Review of Nerve (2016) by Dawdlingpoet — 28 Nov 2021

This is a mystery/thriller film covering themes including computer trust, dares, teen angst and peer pressure. It is very much a teen film, with the characters attending school and so on - probably seniors, around about mid to late teens age wise. I thought the main plot seemed interesting and its certainly quite a relevant film, in as much as teenagers face issues with technology, particularly with social media, with others in their peer groups putting pressure on people to adapt to the newest, latest sites, apps and so on. I liked that at times your shown the city (NYC) from above and everyone who is involved with the 'Nerve' game/app is pointed out via their username displayed above where they currently are (in a flat etc.). It helps to make the viewer feel that the real world is very much also part of the online world - that sense of the online world bleeding in to the real world is quite creepy, although its not really a completely original concept. The film made me think of shows like Jackass, in which adolescents hyped themselves up to do increasingly bizarre and, in their case often quite painful, physical or certainly embarrassing and humiliating dares. I suppose a lot of it comes down to the need for attention and the crave of being respected and popular, something which I can remember quite well from when I was in my mid to late teens. I think I recognised the app people watch the various game players on as being periscope, although there could well be multiple live streaming sites but the use of live comments streaming and the emoticons (love hearts etc.) appearing made me think of that one.

Cast wise, I can't say I was particularly impressed by the cast in general. Emma Roberts plays the main character, Vee and I didn't feel she gave a particularly good performance, as in one particular scene she appeared to forget about the circumstances she was in and didn't appear to react very convincingly, in my mind anyway. Other cast members include Dave Franco as Ian, who Vee teams up with, Juliette Lewis as Nancy and Emily Meade as Sydney.

Content wise, the film contains partial nudity, some moderate violence and the ocassional use of mild profanities. As the plot develops, things become more serious, with more potentially dangerous dares being requested to the players and as these are being, if hesitatingly, undertook, it could frighten young viewers. Some I found myself feeling a little squeamish and wanting to look away, if but briefly. Due to this, the film has been given a 15 rating in the UK.

Music wise, unsurprisingly the film features a quite contemporary sounding score, with upbeat hip-hop, R&B and pop type songs played at times. Regarding the camera work, infrequently there were quite sudden, sharp and jerky camera shots used but that was done to emphasise the fast pace and impulsiveness of the portrayed scene.

I like the main plot concept and the issues it brings up but it didn't feel at all extraordinary as such. If anything, I felt it had a TV movie feel to it. I also wondered where the money (being paid for successful completion of each dare) came from. Another potential flaw, although I realise I'm maybe being a bit pedantic, is that I wondered how the heck the said watchers were able to view quite so much via a mobile phone camera, in as much as she was on the move and going to various places, without holding it all the time, so how come when the viewer was shown the live stream, they seemed to have a relatively clear view of her, where was the inevitable shots of a phone inside a bag or something? (yes, I did say I can be pedantic!!). Also, on pretty much the same subject, only another angle, or aspect of it - in this day and age of smartphones, with peoples mobile data presumably used to be able to stay online - how come peoples batteries didn't die? the plot seems to take place over less than 24 hours and yet people were seemingly following events for multiple hours, with live streaming and their phones didn't go dead? I don't believe that to be very realistic at all, as other people may agree(?). Of course thats not really the main point of the film as such but it doesn't really help any films cause if there are fairly obvious unrealistic aspects, like this.

To me, there weren't enough answered questions. Overall, it was alright - the ending was quite a surprise to me but it certainly isn't perfect and won't appeal to everyone.

I wouldn't go out of your way to see this - if it comes on TV and it interests you, then yes, you may enjoy it. The plot is relatively interesting and some scenes were fairly gripping but I didn't think the performances were especially great. Its alright but I wouldn't say its worth spending much real money to see, so I'll opt for no as far as recommending it is concerned.