 |
| Images courtesy of Synapse Films |
Black Circle (2023) starts on a meta note, with a '70s-style PSA discussing the mechanics of magnetism and how it differs from hypnotism. While only certain types of people are susceptible to hypnotism, no one is safe from magnetism, and practitioners can coerce people to do things while under the influence of its power. The PSA narrator implores the audience to try for themselves and puts a stark black-and-white pattern on the screen for about thirty seconds. "Stare into the black circle," he says. After a while, it smash cuts to the next scene of the film, and the viewer is left with a "motion aftereffect" as the image wobbles and wavers in their view. It's a clever way to open the film and put everyone in the right state of mind to accept the strange and surreal story.
Initially, the setup is simple: two sisters, Celeste (Felice Jankell) and Isa (Erica Midfjäll) fall under the spell of a magnetism record that was recorded in the '70s by Lena Carlsson (Christina Lindberg), an "expert" on the subject. They are instructed to listen to the B-side of the record every night while sleeping in order to initiate changes and self-manifest goals in their life. Unfortunately, the only things they manifest are sinister figures and unsettling occurrences. More magnetism lore is introduced through snippets of retro PSAs and good old-fashioned exposition dumping. The mythology and backstory are incredibly intriguing, but the script struggles to incorporate these concepts coherently into the main plot, and as a result, the narrative feels disjointed and confusing. Some of the ambiguity can undoubtedly be attributed to maintaining a dream-like atmosphere. Still, the film goes to great lengths to explain and establish specific ideas, so it seems unintentional that many of them, in practice, are perplexing.
Aesthetically, Black Circle looks fantastic and utilizes many styles, including hand-drawn art and limited animation. It's at its best when it is working as a '70s pastiche, and it might have worked better if they had just set the entire film in that era instead of just doing an homage. Lindberg is the standout performer in the movie, as the powerful wielder of magnetism, and she holds everything together in the third act. Rickard Gramfors' soundtrack sizzles with lush synths and strange sound design, evoking a feeling of mystery and loneliness.
Director Adrian Garcia Bogliano should be commended for making a high-concept horror film like this, even if parts of it don't work as well as they should. The film's first half is the most compelling; it just falls apart in the third act when too many of the ideas converge, and there isn't enough time to fully explain what is happening. Despite the negatives, the vibes make Black Circle worth watching for genre film fans.
Synapse Blu-ray Extras:
-Haunting original motion picture soundtrack on included Compact Disc
-Audio commentary with director Adrian Garcia Bogliano
-Original teaser trailer
-Don’t Open Your Eyes – Original short film
-Interview with Adrian Garcia Bogliano and Christina Lindberg
-Inside Black Circle – Behind-the-scenes featurette
-Still Gallery
--Michelle Kisner