Synopsis
Three girlhood friends now at college share first loves, first kisses and first betrayals. At the center of it all is the best-looking boy on campus. Can a self-conscious dreamer hook the biggest fish in the pond?
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Cast
- Chris O'DonnellJack Foley
- Minnie DriverBernadette 'Benny' Hogan
- Geraldine O'RaweEve Malone
- Saffron BurrowsNan Mahon
- Alan CummingSean Walsh
- Colin FirthSimon Westward
- Aidan GillenAidan Lynch
- John KavanaghBrian Mahon
- Ciarán HindsProfessor Flynn
- Tony DoyleDr. Foley
- 88
Chicago Sun-Times
Circle of Friends is heartwarming and poignant, a love story that glows with intelligence and feeling. - 88
Rolling Stone
Driver's tough core of honesty and wit is bewitching. So's the movie. - 80
The New York Times
Another nice thing about Circle of Friends is that it escapes a happily-ever-after scenario to provide more bite and toughness than it first promises. - 75
San Francisco Examiner
Driver, who is padded but not fat, is an actress with self-possession to spare. Her looks defy conventional rules about modern beauty, but the directness of her gaze and the honesty of her smile make it difficult to look anywhere else when she is on screen. - 70
Washington Post
It's not a challenging movie or an original one, but it does have its pleasures -- most notably a radiant, soulful debut performance from Driver, who saves Circle of Friends from being merely an Irish ugly duckling story. - 67
Austin Chronicle
As Benny, [Driver] nudges the film out of its few valleys of smarm, making Circle of Friends a heartfelt love letter to circles of friends everywhere. - 60
Washington Post
As Benny (short for Bernadette), a big-boned, headstrong lass who strains winningly against the restrictions of family, religion and just plain growing up, [Driver's] a comedic breath of fresh air, easily the best thing about the movie. - 50
ReelViews
From that point on, the movie becomes distressingly predictable, with nary a surprise to be found.
