“The Circle” from Dave Eggers is a fascinating read about a dystopian society and its reliance on social media. When I heard a movie was going to be made that included an all-star cast lead by Emily Watson and Tom Hanks, I had high hopes. Unfortunately, the movie left me flabbergasted by how awful it was.
Movie critic Roger Ebert famously gave a thumbs down to the movie “North” in 1994, saying “I hated this movie. Hated hated hated hated hated this movie. Hated it. Hated every simpering stupid vacant audience-insulting moment of it. Hated the sensibility that thought anyone would like it. Hated the implied insult to the audience by its belief that anyone would be entertained by it.”
That is how I felt about “The Circle.” What a travesty, considering the book was such an entertaining read.
The main protagonist, Mae Holland, played by Watson in the movie, lands a job at the huge tech company “The Circle,” akin to the likes of Google, Apple, and Amazon. She immediately takes advantage of the perks provided, such as medical insurance for her father who has MS. However, she notices the odd behavior of her coworkers and clients.
One was an interaction with a client named Nanci, who Mae spoke with in the customer database. Nanci sent her a questionnaire with 120 questions for her t-shirt distribution business. Mae obliged to answer all the questions. However, Nanci gets offended: “Sorry to be Ms. Sensitive, but after I invited you to choose my professional network, you didn’t ask me to join your professional network, and though I know I’m just a nobody in Orlando, I felt like I had to tell you that it made me feel devalued.”
I, as the reader, felt uneasy with this exchange, as it showed the emotional lengths people will go to feel validated. I didn’t get this feeling at all in the movie. Instead, we what we get is a formulaic, cliched tension as the movie could not grasp the uneasiness of the well-written prose by Eggers.
What I also love about the book is how it captures the overreliance of social media.
There is a poignant scene in the book when Mae goes kayaking in the bay and runs into an older couple on a barge, and they offer her a glass of wine.
“And for a while no one spoke, as if the three of them were honoring the water’s tranquility with a moment of silence.”
The movie did not use this scene, which is a mistake as it perfectly captures the calmness of life without technology.
“It was as if, for a moment, she thought Mae was one kind of person, but now, knowing she was another, she could part with her, she could give her back to the world.”
Mae mentions they did not exchange names, as they were perfectly at peace with enjoying the tranquil moment together.
What we get instead is a run-of-the-mill thriller movie that does not jive at all with the message of the book.
Towards the end of the movie, Bailey, played by Tom Hanks, says “we are so fucked” after Mae becomes victorious against the almighty tech conglomerate. I only echo Bailey’s words because of how much time I lost watching this nonsense.