The Last Circus

The Last Circus is a 2010 Spanish-French dark comedy-drama film written and directed by Álex de la Iglesia, which stars Carlos Areces, Antonio de la Torre and Carolina Bang. It premiered at the 2010 Venice Film Festival. Plot In 1937, Republican Militia force a circus troupe to fight on their side in the Spanish Civil War. The Funny Clown (Santiago Segura) slaughters dozens of Nationalist troops, armed only with a machete, before being shot and disarmed. While his fellow troupe members are executed, the Funny Clown is sentenced to work as a slave laborer, at the monument of the Valle de los Caídos. His son, Javier (Sasha Di Bendetto) tries to free him by setting off dynamite where he was working. But Colonel Salcedo (Sancho Gracia) tramples the Funny Clown to death with his horse. Javier knocks him down, gouging out his eye in the process. Salcedo vows to remember Javier for this insult. In 1973, Javier (Carlos Areces) joins a circus as its sad clown, following his father's wishes. His counterpart as funny clown is Sergio (Antonio de la Torre), an arrogant, crude, violent man who admits that were he not a clown, he would probably be a murderer. Javier begins to fall in love with Sergio's girlfriend, the trapeze artist Natalia (Carolina Bang). After Sergio becomes drunk and enraged at dinner one night, Sergio beats Natalia unconscious then storms out. Javier encourages Natalia to leave Sergio, but when Sergio returns she engages in rough sex against a window while Javier cowers below. She later tells Javier that she is sexually and emotionally attracted to Sergio's violent nature. Sergio admits that Javier is an excellent sad clown but grows suspicious about his attention to Natalia. Natalia encourages Javier to develop feelings for her, as she was impressed by his refusal to laugh at an offensive joke told by Sergio at dinner previously. They begin to see one another behind Sergio's back. One night, at an amusement park, Natalia admits she has begun to love Javier as well and kisses him tenderly. Sergio suddenly appears and beats them both savagely; Javier's wounds land him in the hospital. Natalia tells Javier they must never see one another again for his sake. After having a dream in which Sergio foils his repeated attempts to rescue Natalia from various situations, Javier escapes from the hospital and returns to the circus. Despite the efforts of the other troupe members to stop him, Javier finds Sergio and Natalia having sex.