10s Movie Review - The Circle

Director: James Ponsoldt
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

Movie Trailer Sunday (279)

Here are this week's trailers.

Life
Director: Daniel Espinosa
Description: An international space crew discovers life on Mars.
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Ryan Reynolds, Rebecca Ferguson
Trailer: Trailer "Life"
Comment: I hope it's original.

Aftermath
Director: Elliott Lester
Description: Based on the airline accident that occurred in July of 2002 and on the events that took place 478 days later.
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Scoot McNairy, Kevin Zegers, Maggie Grace
Trailer: Trailer "Aftermath"
Comment: Arnie went from action to drama.

The Circle
Director: James Ponsoldt
Description: A woman (Emma Watson) lands a job at a powerful tech company called the Circle, where she becomes involved with a mysterious man (Tom Hanks).
Starring: Emma Watson, Tom Hanks, John Boyega, Karen Gillan, Bill Paxton, Patton Oswalt, Nate Corddry
Trailer: Trailer "The Circle"
Comment: I'm Always in for Tom Hanks. But this thriller looks really good and interesting. And I love Emma Watson too.

The Beguiled
Director: Sofia Coppola
Description: While imprisoned in a Confederate girls' boarding school, an injured Union soldier (Colin Farrell) cons his way into each of the lonely women's hearts, causing them to turn on each other, and eventually, on him.
Starring: Colin Farrell, Nicole Kidman, Kirsten Dunst, Elle Fanning, Angourie Rice
Trailer: Trailer "The Beguiled"
Comment: I love that Sofia Coppola is back, she is such a fantastic director. And this film looks really good, I really want to see it.

The Dinner
Director: Oren Moverman
Description: A look at how far parents will go to protect their children.
Starring: Richard Gere, Laura Linney, Steve COogan, Rebecca Hall
Trailer: Trailer "The Dinner"
Comment: This film is based on a novel by the Dutch writer Herman Koch and the Dutch film version really surprised me.

Top 5 Thursday: Books I Need to Read, Before Their Movies are Released in 2017

Books are the greatest inspiration for movies. This list shows you some of the books I really need to read, before their movies come out next year. And no, I don’t mean “Fifty Shades Darker”.

5. Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly
Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monae star in this movie based on the non-fiction novel by Margot Lee Shetterly. It follows black female mathematicians at NASA in the 1960s.

4. Live By Night by Dennis Lehane
Ben Affleck wrote, directed and stars in the movie version of this gangster story written by author Dennis Lehane.

3. Tulip Fever by Deborah Moggach
The story is about a young woman who has an affair with an artist commissioned to paint her portrait in the Netherlands in the 1600s. It’s set in my country and the movie stars Alicia Vikander, one of my favorites of the moment.

2. The Circle by David Eggers
A young woman gets a job at an internet company. It’s a cyber thriller and the movie stars Emma Watson and Tom Hanks.

1. The Zookeeper’s Wife by Diane Ackerman
The true story of Antonina Żabińska, whose husband ran the Warsaw Zoo in Poland during WWII. The zoo was used to help Jewish people hide from the Nazis. The movie stars Jessica Chastain and Daniel Brühl.

They Almost Made the Top 5: Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver, A Dog’s Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron

Movie Trailer Sunday (271)

Here are this week's trailers.

The Mummy
Director: Elx Kurtzman
Description: An ancient princess is awakened from her crypt beneath the desert, bringing with her malevolence grown over millennia, and terrors that defy human comprehension.
Starring: Tom Cruise, Sofia Boutella, Annabelle Wallis, Russell Crowe, Jake Johnson, Courtney B. Vance
Trailer: Trailer "The Mummy"
Comment: Last week I shared the teaser, this is the first official trailer.

The Circle
Director: James Ponsoldt
Description: A woman (Emma Watson) lands a job at a powerful tech company called the Circle, where she becomes involved with a mysterious man (Tom Hanks).
Starring: Emma Watson, Tom Hanks
Trailer: Trailer "The Circle"
Comment: Looks like an intriguing cyber thriller.

Baywatch
Director: Seth Gordon
Description: Two unlikely prospective lifeguards (Dwayne Johnson, Zac Efron) vie for jobs alongside the buff bodies who patrol a beach in California.
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Zac Efron, Alexandra Daddario, Kelly Rohrbach, Oscar Nuñez
Trailer: Trailer "Baywatch"
Comment: I never thought I would say this, but I miss David Hasselhoff.

Spider-Man: Homcoming
Director: Jon Watts
Description: A young Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Tom Holland) begins to navigate his newfound identity as the web-slinging superhero.
Starring: Tom Holland, Marisa Tomei, Michael Keaton, Robert Downey Jr., Donald Glover, Jon Favreau, Martin Starr
Trailer: Trailer "Spider-Man: Homecoming"
Comment: Not that excited yet.

War For the Planet of the Apes
Director: Matt Reeves
Description: A nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar become embroiled in a battle with an army of humans.
Starring: Andy Serkis, Woody Harrelson, Judy Greer, Steve Zahn
Trailer: Trailer "War For the Planet of the Apes"
Comment: Caesar is back!