The Circle (2017)

A woman 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.

Director:

James Ponsoldt

Writers:

James Ponsoldt (screenplay by), Dave Eggers (screenplay by)

Stars:

Emma Watson, Tom Hanks, John Boyega

3 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Emma Watson	...	Mae
Ellar Coltrane	...	Mercer
Glenne Headly	...	Bonnie
Bill Paxton	...	Vinnie
Karen Gillan	...	Annie
Tom Hanks	...	Bailey
Beck	...	Beck
Nate Corddry	...	Dan
Mamoudou Athie	...	Jared
Roger Joseph Manning Jr.	...	Beck Bandmate
Joey Waronker	...	Beck Bandmate
Michael Shuman	...	Beck Bandmate
Nick Valensi	...	Beck Bandmate (as Nicholas Valensi)
John Boyega	...	Ty
Regina Saldivar	...	Partier

Storyline

When Mae is hired to work for the world's largest and most powerful tech and social media company, she sees it as an opportunity of a lifetime. As she rises through the ranks, she is encouraged by the company's founder, Eamon Bailey, to engage in a groundbreaking experiment that pushes the boundaries of privacy, ethics and ultimately her personal freedom. Her participation in the experiment, and every decision she makes, begin to affect the lives and future of her friends, family and that of humanity.

---

Plot Keywords:

video surveillance | privacy | technology | screenplay adapted by author | kayaking | 

---

Taglines:

Knowing is good. Knowing everything is better.

---

Genres:

Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for a sexual situation, brief strong language and some thematic elements including drug use

Did You Know?

Trivia

Bill Paxton died before the film's release. Glenne Headly, who played his wife in the film, died the same year after the film's release.

---

Goofs

Emma Watson's "American" accent fluctuates into her native British a lot, especially tonally.

---

Quotes

Mae: I should, um, get going, actually - for dinner. But, um, we should make a plan. I'll send you a text.
Mercer: Or we could do that now since we're both here.
Mae: What?
Mercer: Nothing...

---

Crazy Credits

A dedication to Bill Paxton at the closing credits which reads: "For Bill".

---

Connections

Featured in Honest Trailers: The Social Network (2017)

---

Soundtracks

18th
Written by Michael Cameron Perry & Austin Henry Keultjes
Performed by Supreme Cuts
Courtesy of Supreme Cuts

User Reviews

A fairly acted but lazy dystopian piece of work that has its moments but tells hardly nothing new.

The vote is a mere average between Watson and Hank's solid, terrific acting (vote: 8), an acceptable but overall trite, tedious screenplay (vote: 5) and some involuntarily laughable dystopian concepts mixed with some muddy social satire (vote: 3). It all seems a huge déjà vu: the promising and smart girl from a humble setting, a bigger-than-anyone company, a dark side (roughly shown by an under-exploited Boyega), the struggle with all of this. Being The Circle marketed as a thriller, audience is meant to be thrilled, at some point; this hardly ever happens; being marketed as a dystopian picture, The Circle certainly has some suggestive elements but fails to mix them smoothly. Its lazy effort is to take problems we are already struggling with -such as loss of privacy, invasive social media and their influence on politics, appalling need for control- and push them a little further in a not-so-far future without making a good or even consistent plot out of it, not to mention a solid message. It's fairly normal to walk out the theater a bit disappointed by seeing a movie with such great talent wasted in a muddy, eyebrow-raising subject that is just as inane as its tagline: 'Knowing is good, but knowing everything is better.'

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official Instagram

Country:

United Arab Emirates USA France

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 April 2017 (USA)

Also Known As:

Melinda's Song

Filming Locations:

Art Center College of Design, Pasadena, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$18,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$9,034,148, 30 April 2017

Gross USA:

$20,497,844

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$40,656,399

Company Credits

Production Co:

1978 Films, EuropaCorp, Imagenation Abu Dhabi FZ

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1