Circle
Fifty abducted strangers must repeatedly vote to sacrifice one of their own, turning a sterile chamber into a ruthless laboratory of human morality.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- tense
- claustrophobic
- provocative
- late night horror viewing
- philosophical movie night
What critics said
Critics generally found the film’s contained premise and engineered suspense thought-provoking, though its social commentary and finale were considered less fully realized.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Fifty strangers repeatedly vote to determine which person will be killed inside the chamber.
The group weighs age, health, sexuality, race, occupation, and perceived usefulness when choosing victims.
The story unfolds almost entirely in a massive mysterious chamber with minimal external exposition or movement.
The strangers have no memory of their abduction and cannot fully establish who created or controls the chamber.
Films like Circle, and why
Cube
shared single-location survival horror, moral dilemmas, group psychology, and escalating death-game suspense
The Platform
shared enclosed survival scenario, social manipulation, ethical testing, and puzzle-box thriller structure
The Mist
shared speculative social allegory, debate-driven suspense, and pressure-cooker examination of prejudice
Exam
shared Twilight Zone-style speculative premise, existential questioning, and ordinary people confronting an inexplicable system
Movie Details
- Directors
- Aaron Hann, Mario Miscione
- Release Date
- 2015-05-28
- Runtime
- 86 min
- Rating
- 6.0 / 10 (2181)
Cast
- Julie Benz
- Carter Jenkins
- Cesar Garcia
- Mercy Malick
- Lisa Pelikan
- Molly Jackson
- Sara Sanderson
- Michael Nardelli
- Lawrence Kao
- Fay DeWitt
Common questions
- What is Circle about?
- Fifty abducted strangers must repeatedly vote to sacrifice one of their own, turning a sterile chamber into a ruthless laboratory of human morality.
- What is Circle like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Circle as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Circle violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Circle as mild.
- What did critics think of Circle?
- Critics generally found the film’s contained premise and engineered suspense thought-provoking, though its social commentary and finale were considered less fully realized.
- Which films are like Circle?
- Films with a similar feel include Cube, The Platform, The Mist, and Exam.
- How long is Circle?
- Circle runs 86 minutes.
