Shuvrajit Das Biswas
‘The Greatest Showman’ is an American musical biographical drama based on the life of P.T. Barnum and the circus that he started. Musicals have always served as a cornerstone of the American entertainment industry, and one only has to look at classics like ‘The Sound of Music’ or ‘West Side Story’ to understand their place in the grand scheme of things.
Even in today’s day and age, musicals like ‘La La Land‘ have succeeded in capturing our hearts and making waves. ‘The Greatest Showman’, which came out in 2017, is no exception; it has been praised for its music, performances, and production value, which is exactly what people expect from a good musical. However, it has also been criticized for misusing the artistic license and for being a bit shallow or falsely inspiring in parts. Anyway, as viewers, you should ask yourselves – is ‘The Greatest Showman’ enjoyable? The answer is yes. Considering it does present what is called the greatest show on earth, the movie is thoroughly engrossing, and if you have not seen it, you will definitely want to watch it. If you have seen it already, we know you might still want to re-watch it, since it is an uplifting experience overall. Thus, we bring you places where you can watch ‘The Greatest Showman’ online, but before that, let us quickly walk you through the story.
What is The Greatest Showman About?
The basic premise of ‘The Greatest Showman’ tells us the story of P.T. Barnum and his troupe as they perform at the circus, in the mid 19th century. We are given a backstory into Barnum’s life, seeing how he falls in love with Charity, the daughter of the person he and his father work for. They marry and have two children. Life in New York City is a humble living experience for them, but Barnum wants more. So he decides to live a daring life.
He starts off by buying Barnum’s American Museum and showcasing the wax models there. Working off his children’s suggestion to show something alive, he hires ‘freaks’ who serve as performers and eventually the entire shindig is renamed as Barnum’s Circus. With success comes the attempt to rise up society’s ladder and mix with the aristocracy. Barnum attempts to do this by getting help from Phillip Carlyle, the playwright, who is mesmerized by Anne Wheeler, the African American trapeze artist. On their trips, Barnum also meets Queen Victoria, and the famed Swedish singer Jenny Lind, whom he convinces to perform for his show. As the aristocratic patrons begin to accept Barnum, he distances himself from the original troupe, who are dejected and decide to stand their ground against local harassers.
Trouble keeps piling on all fronts as Phillip’s parents catch him with Anne and berate him. However, Phillip, in turn, shames them for their prejudices and goes after Anne to confess his feelings. In the meanwhile, Barnum’s relationship with his wife hits a rocky patch as he takes Lind on a tour, making his wife feel neglected and isolated as she stays back home caring for the kids.
Lind too complicates matters as she begins to fall for Barnum and even orchestrates a performance where they kiss at the end of her last show. Obviously, the press captures this, causing quite a scandal. When Barnum returns, he finds his circus and his marriage on fire, the former being literal, and the latter metaphorical. A face-off between his troupe and protestors leads to the burning down of his tent, while his wife takes their daughters to her parents’ home. Barnum is devastated by his selfishness.
However, Barnum’s troupe leans on him for support and tells him they are a family after all. Renewed and with new priorities of not letting ambition overtake his love for the people close to him, Barnum returns to the show business. Before this, he mends his relationship with his wife, while Phillip and Anne also make up. Phillip offers to help Barnum overcome the financial difficulty of restarting the circus, by giving his share of the money, but on the condition that he be made a partner. The revamped circus becomes largely successful as we see Barnum give control to Phillip to be with his family. It is a film that reminds us of the truly important things in life, and now we give you the truly important information about where you can see the movie.
Is The Greatest Showman on Netflix?
Netflix offers premium content and perhaps has the best-stocked library when it comes to films and television shows. However, it does not appear that ‘The Greatest Showman’ will be coming to Netflix. This is primarily because it is a 20th Century Fox production, and since the company was recently bought out by Disney, the chances of ‘The Greatest Showman’ coming to Disney+, their own streaming platform, makes much more sense. However, don’t let that get you down if you are in the mood to kick back with some lighthearted entertainment. You can check out the classic ‘White Christmas‘ or ‘Across the Universe‘, which features plenty of songs by The Beatles, or even ‘Hairspray’, instead of watching ‘The Greatest Showman’.
Is The Greatest Showman on Hulu?
If you have a Hulu subscription, then you have nothing to worry about. You can watch ‘The Greatest Showman’, but there is a slight catch. You have to add the Cinemax package to whatever Hulu plan you subscribe to. Since it costs only $9.99 a month and gives you access to all of Cinemax’s content, we consider this a pretty good deal. You can watch ‘The Greatest Showman’, here.
Is The Greatest Showman on Amazon Prime?
Amazon Prime has a library of content almost as enviable as Netflix’s. However, ‘The Greatest Showman’ does not happen to be part of their collection. This is no reason to worry though since Prime subscribers always have the option of adding Cinemax to their Prime account, or purchasing the movie and viewing it on the platform. Confused as to what to do? Well, buying the movie costs $19.99, while a month’s subscription to all of Cinemax’s content costs $9.99. It is pretty obvious that the second choice is more beneficial. You can watch ‘The Greatest Showman’, here.
Where Can I Stream The Greatest Showman Online?
If you do not have a subscription to Netflix, Amazon Prime or Hulu, that does not mean that you cannot stream ‘The Greatest Showman’. Firstly, it is available with Cinemax, so you can stream it on MaxGo. If you don’t have a Cinemax subscription, that is nothing to worry about. We have you covered with a list of other options. You can head to Vudu, YouTube, or FandangoNow, and stream the movie. All these sites have the movie up for sale for $19.99, but FandangoNow offers another option for 4K Ultra HD, which costs $24.99. Although this is a visually rich film, unless you are serious about splurging, we suggest you opt for the $19.99 option.
Can I Watch The Greatest Showman Online For Free?
Now we come to our freeloaders, who might not be able to shell out the amounts demanded to watch the movie. We fully empathize with their situation and do not believe they should be deprived of the chance to enjoy art. Thus, we have a hack for you. You can use the free trial period of Cinemax on Amazon Prime to watch the movie. Since the period lasts for 7 days and it is just one movie, you can easily watch it for free. As usual, we would like to conclude by urging our readers to pay for the art they consume and not to resort to illegal avenues to consume this art. Showing support to the artists always results in better art, and we could all use that in our lives.
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