Review of Exam (2009) by Colin O — 06 Jun 2010

Eight candidates of diverse backgrounds and ethnicity enter a room with the same aim; they all want the one job that is on offer. There is one question, one answer and 80 minutes to complete the test. After turning over their question paper to find a blank page, they must work together to figure out the question or all leave disappointed. Quite a smart movie that gets your attention with an intriguing hook, we play along as they try to work out this simple puzzle. Information is drip-fed back to us to jog our memories, and it shows a level of ingenuity i've not seen since the first Saw film.

We are confined to the exam room for the entire running time, and as the claustrophobia and tension rises, the clock ticks down to zero. All the candidates have attributes and faults that may win or lose them the task. Jimi Mistry appears as the gambler Brown and Luke Mably commands attention as the brash White, but the female roles are not as well fleshed out and this harms the film when you're trying to work out who to trust. Similar in tone to 1997's Cube, when you reach the conclusion you'll either be slapping your forehead or shouting at the screen in disbelief.