Circle

This is a fairly simple movie, a bunch of people wake up in a strange room and are rapidly picked off one by one. However the kicker is that they get to vote off who dies next. I really enjoyed this, it felt like a reality show from hell.

The film gets going almost right away, there isn't really any build up or character development before people start dying. As the group gets smaller we slowly start to get to know some of the characters, but no one main character is ever really determined. I like that they did this, it made it so it was pretty unpredictable as to who would die next. The film is also pretty heavy on dialogue, I am pretty surprised that they were able to find a fairly unknown cast that was able to pull this off well. The majority of the characters are believable and deliver solid performances.

There are a few negatives that are worth mentioning though. One is that some of the kills were too random, it's pretty much like "Why would they randomly kill that person when they could have easily killed the person who is clearly giving them a reason to do so?" Not a huge complaint but just kind of took away from the film in my opinion. Also the ending was a bit stale, not so much to ruin the movie but wasn't exactly the payoff I was hoping for.

Overall this is a very entertaining film, it held my attention throughout and actually had me on the edge of my seat a few times. If you enjoyed films like Saw and Cube I would definitely suggest checking this out.

7/10

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.

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.

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.

Held captive and faced with their imminent executions, fifty strangers are forced to choose the one person among them who deserves to live.

Before getting too far into the film, I was reminded of "12 Angry Men". Looking into it a bit more, it is not surprising to find that this was, in fact, the primary inspiration. Something of a modern take on how we judge other people.

As a horror or science fiction film, the material is pretty light. But as social commentary, the film is strong. A bit heavy-handed, maybe, or in some ways too obvious in its stereotypes, but still clever just the same. We are left to wonder if humanity was in such a situation, who would survive? (The film actually suggests an answer, but let us not get into the spoilers!)