What happens when the members of the renowned circus troupe Cirque du Soleil move "out of the Big Top and into the real world"? Alegria, unfortunately. Adapted from the titular stage hit--featuring Cirque's winning blend of circus, theatre, dance and music--director Franco Dragone's anemic reworking of his own production mostly replaces the onstage magic with a nicely lensed though utterly lethargic two-strand tale of thwarted love and the plight of an orphan stuck in a Dickensian hell. Glacial pacing, muddled plotting, and awkward overlaid narration make this a disappointing mess. Although some might want to see for the uncredited cameo by Whoopi Goldberg as a whitefaced clown, better choices here would be Cirque's Quidam (reviewed in VL Online) or the 1945 French classic that served as obvious inspiration, Les Enfants du Paradis. Not recommended. (R. Pitman)
Alegria
First Look, 115 min., PG, VHS: $79.95, Mar. 14. Vol. 15, Issue 2
Alegria
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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