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Reviews
Circle (2015)
Had a lot of promise, fell short
After reading the synopsis of this film prior to viewing it I thought "Aha! This will suit my penchant for sadistic thrillers." I was hoping for something similar to Cube and instead got a feature length study of human nature. This was fine. What was not fine was the so-so delivery of such an exciting premise. It was messy and just seemed to miss some key element. For a movie that was so dialogue heavy it was disappointing to have it not delve a little deeper. Also the voting system was a little confusing and haphazard which made the whole thing seem a little sluggish, rather than clean and fast paced. Despite these flaws, Circle did manage to hold my attention quite well and had me engaged with the characters at points, as each stereotype of society is represented and played with, however fleetingly. The plot twist at the end was not entirely shocking as it summed up the true nature of most humans quite accurately. I believe the crushing sense of disappointment I experienced after watching this film was at least partially intentional, and for that I give it credit.
Time Lapse (2014)
A rubbish straight-from-the-set-of-your-High-School-production cast do rubbish, predictable and foolish things
(few mild spoilers)
This film had an intriguing premise, and a lot of potential. The concept of a future snapping camera is one that would allow for a lot of fun and creativity. Alas, it failed to translate to an even remotely entertaining film.
First on the long 'con' list is that I do not believe it would be possible to create more predictable, stereotypical characters. The Teletubbies have more substance. First we have the obviously amoral, rogue druggie who (surprise surprise) elects to use the camera in a poorly thought out, unimaginative way. Oh wow Jasper, you really didn't think that going through a shady bookie would be a bad move? If you want to use such an incredible device in a shallow money-making scheme then how about going about it in a more legitimate fashion which doesn't garner quite so much attention, huh? Next up we are lumbered with a perpetually dull, distant, goody two shoes artsy guy. Not much can be said about this generally expressionless character other than the fact that he was predictably moral and consequently your classic hapless victim. And of course, a typically innocent by default female is thrown into the mix but OH WAIT! Shock horror, she's actually a psychopath who would do anything to get more attention from her stale sandwich boyfriend. What a terrific plot twist! Not.
Also I just have to ask whether any of these characters have had any exposure to time travel based science fiction. Either they were all raised under a large rock or they are just all very stupid, because only a stupid person would assume that changing one's future would result in your face being burnt off. PICK UP A NOVEL, WATCH DOCTOR WHO or maybe just use your common sense please. Whatever happened to the universally accepted idea of the future being in a constant state of flux?
If you like endlessly boring, infuriatingly unimaginative and poorly acted films then this is perfect for you! Just awful.