Bringemovies
← Browse Movies
The Ugliest Show on Earth
TITLE DETAILS

The Ugliest Show on Earth

1998-01-01 · 27 min · ★ 8.0

Documentary

The Ugliest Show on Earth report (USoE) and video chart the findings of an 18-month study and investigation into the use of animals in circuses - the most comprehensive study of animals in circuses ever undertaken.

Open detail page

Trailers are previews, not full movies.

No authorized playback source configured. Use the legal watch options below.

Production details

Directors
Jan Creamer, Tim Phillips
Production companies
Unavailable
Countries
United Kingdom
Status
Released

Top Cast

Vincent Brimbleself (narrator)

Title information and images are supplied by TMDb. Explore our discovery guide for advice on comparing metadata and legal viewing options.

Where to watch

Availability provided by JustWatch via TMDb. Offers can change. Provider links are listed on TMDb; full playback requires a separately authorized source.

Availability not listed for this country.

Recommendations

Earthlings
★ 8.1
Earthlings2005Documentary

Using hidden cameras and never-before-seen footage, Earthlings chronicles the day-to-day practices of the largest industries in the world, all of which rely entirely on animals for profit.

Evil Influencer: The Jodi Hildebrandt Story
★ 6.2
Evil Influencer: The Jodi Hildebrandt Story2025Documentary

Unravel the case of Utah therapist Jodi Hildebrandt, whose child abuse arrest with parenting YouTuber Ruby Franke exposed a twisted tale of manipulation.

Dominion
★ 8.4
Dominion2018Documentary

Exposing the dark underbelly of modern animal agriculture through drones, hidden & handheld cameras, the feature-length film explores the morality and validity of our dominion over the animal kingdom.

Predators
★ 6.7
Predators2025Documentary

In the mid-aughts, Dateline NBC's To Catch a Predator drew millions of weekly viewers to watch sting operations: men planning to meet minors for sex would instead be confronted by polished host Chris Hansen, then by the police — all on hidden camera.

Titicut Follies
★ 7.3
Titicut Follies1967Documentary

Employing methods of direct cinema–observation, limited stylization, and non-intervention–this stark look into the State Prison for the Criminally Insane in Bridgewater, Massachusetts shows its denizens, who were often kept in barren cells and infrequently bathed, forced to strip naked publicly, force feeding, and the indifference and bullying by many of the hospital's staff.

You Can See Everything
★ 8.9
You Can See Everything2026Documentary

Thirty-four days before she's sent to prison, notorious Silicon Valley founder Elizabeth Holmes invites a skeptical film crew to document her every move. What begins as an intimate portrait of an enigmatic felon becomes a mind-bending three-year journey into the abyss.

Ghost Elephants
★ 7.6
Ghost Elephants2026Documentary

In Angola's mist-shrouded highlands, three KhoiSan master trackers embark on a spiritual quest to rediscover the legendary "ghost elephants" of Lisima, creatures presumed lost but remembered in ancestral trance, ritual, and memory.

S4: The Bob Lazar Story
★ 8.4
S4: The Bob Lazar Story2026Documentary

Over 35 years after Bob Lazar's revelations, this documentary exposes secrets of a facility the government still denies. Featuring Lazar's testimony, recreations, and new evidence, it reopens a case that continues to spark global curiosity

Fuck
★ 6.4
Fuck2006Documentary

A documentary on the expletive's origin, why it offends some people so deeply, and what can be gained from its use.

David Blaine: Beyond Magic
★ 7.1
David Blaine: Beyond Magic2016Documentary

In his most revealing performance yet, the one-hour special features an exploration into Blaine’s trademark style of street magic as he once again stuns his audience.

Athlete A
★ 7.5
Athlete A2020Documentary

Follow the Indianapolis Star reporters that broke the story about USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar's abuse and hear from gymnasts.

Our Planet: Behind the Scenes
★ 7.7
Our Planet: Behind the Scenes2019Documentary

Years spent recording footage of creatures from every corner of the globe is bound to produce a bit of drama. Here's a behind-the-scenes look.

Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D)
★ 8.4
Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D)2026Documentary

Captured during Billie Eilish's sold-out world tour, a concert experience from one of the most celebrated and successful artists of her generation, presented in immersive 3D.

A Gorilla Story: Told by David Attenborough
★ 8.0
A Gorilla Story: Told by David Attenborough2026Documentary

Veteran naturalist Sir David Attenborough tells the story of a remarkable group of gorillas, from his first encounter in the '70s to the present day.

Grizzly Man
★ 7.5
Grizzly Man2005Documentary

Follows the story of "Grizzly Man" Timothy Treadwell and what the thirteen summers in a National Park in Alaska were like in his attempt to protect the grizzly bears. The film is full of unique images and a look into the spirit of a man who sacrificed himself for nature.

Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story
★ 7.5
Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story2025Documentary

The authorized documentary celebrating the film that redefined Hollywood, 50 years after its premiere. Featuring rare archival footage and interviews with acclaimed Hollywood directors alongside Steven Spielberg, top shark scientists, and conservationists, the film uncovers the behind-the-scenes chaos and how the film launched the summer blockbuster, inspired a new wave of filmmakers, and paved the way for shark conservation that continues today.

Inside the Mind of a Dog
★ 7.1
Inside the Mind of a Dog2024Documentary

Embark on a delightful journey into the world of dogs in this documentary that reveals scientific and emotional insights about our lovable BFFs.

The Year Earth Changed
★ 7.9
The Year Earth Changed2021Documentary

Never-before-seen footage shows how our living in lockdown opened the door for nature to bounce back and thrive. Across the seas, skies, and lands, Earth found its rhythm when we came to a stop.

Naqoyqatsi
★ 6.2
Naqoyqatsi2002Documentary

A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.

Who Are You, Charlie Brown?
★ 6.9
Who Are You, Charlie Brown?2021Documentary

Lupita Nyong'o narrates a documentary about Peanuts and its creator, Charles M. Schulz. Famous fans—including Drew Barrymore, Kevin Smith, and Al Roker—share its influence on them, and a new animated story finds Charlie Brown on a quest.

Similar titles

Jackass: The Movie
★ 6.3
Jackass: The Movie2002Documentary

Johnny Knoxville and his band of maniacs perform a variety of stunts and gross-out gags on the big screen for the first time. They wander around Japan in panda outfits, wreak havoc on a once civilized golf course, they even do stunts involving LIVE alligators, and so on.

The Waves
Not rated
The Waves2024Documentary

Seven women, guided by a therapist gradually put their bodies into motion. As the dance therapy progresses they give us the moving testimonies of the physical and psychological tortures that they underwent during their incommunicado detention in Spain in the 2000s.

Łódź Ghetto
★ 8.0
Łódź Ghetto1989Documentary

The Polish city of Łódź was under Nazi occupation for nearly the entirety of WWII. The segregation of the Jewish population into the ghetto, and the subsequent horrors are vividly chronicled via newsreels and photographs. The narration is taken almost entirely from journals and diaries of those who lived–and died–through the course of the occupation, with the number of different narrators diminishing as the film progresses, symbolic of the death of each narrator.

The Look of Silence
★ 7.8
The Look of Silence2014Documentary

An Indonesian man with a communist background named Ramli was brutally murdered when the "Communist" purge occurred in 1965. His remaining family members lived in fear and silence until the making of this documentary. Adi, a brother of his, decided to revisit the horrific incident and visited the men who were responsible for the killings and one survivor of the purge. These meetings uncovered sadistic details of the murders and exposed raw emotions and reactions of the killers' family members about what happened in the past - much to Adi's disappointment.

People on the Road
★ 6.8
People on the Road1960Documentary

A portrait of a traveling circus.

Who is Weary Willie?
Not rated
Who is Weary Willie?2021Documentary

"Who is Weary Willie?" explores the life of the once-famous circus character Weary Willie and his story tied to controversy and confusion over identity between his creator, Emmett Kelly Sr., and his son, Emmett Kelly Jr.

Night and Fog
★ 8.3
Night and Fog1956Documentary

Filmmaker Alain Resnais documents the atrocities behind the walls of Hitler's concentration camps.

Cirque du Soleil: The Mystery of Mystère
★ 6.0
Cirque du Soleil: The Mystery of Mystère2013Documentary

Cirque du Soleil presents The Mystery of Mystère, a captivating documentary that explores how arts and science merge together using Mystère, the critically acclaimed Las Vegas show at Treasure Island, as the outlet for this message.

Escape 360
★ 10.0
Escape 3602021Documentary

One man, one camera, one goal...to capture the essence of adventure. An experimental, often abstract new type of filmmaking process creating color rich visuals combined with a lush soundtrack that grounds the project. A unique cinematic experience.

El circo
★ 6.3
El circo1950Documentary

Madrid, Spain, 1949. The Circo Americano arrives in the city. While the big top is pitched in a vacant lot, the troupe parades through the grand avenues: the band, a witty impersonator, the Balodys, acrobats, jugglers, acrobatic skaters, clowns and… Buffallo Bill.

Mondo Topless
★ 4.7
Mondo Topless1966Documentary

Completely topless. Completely uninhibited. The craze that began in San Francisco is now exploding across the USA and Europe.

Food ReLOVution
Not rated
Food ReLOVution2017Documentary

“Food Relovution: What We Eat Can Make A Difference” is an eye-opening and compelling feature documentary that examines the consequences of the meat culture as concerns grow about health, world hunger, animal welfare and the environmental cost of livestock production. It aims to show how these global issues affect everyone and are interrelated, and how making our food choices with a sense of awareness, knowing what we are buying and what we are eating is the first fundamental step towards a better world.

Cirque du Soleil: Quidam
★ 7.5
Cirque du Soleil: Quidam1999Documentary

A young girl has already seen everything there is to see and her world has lost all meaning. Her anger shatters her world and she finds herself in the universe of QUIDAM, where she is joined by a playful companion, as well as another mysterious character who attempts to seduce her with the marvelous, the unsettling and the terrifying.

Cirque du Soleil: Alegria
★ 8.0
Cirque du Soleil: Alegria2001Documentary

Alegría is a mood, a state of mind. The themes of the show, whose name means "jubilation" in Spanish, are many. Power and the handing down of power over time, the evolution from ancient monarchies to modern democracies, old age, youth - it is against this backdrop that the characters of Alegría play out their lives. Kings' fools, minstrels, beggars, old aristocrats and children make up its universe, along with the clowns, who alone are able to resist the passing of time and the social transformations that accompany it.

Cirque du Soleil: Saltimbanco
★ 7.2
Cirque du Soleil: Saltimbanco1997Documentary

From the Italian 'saltare in banco' – which literally means 'to jump on a bench' – Saltimbanco explores the urban experience in all its myriad forms. Between whirlwind and lull, prowess and poetry, it takes spectators on an allegorical and acrobatic journey into the heart and soul of the modern city.

Cirque du Soleil: Varekai
★ 7.9
Cirque du Soleil: Varekai2003Documentary

Icarus is the main character of Varekai, who falls to the ground, breaking his legs as he does. He is suddenly in a strange, new world full of creatures he has never seen before. Parachuted into the shadows of a magical forest, a kaleidoscopic world populated by fantastical creatures, this young man sets off on an adventure both absurd and extraordinary.

Tower
★ 9.3
Tower2017Documentary

Four siblings, whose father disappeared during Brazilian Military Dictatorship, report their childhood during the regime.

Faces of Death V
★ 3.7
Faces of Death V1995Documentary

A direct-to-video compilation of the highlights of the earlier films in the Faces of Death series.

Vigilantes INC. - America's New Vote Suppression Hitmen
★ 8.7
Vigilantes INC. - America's New Vote Suppression Hitmen2024Documentary

Vigilantes Inc.: America’s New Vote Suppression Hitmen The 2024 election is in danger:  8,500 self-proclaimed vigilante vote-fraud hunters have already challenged the rights of 851,000 voters of color.  Investigative reporter Greg Palast (Guardian/Rolling Stone) hunts down the MAGA vigilantes including one dressed like Doc Holliday—with his loaded 6-guns—who blocked the vote of 4,000 Black soldiers including MAJ Gamaliel Turner.  Palast and Major Turner confront the vote rustlers in scenes humorous, weird and dangerous.

Poster unavailable
Not rated
Victims Fight Back1985Documentary

Shocking documentary centering on victims of violent crime who seek to get revenge on their assailants.

Your favorites

Recently viewed

Watch

Choose an authorized server.

Full video from an operator-configured authorized source. Official trailers use a separate player. If a server fails, retry or select another authorized server.

Legal watch options

Official trailer

Trailer preview only. Press Play to start.

Privacy choices

Favorites stay in your browser. Movie images load from TMDb. YouTube trailers contact YouTube only after you allow external media and choose a trailer. Advertising consent, if ads are enabled, is managed separately by the operator’s certified CMP.

Privacy policy

After allowing external media, choose the trailer button to load its player.