Review of Circle (2015) by Josh H — 24 Oct 2018

Being a fan of reality television, this movie immediately stood out to me among the many choices on Netflix. And it certainly didn't disappoint.

The film works something like an intensified version of the UK's Big Brother format, and this is absolutely its strong point. While on paper, a movie taking place in one room with very little special effects would sound incredibly dull, I personally found Circle gripping with its storyline. The characters' reasoning upon who should be killed next is highly dark, yet very interesting to watch play out. While some reviewers have written that it gets tiring half-way through, I don't share this sentiment. I found it very entertaining viewing.

The film is highly psychological with a social experiment feel, and that is what makes it so unique. The movie's end twist, which I expected to be somewhat predictable, turned out to be shocking and genuinely not an obvious choice.

The film's only weakness, in my view, is that the characters are not given enough chance to be shown in terms of their personality. However, with a runtime of just 86 minutes, this is perhaps excusable - and the producers did a decent job at developing characters within the time they had. The short film length definitely limited the film, and some character developments did seem a bit random and poorly-acted at times. I'd definitely be interested to see a 'Circle 2' with a longer runtime, to allow for the viewers to get more attached to the characters, but overall this ensemble cast was strong. Any sequel would have to develop a new format to retain interest though.

Overall, if you enjoy movies with large budgets and an abundance of special effects (and not much else), this might not be your cup of tea. But if, like me, you're a fan of reality formats such as Big Brother, you'll find Circle very intriguing throughout.