Photo by Frank Masi/STX Entertainment
June 22nd marked the Brazilian premiere of the movie The Circle, based on a book with the same name by Dave Eggers – who is also the writer of the feature, alongside James Ponsoldt.
The movie tells the story of Mae (Emma Watson) which is hired by a company called The Circle, a mix of Google and Facebook, combining the vibe of their relaxed work fields. In a narrative that critics technology, like an episode of the famous British TV show Black Mirror, the movie is about what is public and private when we talk about the contemporary connect world. The main character becomes the face of a new technology of the big company, that watches over the significance of sharing. Such as the line of Tom Hanks’s character, Eamon Bailey: “Knowing is good. Knowing everything is better”.
However, although The Circle promises to be a thriller about future technology, it lacks suspense. All the drama and action that could’ve been used to make the story more interesting, disappears – leading to obvious conclusions and nothing very new. The direction of Ponsoldt portrays on screen conversations on social network and live broadcast during the movie, but again, there’s nothing new here.
Photo by Francois Duhamel/STX Entertainment
Despite other talented actors such as Tom Hanks, John Boyega and Karen Gillian, the character of Watson is the only one that receives a development. but Despite that, her ability of acting is poorly explored. In a story that could’ve been well told, because it brings the theme of the Big Brother and all the consequences that it implies for Mae, her friends and family, the excitement is not seen in the plot. The fault is all on the writing that does not permits a growth in the performance of the roles.
Meanwhile, it is necessary to understand how important the discussions of the movie in an era of mastery technology in our lives. Surveillance, access to information and over-sharing combined with the power of big datas companies have consequences in our private lives and the future of professions, and that message is well transmitted by Mae’s journey.
Therefore, because of a script that does not allow much creativity and with overly secundaries roles, the film does not excite as much as expected, becoming very disposable. Although the current topic, The Circle ends up being no more than a medium episode of Black Mirror. If you are curious to know more about the narrative, watch it (!), but know that it is not worth your money at the movie theaters. Wait until it arrives on streaming platforms– or just watch Black Mirror.