Carnival Story (1954)
Directed by Kurt Neumann

Film Review

Anne Baxter's career may have been on the skids by the time she was drafted in to headline this clunky melodrama but she was not one to go down without a fight.  Her spunky live-wire performance is just about the only thing going for this German-American co-production, which is marred by some hideous dialogue and a plot that is just too ridiculous to take seriously for a moment.  Steve Cochran and Lyle Bettger do what they can with the lacklustre fare that someone dropped in their in-tray, but both actors are totally eclipsed by the dying star that was Anne Baxter.  Filmed in lurid Agfacolor, Carnival Story has a certain kitsch appeal and is mildly entertaining in parts, but it is by no means a classic.

Film Synopsis

Having failed to make its mark in America, a travelling carnival arrives in Munich hoping to lure audiences with its tawdry circus acts.  The star attraction is Frank Collini, who dives into a tank of water from a great height.  A penniless local girl, Willi, persuades the carnival's manager to give her a job as canteen worker.  Within no time, she is training to be Collini's partner.  When Willi announces she and Collini are to be married, another member of the troupe, Joe, is outraged.  He has a crush on Willi and he knows that she feels the same way about him.  Shortly after Joe is dismissed, Collini falls to his death in what appears to be a tragic accident.  Willi decides to continue with her act, but injures herself in a bad fall.  During her convalescence, she becomes friendly with a sympathetic reporter who offers her a new life.  But when she receives a phone call from Joe, Willi knows she must return to the carnival...