Movie Review: Nerve

Last night I got to go to an early screening of the upcoming flick Nerve.  It stars Emma Roberts and Dave Franco.  "A high school senior finds herself immersed in an online game of truth or dare, where her every move starts to become manipulated by an anonymous community of "watchers.""

It is an interesting flick and the description above doesn't quite explain it.  It isn't "truth or dare" as much as dare or dare.  The concept is that this online game is an underground/dark web type game.  It is completely anonymous unless you play.  If you saw the Steve Austin flick The Condemned it is similar to that in the way you watch.  Pay per view style.

Basically young Emma Roberts character, Vee, is a straight laced kid who basically gets peer pressured into playing the game instead of being just a "watcher".  The game is basically an elimination type so as people either bail on dares or fail to do them in a quick enough fashion they are eliminated and lose the money the earn, winner takes all.

My first comment is for everyone to avoid the trailer if you're going to see the film.  I saw the trailer first and ruined quite a bit of the film for me.  I joked with my lovely girlfriend that it felt like an Adam Sandler flick where all the best parts are in the trailer.

However I did enjoy the film.  For the most part the film was enjoyable.  The acting was well done and was an interesting idea.  

There were a few things that bugged me about the flick however.  First off they showed a Mac with a touch screen, which as far as I know doesn't exist!  Yeah a silly thing I know but it bugged me.  Next they did a few too many "internal computer screen shots" where the viewer was looking through the computer/phone screen.  Also there is the trailer ruining everything bit.

I really liked the concept of the film.  While not entirely original it put a modern twist on the concept. I will also say that young Emma Roberts turns in a fantastic performance.  I haven't seen a lot of her work, most recently it was Scream Queens, but she was fantastic in this.

I do see a possible backlash to the flick when it comes out from parent groups.  I can see younglings doing similar dares to each other and people getting hurt.  Of course it will be the films fault not the parents or the children but I can see it happening.  Look what happened back in the day when the Program was released or Jackass.  

Overall I'd give it a 7/10.  Not a flick you have to run out to the theater to see but worth catching when you can.  I hope to get back to more of the bottom 100 flicks and maybe even venture into some of the Top 250