The film begins on a rainy night where an elderly man has been accidentally left at a circus (his son has failed to remember to pick him up). Taking sympathy for the man’s plight a member of staff let’s him stay in the warmth and as the two men chat the younger man becomes intrigued with what the older man has to say.

Eventually we learn that the old man is called Jacob who back in 1930s America was studying veterinary science at university when both his parents were tragically killed in a car accident. Penniless and in despair Jacob runs away hopping on to the first train that comes his way (which proves to be a fateful decision). The train happens to be carrying the Benzini Brothers Circus and Jacob finds himself working for them.

What follows is a tale of a love triangle against the backdrop of 1930s Depression hit America. The cinematography is excellent and assured and the spectacle is all up there on the screen. Christoph Waltz (from Inglorious Basterds) is the fiery Ringmaster and circus owner, August who runs things with a rod of iron (sometimes literally). He is a complex character whose smile and charm hides a volcanic temper and bouts of aggression and violence often directed at circus workers or animals.

Reese Witherspoon plays his long-suffering wife and circus performer Marlena. As you can expect Witherspoon looks as beautiful as ever and gives yet another sympathetic portrayal of a woman in a tough situation. I must point out that the script could have given Marlena more depth as Witherspoon can only act sweet and hurt with the material she has been given.

Robert Pattinson continues to divide critics and fans alike but here as Jacob he proves that his acting range is beyond that of playing martyred wizards and brooding vampires. He convinces as the sensitive and outraged young man who is thrust into the harsh world of the circus with its surface glitz for the audience and its harsh and often cruel reality behind the veneer.

Yes its flawed in places, yet thanks to engaging performances particularly from Waltz as the tortured and unpredictable August and most of the supporting cast this is an effective look at life from a bygone era. It won’t be the best film you will see this year but it will make an impact as an entertaining and at times moving portrayal of desperate people in harsh times.