Movie Review -- The Circle

 The movie The Circle stars Emma Watson, Tom Hanks, Patton Oswalt and others. 

I had never heard of the movie or the book until I saw it listed in the available titles for my Amazon Prime video selection. 

It had Emma Watson, so I figured it was worth watching.  I was right.  The film did not get very many positive reviews, but I disagree.  I found it very thought provoking and indicative of where we as a society are headed if we are not careful.

Emma's character Mae lands a job at a very forward thinking company due to an acquaintance of hers that works there.  Her friend Annie tells her nothing other than how great the company is.  We find out why fairly soon.  Social networking with coworkers is required.  Extra curricular socializing with coworkers is required.  Very required.  As in if you miss a weekend activity, it is mentioned to you by HR.

When Mae gets herself into a situation that company management assists her with as a kindness, the CEO (played by Tom Hanks) then leverages that kindness to compel Mae to participate in an experiment that leads her down a path where there is almost no turning back.

In this world of "sharing" and with so much about our lives and the lives of politicians and celebrity being so public--the things that are kept private are becoming more and more dangerous and illicit.

This happens in today's world all too often.  Are sports players in Public Safety commercials because they feel strongly about that topic, or because it is a consequence of some behavior they now want to keep private such as a speeding ticket, drunk driving, etc. that the general public will never know about?  Shouldn't we know about those kinds of things?

We've all formed opinions based on what we saw or read about a person.  But in today's world, what we see is increasingly staged, rehearsed, and paid for promotions and endorsements.  It's hard to know who to look up to because everyone seems to have a motive for their actions.

So where is my guilt in this scenario?  Do I share too much?  I'm not sure.  Do I share things that are misleading and/or untrue?  Definitely not.  But is my case the exception or the rule?