Circle of Friends

This quaint movie based on a book of the same name is charming and well told. The story revolves around three friends with very different aspirations. Minnie Driver plays Bennie Hogan, a frumpy young lady who is destined to spend the rest of her life running her families tailoring shop in her small home town. She is forever plagued by the attention of her fathers assistant, played by Alan Cumming (who plays sleazy rat very well) and becomes smitten with local college boy Jack Foley (Chris O'Donnell). Benny has two best friends, Eve and Nan. Nan is played by English Temptress Saffron Burrows. She wants to get out of the small town and she thinks that her meal ticket is rich boy Simon Westward (Colin Firth). Little does she know, Simon is just using her as a plaything and has no intention of ever making her his wife. When Nan turns up pregnant and Westward turns his back on her, she turns to her best friends bo, Jack for comfort. She tricks him and makes him think the baby is his. Eve, who was born to a poor family has only the gottage left to her by her parents to call her own. The friends think of it as a stolen hideaway in the woods where they can go to escape the world. Then one day Eve finds things amiss in the cottage and she figures out what Nan has been up to, and it turns ugly. This circle of friends has to be broken, but is there any mending it, or are these three girls destined to move on without one another?

This is one of my favorite movies. The story follows Benny(Minnie Driver) and her best friends Eve and Nan as the discover their own sexuality. Growing up Irish Catholic they have been taught to repress any of their feelings. Benny gets hooked on the cutest boy in school Jack(Chris O'Donnell). And Jack falls for big-girl Benny because she is so easy to talk to. Nan gets involved with an older, rich man Simon(Colin Firth). Benny's parents want her to marry "Creepy Sean Walsh"(Alan Cummings) but Benny refuses to go with him because she is in love with Jack. When Nan gets pregant she changes everyones lives. Defiantly worth watching. Enjoyable, and a great look at Catholics view on Sexuality. And Chris O'Donnell is looking exceptionally good.

Check out CF's portrayal of the creepy snob that takes advantage of the pretty social climber. Hard to believe he could look that bad!