The Ringmaster

2019

1h 28m

Documentary

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List

100%

7 Reviews

Tomatometer

67%

Fewer than 50 Ratings

Audience Score

An aging chef from Minnesota has his life turned upside down when a relentless filmmaker from Las Vegas tries to make the chef's onion rings world-famous.

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Critics Consensus

A film whose creation becomes steadily more fascinating than the story it's trying to tell, The Ringmaster is a documentary to savor.

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Loren King

Loren King

Capp's authenticity and enthusiasm, his desire to document a personal passion, makes "The Ringmaster" both an irresistible film-within-a-film and a cautionary tale.

Feb 3, 2021

Full Review

Shikhar Verma

High on Films

The Ringmaster - which in itself takes up newer meanings as it goes on, made me sit back and take notice.

Rated: 2.5/5

Jan 15, 2021

Full Review

Tony Macklin

tonymacklin.net

Sometimes plans go awry.

Rated: 2.5/5

Jan 14, 2021

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Bill Arceneaux

Moviegoing with Bill

A consistently resonant mishap madcap of mistakes and moments, all for the glory of film.

Rated: 3.5/5

Dec 31, 2020

Full Review

Jessica Baxter

jessicabaxter.com

[A] film about obsession, selfishness, capitalist blinders, and addiction that will stick with you for a lot longer than would have a 30-minute show about onions rings.

Dec 9, 2020

Full Review

Rachel Wagner

rachelsreviews.net

It is this dual aspect of The Ringmaster that makes it interesting

Rated: 7/10

Nov 24, 2020

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Dillon W

One of the best horror films I've seen in a long time

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/04/24

Full Review

Nathan A

A fascinating documentary that quickly changes focus from a small-town restaurant owner and his onion rings to obsession of the filmmaker and how far he's willing to go for his passion project.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/16/24

Full Review

Audience Member

Despite what that VICE Dark Side of the 90s would have you believe, Jerry Springer didn't invent his show format. Morton Downey Jr., Geraldo Rivera, Phil Donahue (who he was a clone of at first) and Wally George had all been there and done that, but Springer ended up hitting the cultural zeitgeist at the right time and knew early on that he needed to hire pro-wrestling-connected talent bookers to keep bringing in worked storylines to keep the machine moving. For some reason, Springer isn't himself but Jerry Farrelly. Was he embarrassed? After all, this is the one-time mayor of Cincinnati who paid for sexual favors with a personal check. Regardless, his show has three different storylines: You Did WHAT With Your Stepdaddy?: Angel Zorzak (Jaime Pressly, who deserved and got better) is sleeping with her mother Connie's (Molly Hagan, Code of Silence, The Dentist, Sometimes They Come Back... Again) husband Rusty (Michael Dudikoff, so deserves so much more, so go watch American Ninja or Avenging Force and think kind thoughts for him) while she's sleeping with Angel's boyfriend Willie. My Traitor Girlfriends: Demond (Michael Jai White, Spawn) is cheating on Starletta (Wendy Raquel Robinson) with her friends Vonda (Tangie Ambrose) and Leshawnette (Nicki Micheaux). The third is Jerry himself, who much like Chuck Barris in The Gong Show Movie, is afraid of the career and life that he has made. Director Neil Abramson and writer Jon Bernstein have a major issue to deal with: any sort of fake real episode of Springer's show is more interesting than what they could invent. Roger Ebert shared that he heard Springer once said, "I know I'm going to go to hell for doing this show." I don't think he will for this movie. It's too boring for eternal damnation.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

07/07/23

Full Review

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Dave Newberg

Director

Molly Dworsky

Director

Zachary Capp

Self

Larry Lang

Self

Gene Simmons

Self

Paul Stanley

Self

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The Ringmaster: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

An aging chef from Minnesota has his life turned upside down when a relentless filmmaker from Las Vegas tries to make the chef's onion rings world-famous.

Director: Dave Newberg, Molly Dworsky
Producer: Daniel Capp, Joshua Capp, Zachary Capp
Screenwriter: Zachary Capp, Molly Dworsky, Dave Newberg, Julian Williams
Production Co: Asteroid and Space Metals Recovery, Capp Bros
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 6, 2020
Runtime: 1h 28m

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