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Cirkus Reviews

Watching Cirkus is like reading a joke typed in Times New Roman font: The humour is lost in articulation.

Full Review | Jul 20, 2023

The dialogue in Cirkus is poorly written, vast amount of scenes are unnecessarily shot in front of a green screen, and even the celebrated Deepika Padukone's cameo is lackluster.

Full Review | Jun 6, 2023

The vibrant cinematography and eye-catching production design of Cirkus are all wasted on a silly plot, bad acting, and an unjustifiably atrocious ending that ignores ethical and legal issues of deliberately switching babies at birth.

Full Review | Dec 28, 2022

Ranveer Singh can bring a great deal of natural gusto to a role. Here, too, he does pretty much the same, but the two roles that he is stuck with are awfully insipid.

Full Review | Original Score: 1/5 | Dec 28, 2022

An unsalvageable hodgepodge.

Full Review | Dec 26, 2022

A noble thought, but the film is a mess.

Full Review | Dec 23, 2022

The worst film of 2022.

The gags don’t land; neither does, for the most part, the lead star.

Full Review | Original Score: 1.5/5 | Dec 23, 2022

Rohit Shetty's latest film might just be his worst work yet. Starring Ranveer Singh in double role, it fails to employ even one of him properly.

Cirkus is a busy film filled with a battery of characters put together with a purpose to make us laugh, but is far from that.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Dec 23, 2022

Ranveer Singh, who was so good with one-liners in Simmba, is perhaps given the most underwritten role (s) of his career. He’s known for his flamboyance both off and on screen and it’s strange to see him in a role which doesn’t play to his strengths.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/5 | Dec 23, 2022

How long will Hindi film-goers have to settle for rhyming lines and malapropisms in place of intelligent slapstick? (...) To make stupidity funny without taking the viewer for granted is an art of which Cirkus is a poor example.

Full Review | Original Score: 1.75/5 | Dec 23, 2022

Over populated, over the top, extra bright, super loud beasts happy to laugh loudest at their own jokes, Rohit Shetty's formulaic entertainers act and sound the same. Cirkus is all that and, also, remarkably boring and puerile.

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‘Cirkus’: Review

By Namrata Joshi 2022-12-23T16:29:00+00:00

Rohit Shetty’s extravagant take on ’The Comedy Of Errors’ is an exercise in excess

Source: Reliant Entertainment

Dir: Rohit Shetty. India. 2022. 112min

Bollywood star director Rohit Shetty’s big Christmas release Cirkus, about two pairs of identical twins, is more a case of double disaster than twice the fun. One would presume that, in looking to Shakespeare for inspiration, you’d have a safe story to fall back on. But here, and despite the presence of four credited writers (three for dialogue alone) the Bard’s ’The Comedy of Errors’ is turned into an unsalvageable hodgepodge.

An excruciatingly inane ride in which nothing makes much sense

Bollywood has had a disastrous 2022 with a string of big budget flops, and has been beaten on home turf by successful films from South India, in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam languages. It has had to contend with a backlash from conservative right-wing forces and constant threat of bans and boycott calls from amorphous moral police. Much hope rested on Cirkus , directed by the industry’s hit-making machine Shetty; there was an expectation that his latest film, which releases in India and other territories on December 23, would see the industry begin 2023 on a high. Yet it feels more like another big miss than a likely hit.

Two sets of twins, both called Roy (played by Ranveer Singh) and Joy (played by Varun Sharma), have been unwittingly swapped at birth and, as adults, become embroiled in a series of comic mishaps arising from mistaken identity. One set of twins owns a circus in the hill town of Ooty in South India, in which this Roy performs an eyeroll of an electric act which has a direct impact on his long-lost twin brother, living miles away in Bangalore. Circus-owning Roy’s wife Mala (Pooja Hegde) can’t conceive and is desperate to adopt, while he puts much store in bloodline and lineage.

In Bangalore, the other Roy is under the scrutiny of the father of his girlfriend Bindu (Jacqueline Fernandez), and all hell breaks loose when he visits Ooty to buy a tea estate and is mistaken for his brother. Confusion is increased by a gang of crooks that has an eye on the cash he is carrying for the business deal. The resulting narrative is an excruciatingly inane ride in which nothing makes much sense. It’s enough to make you long for the other versions of The Comedy Of Errors in Hindi cinema —Debu Sen’s Do Dooni Chaar ( Two Twos Are Four , 1968) and Gulzar’s Angoor (1982) — both witty written and winsomely acted.

Cirkus , however, is populated by annoying characters played rough and loud by some of Hindi cinema’s otherwise reliable actors including Sanjay Mishra and Johnny Lever. In his double role, Singh looks disinterested rather than invested, and Hedge and Fernandez have little else to do other than being arm candy and dance partners.

Excessiveness extends to every aspect of the film; the over-the-top production design, the overwrought period setting, kitschy sets, exaggerated costumes and utterly forgettable music. Even nature feels oversaturated in the film’s frames. Ooty’s verdant cover, in the brightest shade of green, seems to have been put under some odd photo filter. So fluorescent and saturated is the colour palette that the eyes sting.

Worst, however, is the liberty Shetty takes in using some of the most beloved Hindi classic songs, strewing the original versions indiscriminately — and, at times disrespectfully — throughout various points in the film.

Production companies: Reliance Entertainment, Rohit Shetty Picturez, T-Series Films

Contact: Reliance Entertainment [email protected]

Producers: Bhushan Kumar, Rohit Shetty

Screenplay: Sachin Bedre, Vidhi Ghodgaonkar, Yunus Sajawal, Farhad Samji

Cinematography: Jomon T. John

Production Design: Swapnil Bhalerao, Madhur Madhavan

Editing: Bunty Nagi

Music: Badshah, D.J. Chetas, Lijo George, Devi Sri Prasad, Amar Mohile

Main cast: Ranveer Singh, Varun Sharma, Pooja Hegde, Jacqueline Fernandez, Sanjay Mishra, Johnny Lever, Mukesh Tiwari, Vrajesh Hirjee, Murali Sharma

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Cirkus Movie Review : All the characters, colours and chaos cannot make up for lack of comedy

Times Of India

Cirkus - Official Teaser

Cirkus - Official Trailer

Cirkus | Song - Sun Zara

Cirkus | Song - Sun Zara (Teaser)

Cirkus | Song - Current Laga Re

Cirkus | Song - Current Laga Re (Teaser)

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Users' Reviews

Refrain from posting comments that are obscene, defamatory or inflammatory, and do not indulge in personal attacks, name calling or inciting hatred against any community. Help us delete comments that do not follow these guidelines by marking them offensive . Let's work together to keep the conversation civil.

angelinadoly 542 days ago

I really liked the movie ,l laughed in every single minute of it <br/>Ranveer ,it was great to see another side of you ,love uuu

Aishwarya Garg 547 days ago

In the beginning 10 minutes one might feel that it may turn out to be a boring, cliche, twin separation plot based movie, but after that the movie becomes a one time watch entertainer, of course not a brilliant one at that but one can sit through and enjoy, based on the plot of Comedy of errors --- the plot has been woven with other fun providing incidents and characters, among them Jacqueline's father and Johnny lever gave some much needed comic moments, overall

Anant Divekar 586 days ago

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Sunit C 593 days ago

I didn't understand what kind of confidence this people have on themselves.

prashant parekh 596 days ago

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Cirkus Review: A Great Fall For Both Rohit Shetty And Ranveer Singh

Cirkus review: ranveer singh can bring a great deal of natural gusto to a role. here, too, he does pretty much the same, but the two roles that he is stuck with are awfully insipid..

<i>Cirkus</i> Review: A Great Fall For Both Rohit Shetty And Ranveer Singh

Cast: Ranveer Singh, Pooja Hegde, Johnny Lever, Jacqueline Fernandez, Varun Sharma, Sanjay Mishra, Mukesh Tiwari, Siddharth Jadhav, Murli Sharma, Tiku Talsania, Brijendra Kala, Saurabh Gokhale

Director: Rohit Shetty

Rating: One star (out of 5)

Producer-director Rohit Shetty's latest shot at slapstick comedy - a genre that he has had a great deal of success with over the years - is cinema's equivalent of a trash can. It is full of garbage.

The golmaal is that the vapid caper film goes round and round in circles as it recycles exceedingly trite tropes, shoves them into a garish and turgid package and leaves a bunch of actors led by the effervescent Ranveer Singh (in a double role) with no chance at all of rising above the muddle.

Yes, Cirkus is abysmally bad. It is a mind-numbing film that would have done the world a favour by not advancing beyond the script stage. It does neither the medium nor the genre any justice. The only thing that is truly comical about Cirkus is its unmitigated ineptitude.

The film has one foot planted firmly in the past, which by itself is not such a bad thing. It makes a song and dance about the debt that it owes to comedy movies of yore. But with no real imagination on display, Cirkus demonstrates what is amiss with contemporary Hindi films that are aimed at giving a mass audience its money's worth.

Old Hindi movie songs constitute the spine of the Cirkus background music. The film's gaudy colour palette makes real backdrops look like painted ones. Its 'comic' gags are pathetically unfunny. And the acting all around is consistently substandard.

The lead actor tries hard - way too hard - and the effort shows. Even a proven performer like Sanjay Mishra is saddled with a role that that can only get on one's nerves. As for Pooja Hegde and Jaqueline Fernandez, the less said the better.

Hindi movie fans know Ranveer Singh as an actor who can bring a great deal of natural gusto to a role. Here, too, he does pretty much the same, but the two roles that he is stuck with are awfully insipid. His performance comes unstuck owing the sheer inanity of the writing.

Yunus Sajawal's screenplay runs logic to the ground in search of laughs. It stretches a thin, puerile storyline into a full-length film about two pairs of twins whose paths cross three decades after being deliberately separated by a doctor who is out to prove that a person's character is determined by upbringing, not the bloodline.

Besides the doctor, the script throws in a trio of small-time thieves - they are called Momo, Mango and Chikki but their pranks are anything but palatable - in pursuit of a duffel bag filled with cash. All they do is make fools of themselves. The audience is supposed to laugh at their antics. We do laugh, but only at the sheer vacuity that is on show.

The makers of Cirkus have no clue whatsoever about the distinction between inspired lunacy and brainless buffoonery. The former eludes them completely. They run with tiring doses of the latter. This is entertainment so infantile that goes back and forth between the manic and the moronic without serving any real purpose.

If the plot seems hackneyed, there is an obvious reason. Cirkus borrows its central idea from William Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors , which has already seen two iterations in Hindi - Do Dooni Chaar (1968) and Angoor (1982), the former written by Gulzar, the latter also directed by him to make amends for the failure of the first film.

Angoor , with Sanjeev Kumar and Deven Verma in their elements, ranks among the finest comedies ever to emerge from Mumbai. Cirkus is a blotchy tribute to that much-loved film devoid of the wit and sophistication of the script that it is inspired by but lacks the wherewithal to replicate.

Cirkus also weaves a nature-versus-nurture theme into its hollow core - as aspect of the raggedy romp that may or may not remind one the 1951 Raj Kapoor classic Awara and the conversely-themed 1975 melodrama produced by the showman, Dharam Karam. Either way, Rohit Shetty's imbecile has no redeeming features that might make all the huffing and puffing appear worthwhile.

A doctor played by Murli Sharma, an actor who knows his onions by all reckoning, pops up on the screen every now and then to fill us in with the details of the rigmarole. Electricity connects two twins separated at birth - one can withstand high-voltage shocks, the other is assailed by waves of electric current that he has no control over.

It is 1942. The doctor who runs an orphanage decides to perform an experiment to prove his detractors wrong. He breaks up two pairs of new-born twins and gives them up for adoption. One duo goes to a couple in Bangalore, the other ends up in a home in Ooty.

Thirty years on, the Bangalore pair, Roy and Joy (Ranveer Singh and Varun Sharma), travels to the town where the other duo, also Roy and Joy (Ranveer Singh and Varun Sharma), lives and works in a thriving family-owned circus. Needless to say, their arrival in Ooty sparks confusion all around.

The performer-protagonist is endowed with a special skill; his twin in Bangalore suffers the consequences of the act that the latter performs in the circus arena. The goings-on on the screen are orchestrated in the belief that it all is going to be a hoot. It is anything but.

The biggest problem with Cirkus is no different from the drawback that most Hindi movies are undone by these days. It has no respect for the audience. The anything goes approach to filmmaking springs from a combination of creative bankruptcy and complacency. Cirkus is utterly hare-brained. It is easy to see why.

Cirkus aspires to be a highwire act. The tightrope it walks is precariously weak and frayed. The result is a great fall for both Rohit Shetty and Ranveer Singh. Stay away.

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Cirkus (2022)

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Two sets of identical twins are accidentally separated at birth. Several years later, when they are coincidentally in the same town, there is a lot of confusion and misunderstanding when people mistake them for each other.

Rohit Shetty

Yunus Sajawal

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Ranveer Singh

Roy / Currentman

Pooja Hegde

Jacqueline Fernandez

Varun Sharma

Johny Lever

Polson bhai

Sanjay Mishra

Bindu's father

Vrajesh Hirjee

Vijay Patkar

Mukesh Tiwari

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Original Title सर्कस

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Original Language Hindi

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twins separated at birth
identical twin
comedy of errors

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Cirkus movie review: Sparsely funny, mostly listless Comedy of Errors with a message

Ranveer Singh and Rohit Shetty team up to spoof the 1960s and ’60s Hindi cinema while entering the long-running nature-vs-nurture debate with good intentions.

Cast: Ranveer Singh, Varun Sharma, Jacqueline Fernandez, Pooja Hegde, Murali Sharma, Siddharth Jadhav, Johnny Lever, Vrajesh Hirjee, Sanjay Mishra, Sulabha Arya, Cameo: Deepika Padukone

Director: Rohit Shetty

Language: Hindi with a handful of Tamil

Two pairs of doppelgangers living in different parts of India land up in the same town. One of them, a man called Roy (Ranveer Singh), is a human conductor of electricity. This quirk of nature has given him a career as The Electric Man in a circus. Whenever he allows bijli through his body, his duplicate in another city – also named Roy (also Ranveer, of course) – gets a massive shock at the exact same time and passes it on to anyone who touches him just then.

Each Roy has a sibling called Joy (both played by Varun Sharma). You will learn how this freak situation came about if you watch director Rohit Shetty’s Cirkus , a comedy of errors in which there are inevitable mix-ups involving spouses, lovers, concerned parents and crooks until the truth is revealed at the nth hour.

The facts in the preceding paragraphs are all in the trailer. (Spoiler alert for this sentence) What you don’t see in that video is that the Roys and Joys were part of a social experiment by a doctor in the 1940s whose goal was to prove that a human being is a product of their upbringing and not their bloodline. (Spoiler alert ends) The present-day happenings in Cirkus take place in the 1960s, giving the writers an opportunity to spoof that decade and its cinema even while revisiting the Shakespeare classic most frequently adapted by Hindi film comedy writers.

Since this is a Rohit Shetty venture, in case you didn’t get the point that Cirkus is an ode to The Bard, early in the film the camera closes in on a large image of him.

In its opening half hour or so, Cirkus is not half bad if you are in a mood for some old-fashioned slapstick humour. Old-fashioned cannot mean repetitive though, and too soon it settles into a sameness that comes from recycling a million ideas from earlier films in the genre. Right at the start, for instance, as soon as the Electric Man concept is unveiled, it becomes possible to predict that at some stage we will see an entire chain of human beings affected by Roy’s electric charge. And whaddyaknow, sure enough that moment does come. Unoriginality apart, the film is also quickly afflicted by an absence of energy.

At first, it is nice to watch Ranveer’s lack of self-consciousness. Just last December, the actor had shown remarkable restraint in the role of the legendary cricketer Kapil Dev in Kabir Khan’s 83 . In Cirkus , he flings himself into the sillyfest with unbridled zest for its frivolity. The repeated remixes of old Hindi film hits in the narrative are also enjoyable, as are the other bows to the ’60s in the form of hairstyles, clothes, a villain with a mole on his cheek, a two-wheeler with a sidecar and an obstacle in one Roy’s love story who goes by the moniker Raisaab. The sets are intentionally plasticky, reflecting the film’s intended disconnect from reality, and share space with occasional shots of the natural beauty of Ooty/Udagamandalam where Cirkus is set.

There’s only so far that an actor’s innate talent, nostalgia and kitschy images can take a film. Soon enough, Cirkus blurs the line between imitation and tribute, until the fun completely ceases. Sanjay Mishra is initially entertaining, but after a while the clichéd dialogues written for him and other character artistes become a yawn.

Men take precedence in this script, but women are not irrelevant – they are just intermittently forgotten before they resurface to play their part in the larger drama. Pooja Hegde is fair enough in the limited writing at her disposal, though the sub-plot involving her secret career is utterly superfluous. On the other hand, Jacqueline Fernandez, who proved in 2016’s Dishoom that she has a penchant for comedy, is strangely unrecognisable and her face curiously frozen into expressionlessness in Cirkus .

The characters given the best deal by the script are played by Ranveer, Sanjay and Sulabha Arya. The latter seems to be having a blast playing a gun-toting Tamilian old lady. The comedian Siddharth Jadhav contorts his face and voice into a Johnny Lever II such that when the real Johnny Lever enters the scene late in the day, it feels like he’s been around for a while.

Ironically, Rohit Shetty’s much-lambasted comedies give us more authenticity in the use of language in southern Indian settings than most commercial Hindi cinema bothers with. Chennai Express infuriated many south Indians, but the fact remains that in a country where Hindi supremacism is a sad reality, this director got all of north India to happily watch a film in which a sizeable portion of the dialogues were in Tamil. In Cirkus we hear tiny snatches of Tamil (including in the song Current Laga Re for which Deepika Padukone makes an appearance), which is more than can be said of most Hindi cinema located in Tamil Nadu. Cirkus does not position itself as cerebral or realistic, yet in this department, it is better than many films that position themselves as sensible and real.

Rohit and Ranveer had teamed up in 2018 for Simmba , a film that made terrible use of sexual violence within its storyline. Cirkus does a better job of delving into societal divisions in the social experiment at its centre, even if the theme is not explored with depth. That’s a small saving grace in a film with its heart in the right place but its writing and direction off key.

To get an idea of the triteness in Cirkus , sample this conversation that takes place when Sulabha Arya’s character aims a firearm at a man:

He: “ Meri Nirupa Roy, give me that toy.”

She: “First leave Joy.”

How long will Hindi film-goers have to settle for rhyming lines and malapropisms in place of intelligent slapstick? Yes, there is such a thing as “intelligent slapstick”. To make stupidity funny without taking the viewer for granted is an art of which Cirkus is a poor example.

Rating: 1.75 (out of 5 stars)

Cirkus is in theatres

Anna M.M. Vetticad is an award-winning journalist and author of The Adventures of an Intrepid Film Critic. She specialises in the intersection of cinema with feminist and other socio-political concerns. Twitter: @annavetticad, Instagram: @annammvetticad, Facebook: AnnaMMVetticadOfficial

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Cirkus Movie Review

Cirkus Devesh Sharma , Dec 23, 2022, 18:05 IST

	Ranveer Singh, Varun Sharma, Jacqueline Fernandez, Pooja Hegde, Sanjay Mishra, Siddharth Jadhav, Anil Charanjeett
	Rohit Shetty
	Comedy
	2

Nature versus nurture debate has fascinated scientific minds for ages. Dr Roy (Murali Sharma), wants to prove the theory that nurture always trumps nature and to do so he separates two sets of identical twins who were set up for adoption. The first pair of boys is adopted by a circus owner and are named Roy and Joy in honour of the good samaritans who run the orphanage. Strangely, the other couple who adopts the next set too names them Roy and Joy for the same reason.

Roy (Ranveer Singh) and Joy (Varun Sharma) now run their father’s circus in Ooty. Roy is married to Mala (Pooja Hegde), who writes mystery novels under a pseudonym. The other pair are raised in Bangalore by a rich businesswoman. This Roy has a girlfriend called Bindu (Jacqueline Fernandez), whose rich father Rai sahab (Sanjay Mishra) and his secretary Prem (Anil Charanjeett) are always spying on them. A psychic connection exists between the two Roys. The circus performer has the ability to handle live electricity without getting harmed. Whenever the current flows through the Ooty Roy, the Bangalore Roy feels the shock. Dr Roy has been monitoring both sets of twins for the last 30 years and acts as the film’s narrator.

Siddhartha Jadhav plays Momo, a thief with sidekicks called Mango and Chikki. Momo’s boss is Polson, played by Johnny Lever. Momo and company want to rob the Bangalore Roy and Joy as they were seen carrying a lot of money. They have come to Ooty to buy a tea estate and what follows is a case of mistaken identities as the two pairs are mistaken for each other.

The film’s message, that orphans too deserve a loving home, has been lost somewhere in this erroneous comedy. It’s inspired by both Shakeseare’s The Comedy Of Errors and Gulzar’s Angoor (1982) and does justice to neither. Director Rohit Shetty has made some odd choices. Both sets of Roy and Joy are as bland as they come. There’s one physical gag, that of the Bangalore Roy feeling shock when his Ooty twin touches a livewire but after a while it loses novelty. The other comic device is Sanjay Mishra being made to deliver dialogue like stock comic villains. The Ajitesque dialogue doesn’t suit his personality. He gamely spouts one cheesy line after another but this too loses steam after a while. And you can’t expect Sanjay Mishra, who is no Mehmood or IS Johar, to shoulder a film starring Ranveer Singh. Sanjay’s forte is subtle comedy and his over the top hamming just doesn’t hold sway. The same is true of the antics of other comedians like Siddhartha Jadhav and Johnny Lever – all good actors in their own right but struggling here for lack of decent material. The overtly bright and colourful colour scheme jars as well.

The best thing about the film is the song Current laga re, featuring Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh. The duo display oodles of oomph and chemistry in it and how we wish the same treatment was given to the rest of the film as well.

Pooja Hegde’s character is said to be a suspense novelist but all we see of her is a weeping willow who wants to be a mother at all costs. Jacqueline Fernandez is seen in the opening ten minutes and then disappears, only to return in the last ten. Varun Sharma, who can be relied to provide light hearted moments is given a dazed expression throughout for some reason in both his roles. And Ranveer Singh, who was so good with one-liners in Simmba, is perhaps given the most underwritten role (s) of his career. He’s known for his flamboyance both off and on screen and it’s strange to see him in a role which doesn’t play to his strengths.

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Cirkus movie poster: A collage of the various characters from the movie

Common Sense Says
Parents Say 0 Reviews
Kids Say 0 Reviews

Common Sense Media Review

Indian adaptation of Shakespeare play is boring and crude.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 11+?

Casteist and classist slurs and phrases -- some of which are extremely offensive

An elderly person is repeatedly slapped. Numerous fight scenes are presented as

Brief shot of a signboard with the Indian bookstore chain Higgin Botham's writte

One extremely brief scene depicts a wife trying to subtly seduce the man she thi

Any Positive Content?

Dr. Joy Jamnadas works at an orphanage and cares for orphans. He tries to dissua

The movie tries to make a case for nurture vs. nature and the merits of adoption

Women play second fiddle to the plot that focuses entirely on men. In fact, one

Casteist and classist slurs and phrases -- some of which are extremely offensive -- are used casually. Fatphobic and homophobic comments are made. Sexist and derogatory language.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Violence & Scariness

An elderly person is repeatedly slapped. Numerous fight scenes are presented as comic relief -- no gore. A circus act involves a character electrocuting themselves. Although it doesn't appear to hurt them, their biological twin -- who they are separated from -- feels it.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Brief shot of a signboard with the Indian bookstore chain Higgin Botham's written on it and characters frequently visit a fictional "Madras Cafe." But these seem to be non-commercial appearances of the names of these real-life businesses. A main character buys a diamond necklace for their spouse to make up for a fight on their anniversary.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

One extremely brief scene depicts a wife trying to subtly seduce the man she thinks is her husband.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Positive Role Models

Dr. Joy Jamnadas works at an orphanage and cares for orphans. He tries to dissuade his brother and colleague Dr. Roy Jamnadas' unethical practices. Though Dr. Roy ultimately wants to prove that adopted children are just as capable of fostering familial love as biological children, he toys with human lives when he switches babies who are about to be adopted, separating two sets of identical twins from their actual siblings. He does not intervene for a number of years despite a character suffering repeated electrocutions when their biological twin -- who they were separated from at birth by Dr. Roy -- comes into contact with electricity. The twins themselves, especially the two Joys are devoted to their brothers and one of them not only supports his brother, Roy, when he has seizures, but also attempts to smooth things over when Roy is having marital trouble.

Positive Messages

The movie tries to make a case for nurture vs. nature and the merits of adoption. But it's use of homophobic, sexist, body shaming, and ableist comments and slurs leave the lasting impression.

Diverse Representations

Women play second fiddle to the plot that focuses entirely on men. In fact, one of the twin's partners barely has a role. An elderly man promotes patriarchal ideas and equates masculinity to physical strength. The film unfairly portrays women as materialistic, such as when a wife is appeased by her husband, following an argument, when he buys her jewelry instead of the husband actually solving their issues. A character's seizure-like movements are insensitively used as comic relief. Mild reference to a homoerotic double entendre. Offensive caricaturing of South India, and its diverse languages and cultures.

Did we miss something on diversity? Suggest an update.

Parents need to know that Cirkus is an offensive Indian adaptation of Shakespeare 's The Comedy of Errors , which is neither funny, nor entertaining. The story involves two sets of twins who are switched at birth by a doctor who wants to test the nature vs. nurture debate. It uses the crudest cliches to force humor that is outrightly offensive to disabled people, people with seizure disorders, medical professionals, adopted children, and women. The two sets of twins are portrayed by Ranveer Singh who plays Roy 1 and Roy 2 and Varun Sharma who plays Joy 1 and Joy 2. Roy 1 makes eugenist statements and refuses to even have a direct dialogue with his wife regarding adoption. Such stonewalling and passive aggressive behavior toward his wife makes it hard to relate to or sympathize with him. As Roy 2, Singh acts out seizures for comic relief even as everyone around him starts to avoid him and discriminate against him for apparently having a seizure disorder. This mocking of disability along with the use of homophobic and fatphobic jokes make it apparent that no one in the writer's room was sensitive to any marginalized communities. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

Where to Watch

Videos and photos.

Cirkus: Three Indian men, all with moustaches and a young Indian woman look toward the camera

Parent and Kid Reviews

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What's the Story?

CIRKUS is the story of two sets of identical twins -- both of whom are called Roy ( Ranveer Singh ) and Joy (Varun Sharma) -- who are switched at birth by the unethical Dr. Roy Jamnadas (Murali Sharma). One set of identical twins has a cosmic connection to each other so that when one of them is electrocuted, the other feels the effects instead, leading him to live with epilepsy-like symptoms. Meanwhile his unaffected twin makes a career out of electrocuting himself and escaping seemingly unscathed. After 30 years, the two sets of twins finally cross paths, leading to confusion and mayhem.

Is It Any Good?

Even with source material as rich as Shakespeare 's The Comedy of Errors , this dreadful Indian comedy-drama adamantly refuses to be funny. The dialogue in Cirkus is poorly written, vast amount of scenes are unnecessarily shot in front of a green screen, and even the celebrated Deepika Padukone 's cameo is lackluster. Director Rohit Shetty displays no skill, and opts to self-indulgently pay homage to his own previous movies. Sharma, as the twin Joys, tries hard to lend some sincerity but everyone else behaves like they are in a high school play. Even experienced actors like Johny Lever and Sulabha Arya are severely limited by the banal screenplay, while the songs and music are plain awful. For what is essentially a movie that specifically makes a mockery of seizures every five minutes, there are far, far better films to spend your time watching.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about the portrayal of disability and seizure disorders in Cirkus . Do you think it was sensitively handled? Why, or why not? What can we do if someone has a seizure in public? How can we be mindful of not using stigmatizing/ableist language?

Discuss the debate around nature vs. nurture. How did the film use adoption to illustrate this debate? Was this something you felt comfortable with?

What are the ethical implications of medical professionals withholding information? Should anyone be allowed to separate twin babies like Dr. Roy did?

Talk about some of the language used. How might it be viewed as offensive? Did it contribute anything to the movie?

Movie Details

In theaters : December 23, 2022
On DVD or streaming : February 17, 2023
Cast : Ranveer Singh , Varun Sharma , Pooja Hegde
Director : Rohit Shetty
Inclusion Information : Female actors
Studio : Zee Studios
Genre : Comedy
Run time : 139 minutes
MPAA rating : NR
Last updated : June 6, 2023

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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Directed by Rohit Shetty

Ranveer Singh Pooja Hegde Jacqueline Fernandez Varun Sharma Johny Lever Sanjay Mishra Vrajesh Hirjee Vijay Patkar Mukesh Tiwari Anil Charanjeett Ashwini Kalsekar Murali Sharma Brijendra Kala Tiku Talsania Siddharth Jadhav Sulabha Arya Deepika Padukone Radhika Bangia Saurabh Gokhale Umakant Patil Uday Tikekar Sehajleen Chahal

Director Director

Rohit Shetty

Producers Producers

Rohit Shetty Bhushan Kumar George Cameron Krishan Kumar Inderjit Chadha

Writers Writers

Yunus Sajawal Farhad Samji Sanchit Bedre Vidhi Godhgaonkar

Original Writers Original Writers

Gulzar William Shakespeare

Editor Editor

Cinematography cinematography.

Jomon T John

Executive Producer Exec. Producer

Sadashiv Athule

Production Design Production Design

Madhur Madhavan Swapnil Bhalerao

Stunts Stunts

Sunil Rodrigues

Choreography Choreography

Ganesh Acharya

Composers Composers

Devi Sri Prasad Badshah Amar Mohile DJ Chetas Lijo George Hiten

Songs Songs

Kumaar Badshah

T-Series Reliance Entertainment Rohit Shetty Productionz

Primary Language

Spoken languages.

Hindi English

Alternative Titles

Circus, Sirk Şamatası, 马戏团, سيرك

Drama Comedy

Crude humor and satire Gags, jokes, and slapstick humor Catchy songs and hilarious musical comedy Amusing jokes and witty satire Show All…

Releases by Date

23 dec 2022, 17 feb 2023, releases by country.

Theatrical U
Theatrical UA
Theatrical PG
Theatrical NR

140 mins More at IMDb TMDb Report this page

Popular reviews

Review by s/chin 22

A clear case of late-career auteurism. Shetty’s artistic instincts may seem juvenile and vapid to a few — but here — they come to full fruition. Even a Shetty-enthusiast (myself) might find CIRKUS slightly obnoxious, and maybe I did — but that’s not what matters. Shetty manages to create some fascinating images (there’s clear Tati, and Obayashi influence here) and some mind-blowing moments. There’s shots here that rival the very best. One shot pictures one Ranveer Singh in the background while the second is in the foreground and it’s an image that showcases Shetty’s technical superiority — even Shankar whose entire career is built upon the double role has never conjured up an image half as incredible as the one Shetty creates here. CIRKUS is not for everyone. And it hasn’t found its audience. But in time, Shetty’s late-career opus will find proper appreciation. A masterwork from a master.

Review by Arjun Rajput ★★★ 3

Best joke in the film - casting Aalim Hakim

Review by Lynn Betts ★

The one star is for the premise and the mystical period piece set design, which was a jumble of a colourful cardboard Pleasantville, Havana and Disneyland and as such completely had no idea whether it was in the 40s, 60s or 80s. Stunning colonial hotel lobbies I must say... not sure if it's in good taste for me to like them so much given the circumstances of their installment, but I have a real weak spot for luxury hotels even if they're caucastic.

There are two fantastical premises at work and only one of them magic, and both of them had such potential to come together to make for a heartwarming and hilarious epic. (But nope)

The fantastical but somewhat…

Review by shrushti ½ 1

honestly, I was too embarrassed to even log this shite 😭

Review by akaashvani ★★★★ 2

Jesus that was the ugliest baby I’ve ever seen

Review by juhi ★★ 6

murali sharma is the ceo of swapping newborn babies.

Review by PranavAS ½ 1

This movie accomplished its goal. I’m tying a noose right now

Review by Umar ★½

Cirkus: Double Trouble

“When I dance, everyone gets current.”

Rohit Shetty’s Cirkus is one of the worst Hindi films this year. I actually think this has been a decent year for Bollywood in terms of quality. There have been some memorable films and this isn’t one of them. It’s really unfortunate that one of the biggest directors in the industry has delivered something so unentertaining. Nobody expects great cinema from Shetty but he has made some fun movies in the past. It feels now he’s just banking on his name and creating all these cinematic universes to earn money. This film has opened poorly and will definitely fail. His first outright flop in almost 15 years. Hopefully this will be…

Review by shook ★½ 1

This is one of those things that's SO bad I'm 80 percent sure that in a month I will have come around to liking it somehow.

Review by filmguy31 ★½

Whoever prayed for Bollywood’s downfall, they won 😭😭😭😭😭

Review by ananya 🍉

i didnt watch this but when we were headed to our theater for wakanda forever, this movie had just ended and ive never seen people exit a theater that fast so take what you will from that 😭

Review by sharada ★★★★★

when joy held joy’s thigh, i shed a tear

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‘Cirkus’ movie review: Rohit Shetty, Ranveer Singh’s film is a reckless ruckus

A faded copy of gulzar’s ‘angoor’, rohit shetty’s comedy entertainer starring ranveer singh, is doubly disappointing.

Updated - December 23, 2022 07:18 pm IST

Published - December 23, 2022 05:39 pm IST

Ranveer Singh in ‘Cirkus’ | Photo Credit: T-Series

Rohit Shetty has been making his comedy of errors for a long time, but this time, the director who introduced us to a new Golmaal gets inspired by Shakespeare’s epic play and dusts off Gulzar’s Angoor (1982) to create a faded copy that is absolutely dull and listless. It is surprising because it is headlined by a live wire of actor Ranveer Singh in a double role and is surrounded by Rohit’s trusted tag team of comedians who excel in buffoonery.

The film promises many amperes of comic current but it hardly passes through its body of writing. In fact, the makers literally empower the star to charge us and there is even an item song featuring Deepika Padukone to underline the claim. But the jokes cannot light up the celluloid, leaving us cold. Over the years, Priyadarshan has used livewires with much better comic wattage. Evidently, the only portions of situational humour that work are directly drawn from Gulzar’s screenplay. The rest, written by three writers, reels out like a loosely-written skit from Comedy Circus , of which Rohit was once a ringmaster.

Cirkus (Hindi)

Those who know Angoor would recall that it is about two sets of identical twins separated at birth. Years later, when they — identically named Roy (Ranveer) and Joy (Varun Sharma) — end up in Ooty at the same time, the misunderstandings lead to confusion and chaos.

Murali Sharma, the doctor who changes the twins at the time of their birth, to further his dated nature vs. nurture experiment, is the voice of the writer who breaks the fourth wall to share the curiosity of the audience at the implausibility of the situation. But he does it so repetitively that the device soon loses its value.

It is a script that is perhaps more suited for laidback situational humour, perked up by music and performances, than Rohit Shetty’s style of overwrought slapstick. We know Rohit takes slapstick literally but he often impregnates it with relentless scatological humour that makes us surrender disbelief and logic. Here, we get only get a series of predictable slaps that make more sound than comic sense. Sanjay Mishra tries hard to eke out laughs but it increasingly becomes a laboured attempt with only two or three laugh-out-loud moments. So does Johnny Lever’s entry scene that fizzles out after promising a riot. Siddharth Jadhav has a better arc but nothing as hair-raising as his coiffure.

From Kali pahadi to Rai Sahib, Rohit evokes multiple Bollywood cliches to generate guffaws, but unfortunately, the gags don’t really land. Ranveer is surprisingly off-colour and Varun as his sidekick brother is consistently bland. Jacqueline Fernandez and Pooja Hegde as the love interests of the identical twins are there just for ornamental value very much like the gleaming sets that shine a lot but hardly add any substance to the buffoonery on display. Even the circus backdrop has not been exploited properly to keep the kids interested.

At one point, running out of alliterations, Mishra describes the proceedings as Ooty ki ootpatang . That is what Cirkus is; a reckless ruckus in Ooty. Unless someone else is paying for the ticket, it is better to get into a quilt and catch up with the exploits of Sanjeev Kumar and Deven Verma on television once more.

Cirkus is currently running in theatres

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'cirkus' honest review: this comedy of errors has no comedy, only errors, here are my honest thoughts after watching an error of a film, rohit shetty's cirkus - starring ranveer singh..

Let's get this one thing out of the way: I'm not a Rohit Shetty fan.

Our perception of humor just doesn't align. But I've found myself rewatching films like Golmaal 3 quite a few times; you know why? Because when there's no logic or nuances being offered, you can at the very least bank on being entertained. And the Golmaal franchise does that very efficiently.

But Shetty's latest Ranveer Singh -starrer film, Cirkus falls flat at the entertainment front too. Here are my honest thoughts after watching the film:

Here are my honest thoughts after watching an error of a film, Rohit Shetty's Cirkus - starring Ranveer Singh.

1. Set in Ooty, the film begins in Jamnadas Ashram, an orphanage run by a doctor and his brother, named Roy and Joy where they have two sets of orphaned twins named A square and B square. It's these character names that convince me that the screenwriters must have been intoxicated while working on the script (further in the film, a gang of thieves are named Momo, Mango and Chikki).

This doctor comes up with an experiment to separate the twins and pair each of them with the other set.

When his brother questions him about the ethics of the experiment and potential consequences if they ever find out, he answers, " Tu fikr mat kar, mein sab sambhaal lunga ." Sounds quite overconfident for a guy with no plan making irreversible alterations to four people's lives!

2. Cirkus is in a different vein than every other Rohit Shetty film, in more ways than one. Instead of cars flying all over, people do the flying here. After the pace quickens, we are introduced to the adult versions of the brothers. Ranveer Singh plays the twins called Roy, one based in Ooty and the other in Bangalore. The former runs a circus with his "brother", Joy (Varun Sharma, also in a double role).

Shetty treats the circus scenes as his playground, trying to give his signature flare to the stunts and tricks. But all of it translates to endless sensory overload. It's like I'm being punished for paying to watch this film.

3. Since the film's release on Friday (23 December), many have called it one of the worst color-graded films ever - and I'd like to testify to that. The oversaturation might have permanently hampered my eyes. The art direction, in its entirety, is so shoddily done that the production design of both Ooty and Bangalore looks like one doll house in different colours.

4. This leads us to the first song where one Roy romances Mala ( Pooja Hegde ) in Ooty while another woos Bindu ( Jacqueline Fernandez ) in Bangalore.

The film has put so little effort in differentiating the twins that the women's only role in the song is to help the audience identify which brother is on screen. And honestly, that says a lot about female representation in Rohit Shetty's body of work.

5. We are introduced to Bindu's obnoxiously rich father, played by Sanjay Mishra who I thoroughly enjoy watching...except in Cirkus . His exaggerated mannerisms and sing-song dialogues get too annoying too fast. His elitism is expressed by insults like "You low society" while he affectionately calls his assistant "my honest puppy". Jokes like "Let me call my pre-historic pandit" are so bad that I force myself to laugh, just to feel something.

6. It's wild how it's about to be 2023 and Bollywood's favorite brand of humor is still poking fun at the fat character's expense. Rohit Shetty's brand of humor has never been kind to any oppressed communities whatsoever - so the fatphobia in Cirkus is not surprising, just painfully exhausting and acutely unfunny.

7. This film has all but one Muslim character - a jeweler - and every dialogue he has is just him doing shayari. I'm sorry, is this supposed to be funny? Such blatant stereotyping and for what reason?!

8. By the time Deepika Padukone makes an appearance in the song, Current Laga Re, I'm so deep in the pits of frustration and brain-melt that even her refreshing presence doesn't do much to save this trainwreck of a film.

9. Veteran comedy actors keep dropping in, attempting to enliven the audience. We are introduced to Johnny Lever's character, who appears to be the ringleader of the gang of thieves. Upon asking Momo what has transpired, he points to the moon. A montage of the chase sequences start playing on the moon. I remain unamused, internally begging the theatre lights to switch on and announce the end of this film.

10. The Roy who runs the circus believes that he is immune to electric shocks, not knowing that every time he interacts with electricity, his twin in Bangalore gets the shocks instead. This results in several horrifyingly unfunny scenes of Roy having electric-induced seizures, touching someone else by accident and transmitting the shock to them. Towards the end of the film, a chain of people get transmitted and they have seizures to the song, Piya Tu Ab To Aaja (Monica, Oh My Darling). It is at this point that I start dissociating to another realm - anything to escape this unbearable monstrosity.

11. The doctor, who has been following the two brothers all this while and passively watching all hell break loose, finally intervenes and comes out with the truth. He's once again asked about the ethics of his experiment, leading him to embark on a stale monologue.

He defends his (objectively immoral) actions by saying that his experiment was an attempt to eradicate the stigma that orphans and adopted children face. He brings up nuances of nurture over nature, convincing the brothers that this was the best thing that could have happened to them.

12. The film is peppered with self-references to multiple other Rohit Shetty films like Singham but Cirkus FINALLY ends with a redeemable Golmaal reference, putting an end to my misery.

'Mister Mummy' Honest Review: A Transphobic Nightmare In The Name Of Comedy

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Cirkus Review

Average Ratings: 2.5/5 Score: 40% Positive Reviews Counted:9 Positive: 2 Neutral:4 Negative:3

Ratings: 2/5 Review By: Taran Adarsh Site:Twitter

Lacks entertainment and humour you associate with a RohitShetty film€¦ Has some funny moments [second half], but the spark is missing.

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Ratings: — Review By: Komal Nahta Site:ZEE ETC Bollywood Business

On the whole, Cirkus is a poor fare and will not be able to make any mark at the ticket-windows. For its canvas and budget, it will do below-average business at the box-office.

Ratings: — Review By: Anupama Chopra Site:Youtube

To the already busy plot in Cirkus, director Rohit Shetty & the writers add half a dozen characters, a superhuman ability for one twin to endure electric currents, which somehow transfers to the other twin even though he lives in another town, love interests who crowd the frame without adding much value and a larger philosophical debate about nature versus nurture. Apart from being an oversized entertainer, Cirkus also wants to advocate for tolerance and inclusivity. Its a noble thought but the film is a mess. I was hoping for a rollicking good time but circus did not deliver to paraphrase DS Eliot and this is the way the year ends not with a bang but a whimper

Ratings: 3/5 Review By: Smrity Site:Bollywood Life

Cirkus is directed by Rohit Shetty, the man behind some of the most loved big Bollywood entertainers; it stars Ranveer Singh who is one of the finest actors we have in India right now and the film is fit for the festive-holiday season. ‘Tis the season to be jolly! So if you are looking to enjoy a film with the family, with some harmless entertainment this holiday season, Cirkus is for you. Tip: Take the kids and the older folks in the family along for sure.

Ratings: 2.5/5 Review By: Times Now Site:Times Now

All said and done, Cirkus is a decent comedy film, which we believe can be a good one-time treat with your friends and family this holiday season. If you are an ardent Ranveer Singh fan, you can certainly give it a go. But you will come out in awe of Sanjay Mishra.

Ratings: 2.5/5 Review By: Shreya Site:Zoom TV

This movie is Rohit Shetty’s sincere attempt to deliver a full-blown entertainer to all Bollywood lovers who enjoy such large-scale experiences. The film feels like a snooze fest at the start. However, slowly as the mystery unfolds, Cirkus takes a hilarious turn post-intermission. The film concludes on an emotional note, with a dash of comedy thrown in for good measure. It also shows a connection to the Golmaal world. If you love Rohit Shetty films and are an ardent Ranveer Singh fan, then this movie will be a good one-time watch for you but if you do not keep your hopes very high.

Ratings: 3.5/5 Review By: Ranpreet Site:Filmibeat

To note, the screenplay and dialogues prove to be the game changer for Cirkus as without a proper screenplay the movie would have been a disaster. On the other hand, the music of the film gets an average reaction. However, Deepika Padukone’s special number with Ranveer Singh (Current Laga Re) happens turns out to be one of the highlights of the film. Their chemistry in the song was electrifying. While the background score is decent as well, the sound effects were quite impressive for a comedy film. Overall, Cirkus gets 3.5 stars and the extra mark here goes for the fantastic supporting cast who did their well and brought the film to us in a different manner where we can laugh in these hard times.

Ratings: 2/5 Review By: Ronak Site:Times of India

Cirkus is a busy film filled with a battery of characters put together with a purpose to make us laugh, but is far from that. Entertaining the audience with slapstick comedy and drama is a tightrope that Rohit Shetty has successfully walked before but this time he seems to have tripped several times along the way.

Ratings: 2/5 Review By: Tushar Site:India Today

The issue with Cirkus is that it feels outdated. Not because its set in the 60s, but the formula is cliched, the VFX in some scenes looks amateurish and the music, unlike Shettys previous films, is a big downer. There is no harm in making a mindless comedy, but for it to work you need to have some solid writing to back your effort. In Cirkus, the writing is average and the only time the film picks tempo is when the supporting cast delivers. Jacqueline Fernandes and Pooja Hegde have very little to do. Ranveer in this double role gives his best, but is let down by a weak script that doesnt do justice to his efforts.

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Cirkus Story:

After finding two sets of identical twins on the doorstep of his orphanage, Dr. Roy Jamnadas gives them up for adoption to two different families in two different cities. Years later, a comedy of errors ensues when one set of twins decides to visit the city where the other set of twins runs a circus.

Cirkus Release Date:

23 December 2022 straight to Theaters

Cirkus Cast:

Ranveer Singh Pooja Hegde Jacqueline Fernandez Varun Sharma

Cirkus Director:

Rohit Shetty

Cirkus Producer:

Rohit Shetty Bhushan Kumar

Cirkus Production Companies:

Rohit Shetty Productionz T-Series Films

Cirkus Distribution Companies:

Reliance Entertainment

Cirkus Run Time:

2 Hour 18 Minutes (138 minutes)

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Cirkus Movie Review: CIRKUS suffers from poor writing and forced humour, and appeals only in bits and pieces.

Cirkus review 2.0/5 & rating. watch cirkus official trailer video, listen songs, movie news updates, movie review and checkout public movie reviews soon., cirkus review {2.0/5} & review rating.

CIRKUS is the story of mistaken identity. The year is 1942. Dr. Roy Jamnadas (Murli Sharma) and Joy Jamnadas (Uday Tikekar) run the Jamnadas Orphanage. As part of an experiment, he separates two sets of twins and hands them over to two families for adoption. The first set gets adopted by an Ooty couple who run the Jubilee Circus. The other set is adopted by the Shenoys of Bangalore. Interestingly, both name their adopted children Roy and Joy, after Roy and Joy Jamnadas! The story then moves 30 years ahead. Roy # 1 ( Ranveer Singh ) and Joy # 1 ( Varun Sharma ) run the Jubilee Circus after the death of their foster parents. Roy is known as the 'electric man' as he is able to perform electricity-based stunts. Audiences are surprised to see that the current passes through his body and he doesn't get electrocuted. Roy # 1 is married to Mala ( Pooja Hegde ), who is desperate to have a child. But since she's unable to conceive, she is keen to adopt though Roy # 1 is against it. Meanwhile, Roy # 2 (Ranveer Singh) and Joy # 2 (Varun Sharma) are based in Bangalore. Roy # 2 is dating Bindu ( Jacqueline Fernandez ). Her father Rai Bahadur (Sanjay Mishra) happens to see Roy # 1 with Mala in Ooty and concludes that Roy # 2 is cheating on Bindu. Roy # 2 and Joy # 2 decide to go to Ooty for important work. Rai Bahadur sends his trusted servant, Prem (Anil Charanjeett) to follow them and find out if Roy # 2 is indeed married to Mala. From hereon begins a mad ride as Roy # 2 and Joy # 2 encounter a gang of thieves and several Ooty residents who claim to know them very well though this is their first visit to Ooty. What happens next forms the rest of the film.

The story is inspired by Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors . The adapted story is promising and could have turned into a fine entertainer. But Yunus Sajawal's adapted screenplay is a big culprit. The writer should have peppered the film with non-stop humour. Sadly, the comedy is there but it's few and far between. Farhad Samji, Sanchit Bedre and Vidhi Ghodgaonkar's dialogues are funny but could have been funnier.

Rohit Shetty's direction is decent. The biggest strength of his execution is that he doesn't let the film turn confusing though there are far too many characters, including the ones that look similar. He has handled a few comic moments in an entertaining manner. He goes on a high with the scenes of Momo (Siddharth Jadhav) and also Rai Bahadur.

On the flipside, due to the writing of convenience, even his direction falters. In the past, he has rocked the show with comic capers like GOLMAAL series, ALL THE BEST, and BOL BACHCHAN. That kind of expert direction is missing here. At some places, humour appears dorced. Moreover, he has introduced too many tracks and he’s not able to do justice to them. For example, the whole Colonel Vikrant angle gets forgotten. Also, Dr. Roy Jamnadas breaking the fourth wall and talking to viewers should have resumed in the end.

CIRKUS begins on a superb note. But after the entry of Joy # 1, the film gets serious. The humour levels increase with the maddening scene in the train. The intermission point is lacklustre and Rohit Shetty should have made it more dramatic. Post interval, the scene of Momo in Roy # 1’s house brings the house down. The same applies to the slapping scene of Rai Bahadur, though after a point it gets repetitive. The climax is good but could have been better, considering all the actors had assembled and there was scope for some real madness.

Speaking of performances, Ranveer Singh underplays his part in several scenes and goes all out in the electricity-related scenes. Overall, he puts on a nice show. Varun Sharma provides able support. Pooja Hegde and Jacqueline Fernandez look stunning and their performances are okay. They are hardly there; in fact, Siddharth Jadhav has more screen time than both the leading ladies put together. Siddharth Jadhav is the funniest actor in the film and he’ll be loved. Sanjay Mishra comes next and is very funny. Anil Charanjeett leaves a mark. Murli Sharma is apt for his role. Johny Lever (Polson Dada) is wasted, sadly. Vijay Patkar (Shankar) is barely there. Sulbha Arya (Chachi) raises laughs in a scene or two. Uday Tikekar, Radhika Bangia (Lily), Saurabh Gokhale (Inspector Vikram), Vrajesh Hirjee (Naagmani), Mukesh Tiwari (Daku Begeera), Tiku Talsania (Velji Bhai), Brijendra Kala (Yusuf), Ashish Warang (Mango), Umakant Patil (Chikki), Nikitin Dheer (Joy # 1's father) and Ashwini Kalsekar (Shakuntala Devi) are decent. Deepika Padukone is superb in the song.

Cirkus | Official Trailer | Ranveer Singh, Jacqueline Fernandez, Pooja Hegde

The music fails to entice, except for 'Current Laga Re' . 'Sun Zara' is shot well while 'Aashiqui' is played in the end credits. Amar Mohile's background score adds to the cinematic feel. Ganesh Acharya's choreography is catchy.

Jomon T John's cinematography is neat. Swapnil Bhalerao and Madhur Madhavan's production design is too colourful and even gaudy. But audiences won’t complain as it suits a film of this kind. Sunil Rodrigues's action and Rohit Shetty's action design is very minimal and this is also a disappointing aspect as there was scope for action as well here. NY VFXWaala's VFX is passable. Bunty Nagi's editing could have been tighter.

On the whole, CIRKUS suffers from poor writing and forced humour, and appeals only in bits and pieces, more so in the second half. One definitely expected more from a Rohit Shetty film. At the box office, the film may reap the benefit of the Christmas and New Year holidays. However, it'll appeal only to those who don't mind a vacuous comedy. The film will have to depend heavily on spot bookings and positive word of mouth to make a decent impact.

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తెలుగు

'Cirkus' Review: An unendurable waste of time!

Movie: Cirkus Rating: 2/5 Cast: Ranveer Singh, Pooja Hegde, Jacqueline Fernandes, Johny Lever, Sanjay Mishra and Varun Sharma. Cinematography: Jomon T. John. Music: Devi Sri Prasad, Badshah and Lijo George. Director: Rohit Shetty Release Date: Dec 23, 2022

'The Bard of Avon' can never go wrong. The timeless Shakespeare, 400-plus years after he entertained Queen Elizabeth I and her courtiers, continues to resonate in different ways with each generation. And his 'Comedy of Errors' has been a favourite of Bollywood filmmakers.

After Kishore Kumar's 'Do Dooni Chaar' and Sanjeev Kumar's 'Angoor' and a few other forgettable adaptations, comes Rohit Shetty's 'Cirkus', featuring Ranveer Singh playing two sets of identical twins who are accidentally separated at birth. Sadly, though, Bollywood is as bad at adapting as it is at conceiving fresh ideas.

So, what does the film have to offer? Old gags, insufferable jokes, bad acting and a plot that just doesn't take off. Even when writers Farhad Samji, Sanchit Bedre and Vidhi Ghodgaonkar attempt to Indianise the much-amended tale, there's nothing out there in terms of a creative twist in this over-two-hour-long film.

Twins Roy and Roy (Singh) and Joy and Joy (Sharma) get separated at birth. Coincidentally, the two pairs get adopted by two different sets of parents -- one Roy is deliberately paired with another Joy and the other Roy with the other Joy in Ooty and Bengaluru, respectively.

From the basic premise, this should have been a laugh riot as the identical twins who live in different cities come together and mistaken identity causes a host of ludicrous situations. The two sets of twins run into each other several years later, when they are coincidentally in the same town. Needless to add, misunderstandings reign supreme when people mistake one for the other.

One Roy works in a circus and is unaffected by electric currents, causing much awe and laughter among the audience. His act of holding naked electric wires has everyone enthusiastically applauding him for an encore. He earns his living professionally, but whenever his body touches an electric wire, his twin in another city feels the shock as the current flows through his tissues.

Short of getting electrocuted, the twin brother experiences the severity of the shock to such an extent that whoever comes in contact with him, feels it too. Now, that could have led to not one but numerous funny moments.

And though the writers do their best to introduce characters, such as the mothers (Ashwini Kalsikar and Sulabha Arya) and girlfriends Mala and Bindu (Hegde and Fernandes) to add to the mix-ups, chaos and disorder, all we have are pathetic example of poor writing skills and excruciatingly unbearable situations, so much so that even the gifted Ranveer Singh can barely salvage the film. His character repeats himself so often that he probably didn't have to memorise his lines -- nor did he get any opportunity to deliver a dialogue impulsively.

From among the ensemble cast, which is comprised of veterans Tiku Talsania, Vrajesh Hirje, Mukesh Tiwary, Brijender Kala, Sanjay Mishra and Johny Lever, not one of them has a scene that could be described as hilarious, comical or mildly amusing.

Shetty, who has specialised in a certain kind of humour in superhits such as 'Singham', 'Golmaal' and 'Chennai Express', fails miserably in raising laughs. The only thing that works for the film is Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh's sudden impromptu jig to 'Current laga re'.

That's the only 'paisa vasool' part of the film, which must go down as a massive wasted opportunity.

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Tags: Cirkus Cirkus Movie Review Cirkus Review Cirkus Rating Cirkus Movie Rating

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Director Julian Farino ’s “The Union” follows Mike ( Mark Wahlberg ), a construction worker content with his job, dive bar outings with his friends, and sleeping with his former seventh-grade teacher (an awkward joke that remains a punchline over the course of the film’s entirety). When his adolescent flame, Roxanne ( Halle Berry ) returns to the east coast after decades of no contact, what he thinks is a meet cute down memory lane turns into an international intelligence operation.

Hackers have accessed the personal information of all of the Western world’s government employees, from soldiers to cops and the FBI. Agent Roxanne and her cut-to-the-chase boss Tom (J.K. Simmons) are spearheading the mission to retrieve the hack to prevent it from getting in the wrong hands. Their titular organization, The Union, is a small, highly secretive agency within the government, akin to the operations of the CIA. They’re “an invisible army that keeps the world running,” an agency that looks for street-smart, blue collar individuals who fly under the radar. Kidnapping Mike from New Jersey to London, Roxanne enlists his help for this high-stakes assignment for one sole reason: “He’s a nobody.” It’s a flimsy premise that precedes an equally thin film.

There’s no driving force when it comes to the characters. We suspend disbelief that Mike would be remotely interested in this life-threatening operation for which he has no true technical skills solely out of nostalgic romance and maybe a hint of patriotic duty (the latter of which is not far off but assumed more for Wahlberg’s habitual social sentiments than anything in-script). On paper, the plot seems to be the sole consideration of the film, while character development and world-building this criminal underbelly falls to the wayside.

Everything about “The Union” is painstakingly familiar. Wahlberg kicks back and lounges comfortably in his habitual role: a laid back, kinda cocky east coaster who juggles punchlines and machismo. Berry, who is fully capable of being a compelling action star, (most recently in the third installment of the John Wick franchise), attempts her best with the film’s shoddy script. “The Union” hits bullet points on its outline with an overwhelming sense of tired obligation and stunted creativity. Its leads have no chemistry and being that their will-they-won’t-they serves as the story’s main attempt at depth, the emotive capabilities of the film sputter and shut down.

“The Union” delivers tonal whiplash on account of its failure to exceed at either end of its genre attempt at action-comedy. The action is mostly unremarkable, with a few key set pieces that pump the pace, but ultimately neglect to put anything exciting on display. Rebounds of exposition and non-committal world building fudge the film’s flow, making the 105-minute runtime feel like a fight to the finish.

Its ham-fisted comedic attempts incite semi-indignant smirks and exasperated chuckles rather than genuine, inspired laughter. Most of the jokes hit with the punch of a half-deflated whoopee cushion, and the sneaking feeling that the script was written on the basis of cheap laughs creeps further up your back as the minutes tick on. “The Union” is unspecial and unengaging. It lacks charm and excitement, clutching to simplicity and a lazy script that relies on star power that’s not bright enough to save it.

Peyton Robinson

Peyton Robinson is a freelance film writer based in Chicago, IL.

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‘Caligula: The Ultimate Cut’ Review: The Emperor’s New Clothes

With the belief that a masterpiece lurks within the mangled original 1980 release, Thomas Negovan has patched together a new version (with less skin) from the Penthouse archive.

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A man in green sits behind a woman in orange and red, with her head titled up toward him. He has his hands holding her neck upward.

By Elisabeth Vincentelli

Based on conventional metrics like, say, tastefulness or storytelling integrity, the 1980 movie “Caligula” is not good. It is, however, completely nuts. And that has turned out to be more than enough to fuel an obsessive cult over the decades.

Part of what drives the enduring interest in “Caligula” is its over-the-top combination of outré aesthetics, exploitation-film tropes, a Gore Vidal screenplay, and a cast including Malcolm McDowell, Helen Mirren and Peter O’Toole.

Even more crucial is the belief that a masterpiece lurks within the mangled original release. Now attempting to prove that theory is “Caligula: The Ultimate Cut,” the latest iteration of a film that has gone through an unfathomable number of edits over the decades. This is the rare re-edited version of a movie that features less graphic sex and violence than the original. What kind of world are we living in?

Long story short: After production on “Caligula” ended, the producer (and Penthouse publisher) Bob Guccione decided to enliven the rise and fall of the infamous Roman emperor (an impressively committed McDowell) by splicing in pornographic segments.

Now Thomas Negovan has patched together a cut that he claims is more faithful to Vidal’s intentions, using nearly 100 hours of footage unearthed in the Penthouse archive. The problem is that the original shoot, directed by Tinto Brass, was so fraught from the start that there seems to have been little agreement on the intentions and tone.

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Alien: Romulus

While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonists come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe. While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonists come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe. While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonists come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe.

Fede Alvarez
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Trivia Director Fede Alvarez sought out the special effects crew from Aliens (1986) to work on the creatures. Physical sets, practical creatures, and miniatures were used wherever possible to help ground later VFX work.
Goofs When the characters first enter the space station, the artificial gravity briefly turns on and then off again. Shortly thereafter, they enter a room where several objects are hovering in mid-air. If the objects had momentum immediately after the gravity switched off they should be moving on a trajectory, and if not they should still be against the floor. Either way, they should not be unmoving several feet off the floor.

Andy : The solution for a claustrophobic astronaut is to give him more space.

Crazy credits The 20th Century Studios fanfare freezes and turns ominous, as in Alien³ (1992) , leading into the film's opening scene. The logo itself suffers a burst of static and turns green.
Connections Featured in Nerdrotic: The Acolyte: Force is Female CONFIRMED? The Death of Theaters - The Real BBC @MauLer @HeelvsBabyface (2024)
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August 16, 2024 (United States)
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Quái Vật Không Gian: Romulus
Origo Studios, Budapest, Hungary
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$80,000,000 (estimated)
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Aug 18, 2024
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Runtime 1 hour 59 minutes
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COMMENTS

Cirkus (2022)
Cirkus: Directed by Rohit Shetty. With Ranveer Singh, Varun Sharma, Pooja Hegde, Jacqueline Fernandez. Two sets of identical twins are accidentally separated at birth. Several years later, when they are coincidentally in the same town, there is a lot of confusion and misunderstanding when people mistake them for each other.
Cirkus (2022)
Cirkus (2022) : Movie Review - Rohit Shetty's Cirkus has a big cast that includes Ranveer Singh, Pooja Hegde, Jacqueline Fernandez, Varun Sharma, and many other comedy actors that are loved by audiences, but the show doesn't do justice to the names. William Shakespeare made "The Comedy of Errors" in the 16th century and gave the world an immortal formula for crazy entertainment.
Cirkus
Rated 4.5/5 Stars • Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 12/28/22 Full Review Billo They should have released the movie to Netflix straight Rated 1/5 Stars • Rated 1 out of 5 stars 12/24/22 Full Review ...
Cirkus (2022)
Cirkus (2022) - Movies, TV, Celebs, and more... Menu. Movies. Release Calendar Top 250 Movies Most Popular Movies Browse Movies by Genre Top Box Office Showtimes & Tickets Movie News India Movie Spotlight. ... The IMDb rating is weighted to help keep it reliable. Learn more. IMDb RATING. 4.4 / 10. 23K. YOUR RATING. Rate.
Cirkus
Cirkus is a busy film filled with a battery of characters put together with a purpose to make us laugh, but is far from that. Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Dec 23, 2022. Ranveer Singh, who ...
'Cirkus': Review
India. 2022. 112min. Bollywood star director Rohit Shetty's big Christmas release Cirkus, about two pairs of identical twins, is more a case of double disaster than twice the fun. One would ...
Cirkus (film)
The Quint's Pratiksha Mishra gave rating of 1.5 out of 5, wrote Cirkus's script is predictable, ... Monika Rawal of Hindustan Times in her review said, Cirkus is an awaful film, ... Cirkus at IMDb This page was last edited on 4 August 2024, at 17:54 (UTC). Text is ...
Cirkus Review
Cirkus Movie Review: Critics Rating: 2.0 stars, click to give your rating/review,'Cirkus' is a busy film filled with a battery of characters put together with a purpose to make us l
Cirkus Movie Review: All the characters, colours and chaos cannot make
Cirkus Movie Review: Critics Rating: 2.0 stars, click to give your rating/review,'Cirkus' is a busy film filled with a battery of characters put together with a purpose to make us l
Cirkus Review: A Great Fall For Both Rohit Shetty And Ranveer Singh
Yes, Cirkus is abysmally bad. It is a mind-numbing film that would have done the world a favour by not advancing beyond the script stage. It does neither the medium nor the genre any justice. The ...
Cirkus (2022)
Overview. Two sets of identical twins are accidentally separated at birth. Several years later, when they are coincidentally in the same town, there is a lot of confusion and misunderstanding when people mistake them for each other. Rohit Shetty.
Cirkus (2022) Movie Reviews
Buy Pixar movie tix to unlock Buy 2, ... Cirkus (2022) Critic Reviews and Ratings Powered by Rotten Tomatoes Rate Movie. Close Audience Score. The percentage of users who made a verified movie ticket purchase and rated this 3.5 stars or higher. Learn more. Review Submitted. GOT IT ...
Cirkus movie review: Sparsely funny, mostly listless Comedy of Errors
Cirkus movie review: Sparsely funny, mostly listless Comedy of Errors with a message. Ranveer Singh and Rohit Shetty team up to spoof the 1960s and '60s Hindi cinema while entering the long-running nature-vs-nurture debate with good intentions. Cast: Ranveer Singh, Varun Sharma, Jacqueline Fernandez, Pooja Hegde, Murali Sharma, Siddharth ...
Cirkus Movie Review
Bollywood Movies; Cirkus Movie Review; Cirkus Movie Review. Follow On. Devesh Sharma Dec 23, 2022, 18:05 IST. ... Rate Movie 0/5. Cirkus. Your Rating Slide to Rate. Not Rated. CANCEL SUBMIT. Cast:
Cirkus Movie Review
CIRKUS is the story of two sets of identical twins -- both of whom are called Roy (Ranveer Singh) and Joy (Varun Sharma) -- who are switched at birth by the unethical Dr. Roy Jamnadas (Murali Sharma). One set of identical twins has a cosmic connection to each other so that when one of them is electrocuted, the other feels the effects instead ...
Cirkus Movie Review: Ranveer Singh, Rohit Shetty's comedy of errors
Cirkus Movie starring Ranveer Singh, Pooja Hegde and Jacqueline Fernandez has released today and you MUST read this movie review before you make a decision to watch or ditch Bollywood's BIG ...
‎Cirkus (2022) directed by Rohit Shetty • Reviews, film
Review by s/chin (formerly filmranked) 22. A clear case of late-career auteurism. Shetty's artistic instincts may seem juvenile and vapid to a few — but here — they come to full fruition. Even a Shetty-enthusiast (myself) might find CIRKUS slightly obnoxious, and maybe I did — but that's not what matters.
Cirkus (2022)
Cirkus (2022) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. ... Release Calendar Top 250 Movies Most Popular Movies Browse Movies by Genre Top Box Office Showtimes & Tickets Movie News India Movie Spotlight. TV Shows. What's on TV & Streaming Top 250 TV Shows Most ... Related lists from IMDb users. 2022 Movies ...
'Cirkus' movie review: Rohit Shetty, Ranveer Singh's film is a reckless
Rohit Shetty has been making his comedy of errors for a long time, but this time, the director who introduced us to a new Golmaal gets inspired by Shakespeare's epic play and dusts off Gulzar ...
'Cirkus' Honest Review: This Comedy Of Errors Has No Comedy, Only Errors
2. Cirkus is in a different vein than every other Rohit Shetty film, in more ways than one. Instead of cars flying all over, people do the flying here. After the pace quickens, we are introduced ...
Cirkus Review
Ratings: 2.5/5 Review By: Shreya Site:Zoom TV. This movie is Rohit Shetty's sincere attempt to deliver a full-blown entertainer to all Bollywood lovers who enjoy such large-scale experiences. The film feels like a snooze fest at the start.
Cirkus Movie Review: CIRKUS suffers from poor writing and forced humour
Cirkus Movie Review 2022 : Cirkus Critics Rating 2.0/5. CIRKUS is the story of mistaken identity. The year is 1942. Dr. Roy Jamnadas (Murli Sharma) and Joy Jamnadas (Uday Tikekar) run the Jamnadas ...
'Cirkus' Movie Review: An unendurable waste of time!
Movie: Cirkus Rating: 2/5 Cast: Ranveer Singh, Pooja Hegde, Jacqueline Fernandes, Johny Lever, Sanjay Mishra and Varun Sharma. Cinematography: Jomon T. John. Music: Devi Sri Prasad, Badshah and Lijo George. Director: Rohit Shetty Release Date: Dec 23, 2022 'The Bard of Avon' can never go wrong. The timeless Shakespeare, 400-plus years after he entertained Queen Elizabeth I and her courtiers ...
The Union movie review & film summary (2024)
Director Julian Farino's "The Union" follows Mike (Mark Wahlberg), a construction worker content with his job, dive bar outings with his friends, and sleeping with his former seventh-grade teacher (an awkward joke that remains a punchline over the course of the film's entirety).When his adolescent flame, Roxanne (Halle Berry) returns to the east coast after decades of no contact, what ...
'Caligula: The Ultimate Cut' Review: The Emperor's New Clothes
A major downside is that Bruno Nicolai's original music and the signature classical cues by Prokofiev and Khachaturian have been replaced by a new score by Troy Sterling Nies that is anodyne at ...
Alien: Romulus (2024)
Alien: Romulus: Directed by Fede Alvarez. With Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, Archie Renaux, Isabela Merced. While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonists come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe.

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Cirkus Movie Review

Cirkus Devesh Sharma , Dec 23, 2022, 18:05 IST

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