105 min.
Story:
The story of American showman P.T. Barnum, founder of the circus that became the famous traveling Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.
Style:
inspirational, costume drama, romantic drama, captivating, motivational ...
Audience:
teens, chick flick, kids, date night, family outing
Plot:
circus, social outcast, singing, giant, success, dancing, romantic relationship, taboo, father daughter relationship, mansion, outcast, interracial love ...
Time:
year 2017, 19th century, 1800s, victorian era, 1830s ...
Place:
new york, london, buckingham palace
Is relevant?
49K
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min.
TV show
Story:
Carnivàle is an American television series set in the United States during the Great Depression and Dust Bowl. In tracing the lives of two disparate groups of people, its overarching story depicts the battle between good and evil and the struggle ...
Style:
serious, atmospheric, surreal, captivating, period piece ...
Plot:
circus, surrealism, prophecy, healing power, god or devil, evil, psychic, self discovery, clergy, good versus evil, supernatural, freak ...
Time:
1930s, 20th century, year 1935, year 1934
Place:
california, usa
Is relevant?
Genre: Drama, Romance
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 120 min.
Story:
In this captivating Depression-era melodrama, impetuous veterinary student Jacob Jankowski joins a celebrated circus as an animal caretaker but faces a wrenching dilemma when he's transfixed by angelic married performer Marlena.
Style:
romantic, sexy, emotional, touching, stylized ...
Audience:
chick flick, girls' night, date night, teens
Plot:
circus, love story, forbidden love, older woman younger man relationship, love and romance, couple relations, performer's life, lovers, couples, love affair, animal abuse, artists and showbiz ...
Time:
year 2011, 2010s, 50s, 20th century, 1920s ...
Place:
usa
Is relevant?
Genre: Drama, Family, Sport
Country: USA
Duration: 111 min.
Story:
Cory (Dan Byrd) is a foster child nobody wants. Carlotta (Academy Award-nominee Julie Harris) is an elderly woman the world has forgotten. Together, they find friendship and family when they join a traveling circus. Also features Mickey Rooney and ...
Style:
independent film, semi serious, realistic, humorous, offbeat
Audience:
pre-teens, kids, family outing, preschool
Plot:
circus, youth, clown, boarding school life, baseball, retirement home, foster parent, young heroes, orphan, chase, heroes, hopes ...
Time:
90s
Is relevant?
Related movie lists
Genre: Fantasy
Country: USA, Canada, New Zealand
Duration: 91 min.
Story:
An original story featuring performances by Cirque du Soleil. A young woman is entranced by an Aerialist. When they fall into the dreamlike world of Cirque du Soleil and are separated, they travel through the different tent worlds trying to find ...
Style:
serious, exciting, surreal, stylized, poignant ...
Audience:
kids
Plot:
circus, young lovers, synchronized swimming, dancer, disorder, imaginary, fall in love, artists and showbiz, fish out of water, dancing, dance, lovers apart ...
Time:
21st century
Place:
usa
Is relevant?
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Mystery
Country: UK, France, Canada
Duration: 123 min.
Story:
A traveling theater company gives its audience much more than they were expecting.
Style:
surreal, dark fantasy, fairy tale, cerebral, stylized ...
Audience:
kids, teens, date night
Plot:
surrealism, imaginary kingdom, deal with the devil, mysterious character, imagination, steampunk, bet, transformation, devil, imaginary world, sex with teenager, circus ...
Time:
year 2009, 2000s, year 2010
Place:
britain, london
Is relevant?
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 109 min.
Story:
Darren Shan is a regular teenage kid. He and his friend Steve find out about a Freak Show coming to town and work hard at trying to find tickets. They do, and together they go to "Cirque du Freak" where they see many strange acts including ...
Style:
scary, teen, semi serious, stylized, horror comedy ...
Audience:
teens, family outing, teen fantasy, horror for children
Plot:
vampire, circus, uninhibited rivalry, supernatural ability, supernatural, chosen one, young heroes, transformation, immortality, friends, youth, teenage life ...
Time:
year 2009, 21st century
Is relevant?
Genre: Horror
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min.
Story:
In a modern retelling of Tod Browning's "Freaks" (1932), "Freakshow" tells the story of a group of criminals who chose to hide out by working security at a traveling circus. At first, they plot with an insider to steal the ...
Style:
suspense, suspenseful, tense, captivating, disturbing ...
Plot:
circus, revenge, mutilation, cons and scams, killer clown, dishonesty, rivalry, murder, freakshow, danger, amusement park, freak ...
Time:
1930s, 21st century
Place:
usa
Is relevant?
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Country: Brazil
Duration: 88 min.
Story:
The life of the owners of Circus Esperança, Puro Sangue e Pangaré, father and son, who plays two clowns. At a certain point, Pangaré starts showing tiredness and sadness for being an unhappy clown.
Style:
realistic, touching, humorous, semi serious, road movie ...
Plot:
circus, self discovery, clown, introspection, follow your dream, identity crisis, family relations, on the road, parents and children, escapades, countryside, father son relationship ...
Time:
2010s, 21st century
Place:
brazil, latin america
Is relevant?
Genre: Fantasy, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min.
Story:
In a small American town, a diabolical circus arrives, granting wishes for the townsfolk, but twisted as only the esteemed Mr. Dark can make them. Can two young boys overcome the worst the devil himself can deal out?
Style:
gothic, sexy, scary, creepy, suspenseful ...
Audience:
family friendly, kids, teens, family outing, horror for children
Plot:
carnival, witch, boy, black magic, small town, circus, good versus evil, temptation, supernatural, youth, coming of age, librarian ...
Time:
1930s, year 1983, 20th century, 80s
Place:
illinois, usa
Is relevant?
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: West Germany, USA
Duration: 119 min.
Story:
The Serpent's Egg follows a week in the life of Abel Rosenberg, an out-of-work American circus acrobat living in poverty-stricken Berlin following Germany's defeat in World War I.
Style:
suspense, art house, philosophical, political, mind bending ...
Plot:
circus, nazism, nordic, world war two, inspector, sex, female nudity, masturbation, nudity, reptile, realism, conspiracy ...
Time:
20th century, 1920s, pre world war two
Place:
germany, berlin germany, middle east, europe
Is relevant?
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, War
Country: Italy, Belgium
Duration: 141 min.
Story:
Four circus freaks with superpowers find themselves trapped in Nazi-occupied Rome after their owner and father figure goes missing in the aftermath of the 1943 surrender of Italy to the Allies.
Style:
action packed, entertaining, heroic, semi serious
Audience:
teens
Plot:
world war two, circus, electricity, male nudity, nazi occultism, piano, nazism, cell phone, partisan, amputee, attempted rape, superpower ...
Time:
1940s, year 1943
Place:
rome italy, italy
Is relevant?
Related movie lists
88K
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Family, Fantasy
Country: UK, Canada, Australia, USA
Duration: 112 min.
Story:
Circus owner Max Medici enlists former star Holt Farrier and his children Milly and Joe to care for a newborn elephant whose oversized ears make him a laughingstock in an already struggling circus. But when they discover that Dumbo can fly, the ...
Style:
fairy tale, costume drama, sweet, emotional, touching ...
Audience:
kids, family friendly, family outing, adult
Plot:
circus, elephant, boy, train, flying, children, family relations, fire, girl, amputee, rescue, experiment ...
Time:
1910s, edwardian era, year 2019, year 1919, 20th century
Place:
florida, missouri, coney island brooklyn new york city
Is relevant?
Genre: Adventure, Family, Fantasy
Country: USA
Duration: 130 min.
Story:
Oscar Diggs, a small-time circus illusionist and con-artist, is whisked from Kansas to the Land of Oz where the inhabitants assume he's the great wizard of prophecy, there to save Oz from the clutches of evil.
Style:
fairy tale, colorful, light, entertaining, modern fairy tale ...
Audience:
kids, family outing, family friendly, chick flick, teens ...
Plot:
witch, magic, imaginary kingdom, magic trick, wizard of oz, good versus evil, wizards and magicians, circus, fantasy world, prophecy, transformation, betrayal ...
Time:
year 2013, 1900s, 20th century
Place:
kansas
Is relevant?
Genre: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min.
Story:
Flora is a circus elephant who can no longer perform her tricks. The night before she's scheduled to be euthanized, the circus owner's 14-year old daughter, Dawn, sneaks Flora from the circus. All that stands between them and the safety of ...
Style:
compassionate, sincere, exciting, light, scenic ...
Audience:
family outing, kids
Plot:
elephant, animal rescue, circus, friendship, poaching, rescue, animal, animal rights, parents and children, teenage girl, empathy, bonding ...
Is relevant?
Genre: Biography, Drama
Country: France
Duration: 119 min.
Story:
The history of the clown Chocolate, the first black circus artist in France, which has a great success in the late 19th century.
Style:
humorous, feel good, sentimental, factual, touching ...
Plot:
circus, racism, gambling, clown, black man, illegal immigrant, coworker relationship, rise to the top, fame, comedy duo, racial discrimination, black ...
Time:
1910s, 1890s, year 2016, year 2015, 19th century ...
Place:
paris france, france, caribbean, cuba
Is relevant?
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Horror, War
Country: Spain, France, Italy, Belgium
Duration: 107 min.
Story:
The journey of Javier, the obese Sad Clown, starts during his childhood in the midst of the Spanish civil war in 1937. His father, one of Spain’s most prominent jesters, is detained and tortured by the fascist regime.
Style:
disturbing, dark comedy, sexy, rough, psychological ...
Plot:
clown, circus, dark humor, sadism, killer clown, rivalry, uninhibited rivalry, performer's life, life is a bitch, evil clown, revenge, graphic violence ...
Time:
year 2010, 2010s, 70s, 20th century, year 1937 ...
Place:
europe, spain, madrid
Is relevant?
Genre: Drama, War
Country: Slovenia, Ireland, Finland, Sweden
Duration: 77 min.
Story:
A man stays alone with his children in a half demolished house in the middle of a desolate field. His wife has just been killed by a grenade in a military battle. He is expecting a new attack. Instead a wandering caravan called Circus Fantasticus ...
Style:
surreal, touching, stylized, serious, atmospheric ...
Plot:
circus, hopes, wartime life, human spirit, performer's life, parents and children, family relations, life is a bitch, death in the family, magic realism, grief, mourning ...
Place:
poetic realism
Is relevant?
Related movie lists
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Family, Musical
Country: Brazil
Duration: 95 min.
Story:
Humble officials, friends Didi, Dedé, Mussum and Zacarias become the great attraction of the circus Bartolo, thanks to its incredible ability to make the public laugh. But success has a price: the opposition of the magician Assis Satan and the ...
Style:
buddy comedy, slapstick, lighthearted, colorful, uplifting
Audience:
family friendly
Plot:
circus, friendship, heartwarming, villain, performance art, rebellion, community, magician, vaudeville, greed, tyranny, children ...
Time:
80s
Place:
brazil
Is relevant?
Genre: Comedy, Family
Country: France, Sweden
Duration: 90 min.
Story:
Two children go behind the scenes of a small circus.
Style:
humorous, touching, feel good, semi serious
Audience:
family outing
Plot:
circus, little girl, magician, children, little boy, musician, juggler, juggling, art, european, showbiz, actor's life ...
Place:
stockholm sweden
Is relevant?
Genre: Comedy, Family
Country: Czechoslovakia, Soviet Union
Duration: 131 min.
Story:
To Moscow have arrived the participants of the international conference of the zoophilologists and also the international jury which is to elect for the world festival the best performance of the program of Moscow circus. Mrs Whistler (Iva ...
Style:
absurd, surreal, slapstick, psychotronic, whimsical
Audience:
family friendly
Plot:
circus, elephant, anthropomorphism, talking animal, satire, human animal relationship, bet, language barrier, children, poodle, performance art, competition ...
Time:
70s
Place:
czechoslovakia, moscow russia, soviet union, ussr
Is relevant?
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Romance
Country: West Germany, France
Duration: 128 min.
Story:
Wings of Desire is Wim Wender’s artistically beautiful film about the lonely and immortal life of angels during a post-war Berlin. It’s a poetic journey from the perspective of the angels of which one falls in love with a living woman and wants ...
Style:
atmospheric, lyrical, meditative, surreal, cerebral ...
Audience:
date night
Plot:
philosophy, love, angel, circus, dream, immortality, mortality, surrealism, existentialism, suicide, actor, love story ...
Time:
20th century, 80s, year 1987
Place:
berlin germany, germany, west germany, east germany, europe
Is relevant?
Genre: Action, Crime, Fantasy
Country: USA
Duration: 126 min.
Story:
Having defeated the Joker, Batman now faces the Penguin - a warped and deformed individual who is intent on being accepted into Gotham society. Crooked businessman Max Schreck is coerced into helping him become Mayor of Gotham and they both attempt ...
Style:
gothic, mysterious, stylized, saga, disturbing ...
Audience:
kids, teens, date night, boys' night, family outing
Plot:
superhero, villain, batman, revenge, christmas, femme fatale, cat, vigilante, corruption, double life, christmas season, circus ...
Time:
year 1992, 20th century, 90s
Place:
usa, north america
Is relevant?
Related movie lists
Genre: Family, Fantasy, Music
Country: Canada
Duration: 110 min.
Story:
Icarus is the main character of Varekai, who falls to the ground, breaking his legs as he does. He is suddenly in a strange, new world full of creatures he has never seen before. Parachuted into the shadows of a magical forest, a kaleidoscopic world ...
Style:
entertaining, captivating, disturbing, surreal, colorful ...
Audience:
family friendly
Plot:
circus, acrobatics, acrobat, imagination, live performance, spectacle, magic, nomad, fantasy world, magical creature, quest, magic realism ...
Is relevant?
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: UK, Australia, USA
Duration: 25 min.
TV show
Story:
A woman gets trapped in a crazy virtual world along with five other humans and are now subject to the whims of wacky AI and their own personal traumas.
Style:
3d animation, horror comedy, slapstick comedy, psychological horror, dark comedy ...
Plot:
circus, virtual world, trauma, existentialism, escape plan, manipulation, artificial intelligence, game, insane, jester, surrealism, female protagonist ...
Is relevant?
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min.
Story:
Animal pals Alex, Marty, Melman, and Gloria are still trying to make it back to New York's Central Park Zoo. They are forced to take a detour to Europe to find the penguins and chimps who broke the bank at a Monte Carlo casino. When French ...
Style:
3d animation, humorous, hilarious, entertaining, funny ...
Audience:
kids, teens, family friendly, toddlers, family outing ...
Plot:
circus, penguins, animal, zebra, getting home, silly humor, talking animal, friendship, villain, fantasy world, buddies, giraffe ...
Time:
year 2012, 2010s, 21st century
Place:
madagascar, new york, africa, monte carlo, europe ...
Is relevant?
Genre: Comedy, Fantasy, Mystery, Western
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min.
Story:
An old Chinese man rides into the town of Abalone, Arizona and changes it forever, as the citizens see themselves reflected in the mirror of Lao's mysterious circus of mythical beasts.
Style:
horror comedy, mythical, mystical, uplifting, spiritual ...
Audience:
family outing
Plot:
circus, magic, myth, creature, snake, librarian, pagan, fantasy world, monster, kaiju, bike, animal ...
Place:
arizona, usa
Is relevant?
Genre: Animation, Comedy
Country: Norway, UK, Denmark
Duration: 86 min.
Story:
Four stoners, five vegans, three mobsters, four hunters and a million reasons to free one junkie elephant.
Style:
adult animation, cynical, realistic, humorous, dark comedy ...
Audience:
boys' night, kids, adult
Plot:
circus, dark humor, chase, sex, anti hero, addiction, heroin, animal rights, elephant, gang, on the road, obsession ...
Time:
21st century
Place:
europe
Is relevant?
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Family
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 75 min.
Story:
Boog, Elliot, and their forest friends return with an all-new adventure, this time in a Big Top Circus! The comedy begins when Boog's pals choose their family obligations over the annual guy's trip, and a disappointed Boog decides to take ...
Style:
computer animated, 3d animation, not serious, humorous, feel good ...
Audience:
kids, family outing, pre-teens, preschool
Plot:
circus, animal life, nothing goes right, friendship, switching roles, dog, bear, escapades, rescue, goofy hero, buddies, friends ...
Time:
2010s, 21st century
Place:
usa
Is relevant?
Genre: Comedy, Musical, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 123 min.
Story:
The daughter of a circus owner fights to save her father from a takeover spearheaded by the man she loves.
Style:
retro, semi serious, stylized, humorous, feel good ...
Plot:
circus, carnival, bride and groom, elephant, gambling, friends, wiretap, disorder, espionage, ambition, follow your dream, fighting the system ...
Time:
60s, 90s
Place:
iowa
Is relevant?
Related movie lists
