Cecil B DeMille's circus blockbuster: it won an Academy Award as the best film of its year, stars Charlton Heston in his first role for DeMille, as the circus boss, and boasts a spectacular train crash besides thrills in the ring. Best performances come from James Stewart, as a clown on the run from his past, and John Kellogg, as a slimily smiling two-bit nasty. On the glamour side, it's nice to see Betty Hutton and Dorothy Lamour together again. Both had been stalwarts of Paramount pictures for some years. And, back in 1942, Hutton's first film had starred Lamour. Spot Bing Crosby and Bob Hope in the audience, munching peanuts as they watch Lamour sing. Not too hot on the acting and script fronts, though: although it's entertaining, it's hard to see now how this could ever have won a Best Film Oscar.