Last Circus [Blu-ray] [2011] [US Import]

Crazy indeed is cult director Alex de la Iglesia's 2010 Venice Film Festival winner about two clowns - one sad and one happy - who enter into a bizarre and memorable love triangle. Set during the brutal Spanish Civil War as well as the end of Franco's regime, the demented parable is like an amalgam of Fellini, Del Toro, Hitchcock with a pinch of Burton and more than a twist of German Expressionism. Often nightmarishly absurd, shocking and irreverent, the visually rich cinematic tapestry defies a singular interpretation and like all great -- or even good -- art, sticks in the mind long after it is experienced.

"The Last Circus"
(Magnolia Home Entertainment, 2011)

If you have a friend, or girlfriend, who doesn't like clowns and thinks that they're creepy, don't take them to see this film, thinking it'll help cure them. This dark Spanish action/tragicomedy tells the tale of two clowns, one a sociopathic abuser of women (the funny one, who makes kids laugh) and another whose father -- also a clown -- was killed by Franco's police after the Spanish Civil War. Javier is the sad clown, instructed to avenge his father, but unable to do it and consigned to a life as a nervous nebbish... That is, until he falls in love with the other clown's seductive, masochistic girlfriend, a path that leads to a kaleidoscopic welter of madness and violence. The first half of the film has surreal touches, but is almost a straight tragicomedy -- in the second half it leaps over the abyss into blood-soaked absurdism. There is an insane mishmash of stories, with hints of "The Most Dangerous Game," "The Blue Angel," "Phantom Of The Opera," "The Crow," various Hitchcock finales and every evil clown movie ever made. It's fascinating, grotesque and will test the endurance of many a viewer. For the right kind of viewer, it'll be a real thrill.

Gordon Sullivan, DVD Verdict --After a few opening moments of clowning, a military man shows up to conscript the clowns. Once they're conscripted, director Alex de la Iglesia unleashes an action scene that's equal parts Quentin Tarantino and Federico Fellini. He keeps his happy clown (and the rest of the circus troupe) in circus garb as the conscripted troops fight the fascist rebels. We watch as this clown--armed with a machete--cuts down soldier after soldier before being wounded. It's a carnivalesque version of Saving Private Ryan as directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky, a kind of fever-dream of the fight against fascism. Truth be told, this paragraph will tell you everything you need to know about whether to see The Last Circus. If the idea of Fellini and Tarantino collaborating on a remake of Saving Private Ryan sounds like a good idea to you, then chances are this is for you.

Of course it's not all slow-mo fighting and clowns wielding machetes. The film is also about the legacy of Franco's regime, forbidden love, and the vanishing art of the circus--all that, and a clown-versus-clown showdown. The Last Circus is stuffed to the brim--with violence, with color, and with plot. Yet, it never feels as schizophrenic as it sounds, effortlessly taking the viewer from 1937 to the early 1970s and the growing relationship between Javier and his acrobatic love interest.

All of the various plot points--from the circus to Franco's soldiers--allows de la Iglesia to indulge in his frankly beautiful visual style. The whole film appears to be decaying before our very eyes, with crumbling structures and desaturated colors, while the compositions are framed like paintings. Even if the idea of warring clowns sounds terrible, de la Iglesia has shot his mad tale beautifully.

That beauty is translated perfectly to this Blu-ray release. The 2.35:1 AVC-encoded transfer is stunning. The Last Circus was shot digitally, so this is a digital-to-digital port, and I can't imagine it looking better. Detail is strong throughout, from the patterns in the clown suits to the cracks in their white makeup, while color is perfectly saturated (though not particularly realistic). Black levels remain consistent and deep, and no artifacting shows up to mar the image. The tiniest bit of noise crops up in darker scenes, but that's probably not the fault of this transfer. The audio lives up to the quality of the video with this release. The DTS-HD Spanish language surround track (an English dub with the same specs is available) sounds remarkable. The explosions and action scenes have heft, while the film also makes good use of the soundscape, with good surround activity and left-to-right panning. Dialogue is crisp and clear, primarily out of the center channel.

The extras are not quite as stunning, but give some solid info on how the film works technically. We get a 15-minute making of, and a pair of behind-the-scenes featurettes, followed by some info on the film's (copious) visual effects. Finally, the disc includes the U.S. trailer, its international counterpart, and an international teaser.

-Full review at dvdverdict.com