Silver Circle (film)

Reception

Critical reception to Silver Circle upon its limited release in 2013 was universally negative, with the film currently holding a rating of 21 out of 100 on Metacritic and a 0% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Common areas of criticism were the film's animation (which numerous critics compared to antiquated video games) as well as its perceived heavy-handedness and lack of subtlety in delivering its political messages. The New York Times stated that the film offered "offers cold, sterile, cheap-looking computer animation vastly inferior to that of most video games" and recommended it only to "Ron Paul acolytes".[1] The Village Voice stated that "Silver Circle is a crude valentine to Ron Paul and his extended family",[2] while Slant Magazine called it "amateurish and hyperbolic" and stated that "the level of formal ineptitude on display here is actually somewhat fascinating", criticizing the animation in particular as "so devoid of detail that the film occasionally reads as an avant-garde exercise in CGI minimalism."[3] The Los Angeles Times stated that Silver Circle "has a lot on its Ron Paul-esque mind but lacks the means or finesse to present an even remotely persuasive case."[4] The Hollywood Reporter called it "the ideal animated film for Ron Paul to watch with his grandchildren" and stated that it "certainly deserves points for sheer eccentricity", but otherwise stated that "it's impossible to imagine who the audience would be for this bizarre combination of animated sci-fi and political manifesto, except possibly those sympathetic to its cause who find reading a little too, pardon the pun, taxing."[5] The A.V. Club compared the film to "a Rand Paul rally rendered in the style of Grand Theft Auto", stating that it "engineers the perfect marriage of sub-par animation and sloppy thinking."[6]