Barnum (1986) Reviews

• Applause Is Fitting For This Delight-Loaded Film.

  rsoonsa2005-11-27

  It is very appropriate that former acrobat and trapeze artist Burt Lancaster should play as Phineas T. Barnum, in a well-crafted biographic film produced for television with an adequate budget and a top-flight cast that helps to enable director Lee Phillips apply nicely focused leadership in this treatment of Barnum's eventful life. Action opens in 1883 as a circus performance is in preparation, with 70 year old Barnum, surrounded by acrobats, jugglers, animals and clowns, talking to the camera as he recalls (through flashbacks) a series of dramatized events that have brought him to this stage of his career (he discloses that he did not conceptualize of a circus until he had passed the age of 60). We see young Barnum with his grandfather, Phineas Taylor (a solid turn by Michael Higgins) for whom the lad is namesake, as Taylor advises the youngster to always credit and honour imagination: "the seed of genius, the elixir of life", words that leave a lasting effect upon the impressionable boy. Subsequent highlights include the larger-than-life entrepreneur's development of such attractions as Joice Heth, purportedly a slave of 161 years, diminutive "General" Tom Thumb, Jennie Lind, "The Swedish Nightingale", and Jumbo, a gigantic elephant, eventually arriving at Barnum's business merger with James Bailey, resulting in "The Greatest Show on Earth". The financial compact arranged between Barnum and Lind (Hanna Schygulla), who was aware of the value of promotional advertising and who therefore permitted him to retain 70% of the profits from her highly successful touring, is covered in some detail; however, there is simply too much fascinating content within this man's lifespan to do it justice with normal cinematic restrictions. This is a splendidly mounted and costumed film that never flagrantly strays far from documented truth, and enjoys ably atmospheric scoring by Charles Gross and the skillful cinematography of Reginald Morris, benefiting a well-selected cast that gives nary a weak performance, Lancaster providing a magnificent turn as the showman with Schygulla a standout, as well.

• Wonderful Movie

  publicenemy2001-10-25

  First the bad news. Burt Lancaster is much too old for the part. Though they use a younger actor for much of Barnum's youth, when they switch to Lancaster, he's clearly much older than the character he's playing. Now the good news. Burt Lancaster. He's great. No one else could play P.T. Barnum as well as Bur Lancaster. Thank God they overlooked the age factor and went for someone with the right soul. If you want someone to play the great Barnum, get a great actor. And they did. The script is beautifully written. Because of that, even though the movie was obviously shot on a budget, it suffers not at all. Much as my kids loved it, this isn't really a kids movie. I mean it's good for kids -- they will like it -- but so will anyone interested in P.T. Barnum or 19th Century America. In other words, do not write this off as a mere kids movie because it's not.

• Wonderful Burt Lancaster film!

  gazebo2005-05-26

  I remembered seeing this TV movie years ago. It was a rather lovely biography on P.T. Barnum that I don't think was that truthful to this man's extraordinary life. But it didn't matter, because Burt Lancaster was in it and he was terrific as P.T. Barnum, the first greatest showman ever. Burt Lancaster was absolutely charming in this role. Through Lancaster's performance, you can see why P.T. Barnum was able to charm so many people into buying his bulls--t. Hannah Shygulla, who plays Jenny Lind was absolutely impressive. One of the coolest scenes in this movie was the first time P.T. Barnum and his associates laid eyes for the first time on Jenny Lind. P.T. Barnum asked Jenny Lind to come to the U.S. and work for him. P.T. Barnum had never met Ms. Lind before, but he was so confident that she was going to be such a big success that he and his friends spread all sorts of rumors about her. They fabricated stories about Jenny Lind in the newspapers like how beautiful she is and all the love affairs she had. It was an excellent way to get people to come to the Jenny Lind concert. P.T. Barnum sees Jenny Lind for the first time and realizes that Jenny Lind is no beauty. She is rather plain and plain spoken. All in all, Jenny Lind looked like an absolutely ordinary woman. P.T. Barnum is so frustrated that he voices his concerns that the concert will be a big flop. Jenny Lind overhears this conversation and she comes in, all dressed up for the concert. She calmly tells P.T. Barnum and his associates that she is a great singer and she will be paid what she's worth. Hannah Shygulla, as Jenny Lind, looks directly at P.T. Barnum and said, "And you will pay me....!" And with that, she goes out on stage and sings her heart out. The audience loves her and Burt Lancaster, as P.T. Barnum, is so moved he is brushing tears away from his eyes. In this movie, you get to also meet Tom Thumb, a midget who is suddenly thrown into fame by P.T. Barnum. The actor that played Tom Thumb was very moving. Tom Thumb gets to meet Queen Victoria. In his joy, he goes up to the Queen and hugs her! I remembered feeling incredibly moved because Tom was so happy. You can imagine what his life was like before joining P.T. Barnum. The gist of the movie was that, even though P.T. Barnum exploited so many people and things for publicity and money, his employees, like the woman who claimed to be George Washington's nanny, Tom Thumb, Jenny Lind had a better life because of P.T. Barnum. Now, I don't know if it's true that P.T. Barnum treated all of these people kindly or fairly, but Burt Lancaster made you believe that P.T. Barnum was a great guy. This is a nice family movie. If they ever release this TV movie on video, I urge anyone who is a fan of Burt Lancaster to get this movie. This biopic may not be all that true, but it certainly is entertaining and a pretty good diversion!

• I Invented You, The Audience

  bkoganbing2008-08-14

  The only problem I have with the movie Barnum is that this was a role Burt Lancaster could have and should have done 20 years earlier. Still we have to give credit to the Canadian makeup people who managed to youthen Lancaster so he could do more than narrate his film from the grave so to speak. Other than Hannah Schygulla the German film star who played Jenny Lind, the supporting players were all Canadian and the film was shot mostly in and around Montreal. Two other actors Andrew Bednarski and John Roney played Phineas T. Barnum in his adolescence and as a young man. Laura Press played his first wife, a pious Yankee Congregationalist who never quite understood her mercurial husband. Lancaster was 72 when he did Barnum and he's perfect in the part. The man was a master publicist in fact he set the standard for the job. As he put it, he never cheated anyone he sold them fantasy and entertainment. The film is a fond nostalgic trip through the lighter side of the 19th century in America. Barnum before he became a circus owner had a museum that was similar to Ripley's Believe-It-Or-Not. He exhibited a talented midget in General Tom Thumb to the crowned heads of Europe, a phrase he might have coined. One of my favorite scenes is of the little guy meeting Queen Victoria with a beaming Lancaster looking on. He brought and ballyhooed Jenny Lind, dubbed the Swedish Nightingale to America for an amazingly successful tour. Another favorite scene of mine is the shrewd Ms. Lind negotiating with Barnum for the right deal. It reminded me of another great Scandinavian star of the next century, Sonia Henie and what a shrewd businesswoman she was reputed to be. Barnum's name survives today because of the famous circus his name is still attached to. As Lancaster explains he did little, but use his well known talent for publicity to get the show started. It was partner Bailey who was the driving force behind the circus and we never even meet him. That probably is a film unto itself. After Barnum's death the show merged with the Ringling Brothers show to form what it is still known today as Ringling Brothers&Barnum&Bailey Circus. Which was forever immortalized by Cecil B. DeMille in The Greatest Show On Earth. The film is a fine made for television product one of the best ever done.