Picture: Raindog Films
Squaring the Circle (The Story of Hipgnosis) has made its SVOD debut on Netflix US today, with the musical documentary setting out to explore some of the most recognizable and famous music album covers from over the decades.
First premiering at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2023 in the Spotlight collection alongside the likes of Joyland and The Eight Mountains, the movie also went on to showcase at the Telluride Film Festival later in the year.
Its Netflix debut comes just a few months after the doc made its way onto PVOD services and in select theaters in July.
What’s Squaring the Circle (The Story of Hipgnosis) about?
The documentary’s premise is to rewind the clock and examine how some of the most iconic rock music album covers came into being. The company in question is Hipgnosis, which Storm Thorgerson and Aubrey Powell founded and eventually dissolved in 1983. Another company now operates with the same name today.
Picture: Raindog Films
Among the album covers covered include the iconic Pink Floyd album covers The Dark Side of the Moon and Atom Heart Mother.
Interviewed throughout the documentary are some of rock’s biggest stars, including Oasis’s Noel Gallagher (better known for his High Flying Birds output nowadays), Paul McCartney from The Beatles, Robert Plant and Jimmy Page from Led Zeppelin, plus David Gilmour, Roger Waters, and Nick Mason from Pink Floyd.
Director Anton Corbijn is behind the documentary best known for his work on 2010’s action crime drama The American and 2007’s Control. Before his career in Hollywood, Corbijn initially found his way in the industry by being a band photographer, and his love for the subject comes through the screen throughout.
Raindog Films is behind the documentary, a UK-based production company co-founded by actor Colin Firth and music industry veteran Ged Doherty with funding from Calculus.
Should You Watch Squaring the Circle (The Story of Hipgnosis)?
Following its debut at the film festivals, it scored universal praise from critics. On RottenTomatoes, the movie holds the coveted Certified Fresh rating with a 92% score.
Ben Kenigsberg for the New York Times gave the movie a glowing review, concluding:
“Squaring the Circle” is slick and enjoyable enough, but it is also, like the company it chronicles, something of a boutique item, and the reminiscences grow faintly monotonous after a while.
This is one of several SVOD debuts Netflix US has throughout November 2023. See You On Venus will make its premiere a little later in the month alongside another movie showcased at the festival circuits in the form of Mutt. They will be released on Netflix on November 17th and November 16th, respectively. For more on what’s coming to Netflix throughout November, keep it locked here on What’s on Netflix.Will you watch Squaring the Circle (The Story of Hipgnosis) on Netflix?
