I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Absolutely the worst movie.

The first must-see film of the year.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

It's so very sad to see two great and beautiful talents, Doris Day and Stephen Boyd, thrown together in an empirically terrible movie. After she showed she could act in a drama in Midnight Lace, and after he showed his wonderful presence in Ben-Hur, they joined forces in a movie about an elephant in a circus. Yes, you read that correctly. And no, it's not as absurd as it sounds; it's more. At one point, they both dress up as clowns and wind up in embarrassingly sexual positions during the dance number.Stephen's so incredibly handsome-and talented, let's not forget that-and he's forced to act in Billy Roses's Jumbo? His singing voice was dubbed-although James Joyce was such an excellent match it's nearly impossible to tell-so it's not as though he wanted to surprise audiences by showing he could sing. I don't know why he and Doris didn't just walk off the set one day and never return. The two famous songs from the film are "My Romance" and "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World", but while they're pretty songs, you're better off just listening to the soundtrack rather than watch this ridiculous movie all the way through. If you do, you'll probably get an uncontrollable fit of the giggles, and not because of the humor in the film. It'll be the type of laughter one gets in the midst of Chinese water torture when one realizes how funny it is that the noise will never end. Trust me, by the time Stephen Boyd sings, "The most beautiful star in the world isn't Juno, isn't Venus, but between us. . ." you'll double up in laughter finishing up the rhyme in your own way.

Directed by Charles Walters, with a Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur play that was adapted by Sidney Sheldon, this below average Musical does features a lot of good circus action. It also marks the last film of this type which features Doris Day. Stephen Boyd plays her eventual love interest; Jimmy Durante plays her father, and Martha Raye plays Durante's long term fiancée. Dean Jagger also appears as a rival circus owner.The film's Score, which is largely forgettable except for the (Richard) Rodgers and (Lorenz) Hart song "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World", was nominated for an Oscar, the last that George Stoll would earn. The film's title refers to the star of the show, a very talented pachyderm or, more specifically, an elephant. Billy Rose was the owner of the original musical extravaganza on whose 1934 show (starring Durante?) this film is based.Pop Wonder (Durante) runs a poor man's traveling circus that barely manages to keep ahead of its creditors. In fact, if it weren't for his daughter Kitty (Day), his assets including his best and favorite attraction, Jumbo, would have been taken away long ago. But Kitty's got just enough charm to assuage their pursuers until they can pack up and move on to the next town.Unfortunately, the Wonders haven't been able to pay their employees, so one by one they're losing their performers to a rival, better funded circus owned by John Noble (Jagger). It's not that the Wonder Circus isn't a pretty good show, capable of selling out the house; it's the fact that Pop can't resist losing the day's take in a local crap game afterwards.So, Kitty pretty much runs things as best she can. The fortune teller Lulu (Raye) is Pop's longtime girlfriend, to whom he's supposedly been engaged for 8 years. Pop is both a clown in the circus and it's master of ceremonies while Kitty performs on a horse and fills in anywhere else when necessary. Billy Barty (uncredited) is featured briefly in one scene.One day, a handsome circus tramp (a traveler who drifts from job to job in different circuses) named Sam Rawlins (Boyd) arrives. Though Kitty initially dismisses him, preferring to hire employees with staying power, Sam proves invaluable when the Wonder's tightrope walker disappears. So, he becomes part of the circus. Naturally, a budding relationship develops between Sam and Kitty, especially after Sam helps Kitty recoup most of the $800 that her father had lost shooting craps, enabling her to pay and thus retain most of the circus's staff.Somehow, without any money, Pop finds a way to purchase the cannon he's always wanted and attempts to launch Lulu across the ring; it doesn't work. What Kitty doesn't know is that handyman Sam is actually John Noble's son, who is using his father's cash to buy up all the Wonder's bills. Grady Sutton appears briefly, and nearly unrecognizably, as a hay seller. Noble covets Jumbo and hopes to gather enough of Wonder's debt to takeover his circus and own the elephant that Wonder refuses to sell.Of course, Sam's relationship with Kitty grows, making him feel guilty and, just about the time he decides to quit working for his father, Kitty finds out and is disillusioned, when he's nowhere to be found.Without their circus or Jumbo, Pop, Lulu and Kitty form a small, one cart vaudeville type show, traveling, and swindling, their way around the country to survive. One day, Sam catches up with them to re- declare his love for Kitty. The fact that he's somehow managed to (buy from his father and) bring Jumbo with him seals the deal. With the elephant, and an added performer in Sam, the four person Wonder circus quickly grows to be bigger and better than the original show by the film's end.

This film is, in a word, surreal. Even for a late-in-the-game musical. On the plus side, the R&H songs are excellent and Day is fantastic. Stephen Boyd's taken a lot of heat in these reviews and, yes, he's no outstanding leading man. But he does the one thing he needs to do very well - he looks gorgeous, and you understand Day's being crazy for him. But the story goes all over the place. It jumps from froth to dark treachery, then way back again, and what's worst of all is you feel you're watching a dreadfully low-budget extravaganza, especially as the betrayed circus stragglers hit the road to make a living. Even Boyd's reappearance to redeem himself is done too quickly and with no real explanation about the destruction of the family circus or his part in it. He just starts singing about circus fun and everything's lovely again. Finally, the last twenty-minute number is a...well, psycho musical comedy explosion. Yet - see it. Day doing 'Little Girl Blue' is worth it alone, with Boyd's studly hanging about on ropes coming in a close second.

Doris Day goes to the circus. As you might expect, there is a plot involving a mean rival circusman trying to put Ms. Day's circus out to pasture. Day runs the circus with her pop Jimmy Durante. Stephen Boyd is the high wire act, love interest, and man of mystery.There are long, dull sequences depicting circus performers doing their thing; by 1962, you'd think movie makers would have figure out this circus stuff works better when seen live. The main attraction is the elephant who gives the film its title, "Jumbo". Elephants can't display too much personality on the screen, and Jumbo comes off as more frightening than endearing, despite the wink. He may scare smaller children. It's also unnerving to see Day and Mr. Boyd flying around in the air.On the plus side, Day and Mr. Durante are fine; have these two ever delivered a less-than-professional performance? The music helps move the film along, but the male lead should have been assigned to a musical performer equal to Doris Day. Martha Raye is an entertaining love interest for Durante."The Most Beautiful Girl in the World" and "Why Can't I?" are more famous songs, but Day's solo "Little Girl Blue" is the film's real highlight, due to Day's splendid performance. ***** Jumbo (1962) Charles Walters ~ Doris Day, Jimmy Durante, Stephen Boyd