Circle

Watching it felt like being robbed of my precious time. The dialogs and human interactions were meant to be good, but the acting is terrible. I hoped the 86 minutes will be payed-off with a theatrical ending. Unfortunately they did not and the gran-finale was something I've expected after the first 5-10 minutes. I would rather recommend the movie Exam (2009) or... The Cube (1997) if you don't mind some gore scenes.

Some seemingly random people appear in a circular room, every now and then one of them is executed. They quickly realise there is a way to 'vote off' your fellow circle dwellers in a very terminal way.

It is not long before prejudices and biases start to arise. Someone notices more black people are getting zapped than white people. Coincidence? Some of these biases are played out very professionally with flair and drama, others are handled a bit clumsily leading to some very cringey dialogue.

This film lives and dies by how much you are prepared to invest into it.

If you think about the scenario logically, then a lot of the choices people make seem rash and rather stupid.

But if you can put yourself in the characters shoes, and imagine that you - staring wide eyed down the barrel of a gun - are about to be killed over some scum bag rapist, in reality wouldn't you want that extra two minutes of life over them - just on principle?

This is where the film needs to draw you in. The acting, lighting, effects and sound are all good enough. However, some of the characters aren't, forcing some of the actors into a corner they have to ham their way out off. Then the spell starts to crack.

If you can remove all distractions and try to engage your emotions and blot out the signals coming from the rational parts of your brain then this is very good for Netflix fodder.

I was fully prepared to have one of those stupid no answer endings. I was pleased to get a bit more than I expected.

First 3/4 of movie were pretty good even if it was somewhat flawed but nether the less kept me entertained. However the movies ending was rushed and poorly executed and raised more questions than it answered and left you thinking " Really is that it" but overall it is still a fun and tension filled movie.

A film composed of nothing but dialogue, restricted point of view story-telling and a literal ticking clock of building suspense, Circle toys with the deep-seated morality play of the human condition, though falls just short of properly exploring it. It would have benefited from fully embracing its ambiguity in place of a definite answer to the scenario, as the attempt to deliver a shocking twist ending instead only succeeds in robbing the audience of the chance to explore and discuss their varying interpretations.

So you've read the synopsis and want to see if this is something you might be interested in.

Have you ever seen, "The Man from Earth"? Did you like the movie? Where they talk and talk and show nothing characteristically typical of a Sci-Fi flik. Well, "Circles" does something similar with all the talking, except with strong horror undercurrents and themes that focus more on sociology and politics.

There is a similar "Cube" feeling, that confined atmosphere of death but "Circles" has a far better pace and manages to keep the intrigue all the way to the end with only ever using one room. admittedly I first viewed "Cube" well after its release and I find it so dated and difficult to stay awake through. It lulls me to sleep no matter what time of day. But I digress.

"Circles" could have fleshed out some of those intimate moments of the actors more thoroughly but I'm assuming budget effected time which meant that there were only a few takes. So boom. That one will just have to do.

Nonetheless I appreciate the themes this film shoots for. I enjoy a film that enrages me a little when portraying human nature as it systematically makes my brain wheel turn. Is this plausible, are we capable and would I really behave like that?

I don't think this a horror or sci-fi genre specific, rather more of a drama with the other two built in. I think if you enjoy a good drama but have gotten tired of the opaque sadness the genre likes to play in, then give this a shot. I think you'll have a good time wading through the tension.

In the end it was a great film where it simply holds a mirror up to the 2010's and says, "Take a look, what do you see? Wanna talk about it"