THE CIRCLE wants to make you think that this movie is presenting something revolutionary or innovative, it wants to wow you into believing as if you're watching a profound film that bravely tackles the issue of privacy in the social media age by way of a Microsoft or an Apple company-esque scenario. But nothing could be further from the truth. Author Dave Eggers and filmmaker James Pondsoldt aren't really giving us anything new here, only a version of something too familiar.
Emma Watson plays Mae who rises through the ranks of the world's largest tech and social media company, The Circle. Meanwhile Mae struggles to do right by her family and her old friends. But company founder Eamon Bailey (Tom Hanks) manages to convince Mae to go transparent, meaning everyone in the world will get to watch her 24/7 livestreaming. It does however come at a hefty price.
You know those many stories you've heard a thousand times before about a utopia place where everything seems to be perfect and everyone seems to be happy. At first the protagonist buys whatever the place is selling, he or she even becomes somewhat of a spokesperson inviting others to join in but the process ultimately pushes their loved ones away. Then the protagonist discovers the truth which usually happens with the help of an inside man. After a certain tragedy occurs, it's then payback time. Really, that's all there is to THE CIRCLE. It's formulaic through and through.
THE CIRCLE is predictable, it's boring and some of the characters are annoying. I'm a big fan of Patton Oswalt but I can't take him seriously as a chief operating officer of anything. Tom Hanks plays a villain for the first time since God knows when but he's not able to emulate that Steve Jobs charm, Hanks acts more like a snake oil salesman.
The film's attempt to make Silicon Valley tech giants appear like immoral entities are laughable at best. I'm not saying those guys over there are saints, but THE CIRCLE's biggest problem is that it doesn't know how or it's not smart enough to dance in the gray areas, its main message essentially when you strip it down to the core is that too much of a good thing is bad.
But the film does point out one thing correctly, how a keynote presentation often times can be no different than a church gathering in that they both feel like a cult. The priest or the presenter up front preaching his sermon or about the latest tech gadget, and then the converts cheer Hallelujah. It takes a non kool-aid drinker to view things objectively for what they are. I think that particular approach by this film is at least worth noting.
-- Rama's Screen --
Emma Watson plays Mae who rises through the ranks of the world's largest tech and social media company, The Circle. Meanwhile Mae struggles to do right by her family and her old friends. But company founder Eamon Bailey (Tom Hanks) manages to convince Mae to go transparent, meaning everyone in the world will get to watch her 24/7 livestreaming. It does however come at a hefty price.
You know those many stories you've heard a thousand times before about a utopia place where everything seems to be perfect and everyone seems to be happy. At first the protagonist buys whatever the place is selling, he or she even becomes somewhat of a spokesperson inviting others to join in but the process ultimately pushes their loved ones away. Then the protagonist discovers the truth which usually happens with the help of an inside man. After a certain tragedy occurs, it's then payback time. Really, that's all there is to THE CIRCLE. It's formulaic through and through.
THE CIRCLE is predictable, it's boring and some of the characters are annoying. I'm a big fan of Patton Oswalt but I can't take him seriously as a chief operating officer of anything. Tom Hanks plays a villain for the first time since God knows when but he's not able to emulate that Steve Jobs charm, Hanks acts more like a snake oil salesman.
The film's attempt to make Silicon Valley tech giants appear like immoral entities are laughable at best. I'm not saying those guys over there are saints, but THE CIRCLE's biggest problem is that it doesn't know how or it's not smart enough to dance in the gray areas, its main message essentially when you strip it down to the core is that too much of a good thing is bad.
But the film does point out one thing correctly, how a keynote presentation often times can be no different than a church gathering in that they both feel like a cult. The priest or the presenter up front preaching his sermon or about the latest tech gadget, and then the converts cheer Hallelujah. It takes a non kool-aid drinker to view things objectively for what they are. I think that particular approach by this film is at least worth noting.
-- Rama's Screen --