Genre: Thriller/ Drama
Runtime: 110 minutes
Year: 2017
Starring: Emma Watson, Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, Karen Gillan, John Boyega, Patton Oswalt, Glenne Headly
Description: Mae Holland (Emma Watson) lands a dream job at a powerful tech company called the Circle, only to uncover an agenda that will affect the lives of all of humanity.
Review: In 2013, author Dave Eggers finished “The Circle”, a dystopian novel that was compared to George Orwell’s “1984”. It was a popular book and it’s a surprise it took four years to be turned into a film. But does a praised book always need a movie adaptation? Well, for “The Circle” it’s a no.
Mae Holland’s life is about to change, when she is invited for a job interview at ‘the Circle’. You see the big difference between the dusty and old school call center Mae works at, to the ultra-modern and complex 'the Circle'. For Mae, ‘the Circle’ is the place to be. She ends up at the ‘customer experience’ department. We also meet CEO Eamon Bailey, who presents an advanced camera system. It’s clear that ‘the Circle’ is a company that sees the invasion of privacy as a device to reach political goals.
Everyone listening to Bailey believes in ‘the Circle’, Mae is one of them. And it doesn’t take her very long to become one if the icons of the company. Emma Watson is a fantastic actress, but her talent is underused. And it feels like Tom Hanks, my all-time favorite, is out of place. Both do a solid job, but if you have these fantastic performers, give them something to work with.
Bailey and his neurotic followers can’t be taken seriously. And when they present a program called SoulSearch, that’s the ultimate low. And the creators of this system, never see that it’s a dangerous tool? Not very credible.
The story criticizes society and there it’s crucial to be believable. And it never feels like that. It’s rushed and it loses the actual focus of Eggers’ novel: the danger of digital independence.
The story and concept of “The Circle” are really good, the book was great. I think it would have been better as a mini-series.
Rating: 2 / 5
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