seat. Now, I'm going to be honest, maybe my low expectations made this movie better to me than it really is, but I can't help that I had an absolute blast watching this film.One thing that was great about this movie was that the dares were realistic, and didn't feel ridiculous. All of the things that Venus is dared to do are things that you know actually could happen in real life. The dares range from her getting a tattoo, to her having to go 60 miles per hour on a motorcycle while the driver, Ian Dave Franco , is blindfolded, and while the dares get more and more intense as the film goes on, nothing felt overly unbelievable or too exaggerated just for the sake of putting it in the film.And watching Venus and Ian complete their dares and gain money was so much fun to watch. Their chemistry was fantastic, and I bought their friendship throughout the film. What can I say? They made a cute on-screen couple. It was also satisfying to see Venus go from a shy and timid girl to an adrenaline junky, but hey, I'd do the same thing if someone was offering me thousands of dollars. The world building in this film was very believable as well. The game of Nerve felt like a phenomenon, and it actually felt like something that could happen in real life. There were shots of the city that showed the different usernames of all of the different people who were logged into the game, and this was an effective way of conveying just how popular Nerve was in the films universe.The color palette was also hypnotizing. Bright, vibrant, neon reds, blues, and purples are a feast for the eyes, and the soundtrack, which is comprised of light techno music, accompanies and mixes with the colors very well and fits the overall tone of the film."Nerve" is a fantastically fun and incredibly intense movie that has great chemistry between Emma Roberts and Dave Franco, great visuals to go with an awesome soundtrack, and cool action sequences in the form of the dares that the characters have to complete. I would highly recommend this film to anyone who just wants to spend an hour and a half gripping their seat with a smile on their face.

want to open it. There's no overt pressure from the movie to draw a certain conclusion, or for watchers to take a certain stance on social media. Rather, it presents an unbiased entry into the thrilling world of social media with its upsides and downsides. Franco and Roberts display superb acting in the way they manifest of their characters history and unique motives through the course of the adrenaline-filled night. Nerve provides a stunning look at the different personalities and impulses that draw people to social media without explicitly labeling motives as wrong or right. Nerve comes at an especially relevant time with the increasing concern over social media and its consequences, and the directors produced a wonderful spark to incite discussion and awareness on this important topic. However, there's no force on audiences to answer to the social media dilemma. Viewers draw their own conclusions as their personalities and thoughts guide them through the movie. Nerve is quite the package. There's enough nerve-racking displays to keep your hearts thumping throughout the night, but there's also the second layer of radical questioning to plague your minds as the night goes on. All in all, Nerve is a great option for those who want to experience an alluring night filled with fun and great music, and for those who want a movie that draws out that reserved, subtle, philosophical parts in ourselves.

don't accept the challenge, its game over. The narrative taps into the peer pressure of teenagers and the influence of the Internet on today's society. As players in Nerve, the aim of the player is to have the most viewers watching you in order to progress through to the finals and win the game. Reflecting the ideas of popularity and being "internet famous" that is much apart of the Internet culture that we live in.The way in which Ariel Schulman and Henry Joost have structured and shot the film suits its main themes and influences. This is evident as the film opens in a very topical way, as we enter the film through the entering of a password on Vee's computer. This isn't the only time in the film where the directors directly acknowledge the technology influence/theme of the film, as a majority of the camera shots in the film feel like they are being taken straight from a smartphone camera roll or from a webcam and its visually appealing and suits the film perfectly. These camera shots, complemented by flawless editing add to the action sequences, making fast paced and visually interesting scenes.The graphics also play a part in the aesthetic feel of the film and enhancing the viewing experience. At the beginning of Vee's introduction to being a player in Nerve, her username is displayed over a establishing shot of New York, which shows other players in the game. When she meets Ian and begins doing dares with him their usernames are linked time and time again in shots of the New York skyline. It's this smart use of graphics that really adds to the feeling that we are also watchers in this game without even knowing it.Nerve also has an underlining lesson for us as we watch it and it's a very strong lesson as well. At the beginning of Vee's game and towards the tricky end of the game it shows how accessible we are when we put data on the Internet and that this data can be accessed by anyone on the Internet. Everything we like on Facebook, Google search and buy online is accessible. This provides a grim reality of the world we currently live in and how accessible it is to get information with the click of a button.Nerve is an entertaining, visually appealing and educating film, with a direct reflection of what our everyday lives have become. Through the use of alternative camera work, interesting story line and a little lesson it creates a wonderfully crafted film that offers plenty of reflection upon leaving the cinema. Nerve is a step in a new direction of noir films of today; taking into account the ideas and concerns about technology and uses them to entertain, shock and thrill us from start to finish.

us.Right off the bat, the concept of Nerve may have you thinking the same thing, but its premise is much more relaxed. And where it isn't, it's more subtle than its contemporaries. Nerve is, all around, more mature with its subject matter.It stars Emma Roberts as Vee, an artistic high school senior who's best friend, Sydney Emily Meade , thinks she doesn't live uninhibitedly enough. Then there's this secret game/app which the user can choose to be either a watcher or a player. As a player, you have to complete tasks, or "dares", for money. The two who last the longest without giving up go to the finals.The rules of the game take much of the film to get a grasp on, but it makes sense when it needs to.Along the way, Vee meets Ian Dave Franco --another player. The watchers like the two of them together and keep giving them tasks to complete with each other.The audience should also like them together, since they have a natural chemistry, which helps us see past some of the streaky performances.The film bounces around between different characters in the story seamlessly without losing us, or its energy, in the process.At no point do you look down at your watch wondering when the film will be over. It keeps you in its grasp the whole time. And afterward, you'll be talking with others about hypotheticals if the app actually existed in real life.You will definitely be surprised by this film, despite any preconceived notions. It's one of the best we've seen in this "techno" subgenre. Maybe by now we've gotten over the newness of our devices and can finally get a real film that actually takes control of the technology within it, rather than the other way around.Twizard Rating: 91

Then she went where the watchers sent her and found a gun and then she went to the arena where she understood that one of them should die. So what I don't understand is: how did she tell them what the plan is even before she knew what the last dare was. If the plan was only to shut the game OK, I would understand. But Sydney called TY and he went to the arena with a gun so they had to know what the last dare was and they couldn't know if Vee didn't tell them, but she told them about the plan even before she saw the gun. This is the only thing that is really bugging me about the movie and I think that it is not something little. However, I really enjoyed the movie and I loved it.

With Lionsgate wrapping up their insanely successful Hunger Games franchise with Mockingjay Part Two last year and stepping on egg shells with the Divergent series, this is exactly the sort of film that they should pursue as they attempt to craft their new wave of cinema.Summary: Nerve takes an intriguing premise and selection of themes, two charming leads, solid direction and beautiful visuals to deliver an adrenaline-packed, original film, that may just be one of the strongest of the summer. I dare you to watch.FULL REVIEW: http://perksofbeingnath.blogspot.co.uk/2016/08/nerve-2016-review.html

the shadow of her best friend – the extrovert Sydney Emily Meade – Vee pooh-poohs Sydney's compulsion with the new viral internet game 'Nerve': a social media 'Truth or Dare' "but without the truth" challenge game where you can either be a "Player" or a "Watcher". In real time, Watchers set Players with challenges they have to complete for ever-escalating financial rewards… but "Bail" or "Fail" and you lose all. And "snitches get stitches".With their friendship at breaking point, Vee is provoked into playing the game by Sydney and teams with fellow gamer Ian Dave Franco, younger brother of James Franco – someone with a history that could bring Vee into great danger. However, Vee's geeky wannabe boyfriend Tommy Miles Heizer is on the case….What is so impressive about this film is that the screenplay by Jessica Sharzer based on a novel by Jeanne Ryan is genuinely original and is delivered with style and good humor. Sure, you can draw parallels for any film with many other sources: in here there are traces of Hunger Games/Allegiance; the "Simon Says" portion of Die Hard 3; perhaps a soupçon of "Gladiator" and Schwartznegger's "Running Man" in the mix. But this is a novel approach to a teen flick, bang on the topical money in bringing in the frenetically viral nature of social media and aspects of the 'dark web', cyber security and open source programming.The film manages to generate significant credibility about the impact that a game like this would have among a teen audience. And there is a telling message in the finale: that it is easy to be a troll without responsibility hiding behind an internet ident, but when the masks come off and the message back becomes personal then your responsibilities as an individual human can come home to roost. The film is delivered with style and verve as well, with innovative graphics a great title and end title design and an 'augmented reality' overlay of the action showing Players and Watchers across the city. Many of the challenges are executed really well, with a few seat-clenchingly tense moments, particularly if you have a poor head for heights.But with all this potential it unfortunately fails to be a 10* classic, smelling at times of 'B' movie. Which is a great shame. Emma Roberts is fine at what she does, but at times I longed for the dramatic depth of a Shailene Woodley or Chloe Grace Moretz, with the scenes with the under-used but excellent Juliette Lewis rather highlighting this differential.The otherwise excellent script is – for me – let down by a scene of male-on-female violence which I found both distasteful and unnecessary. And a coding 'geeks shall inherit the earth' moment towards the end is a little too glib for my liking. But overall the directors Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman "Paranormal Activity 3" and "4" have done a fine job with a $20M budget. Regular readers of my blog bob-the-movie-man.com may recall my use of the "BvS quotient" – the number of films that could be made from the budget of "Batman vs Superman": this one has a BvS quotient of 8% meaning you could make over 12 of these instead of the superhero dud. Yes please! Although if they had doubled the budget and rounded off some of the sharp corners, this could have been a true classic. It's still recommended for a memorable movie experience though, and probably makes it into my draft movies of the year list so far. For the graphical version of this review and to comment, please visit bob-the-movie-man.com. Thanks .

Let's get startedThe GOOD • Fun Adventure • Great Acting • Decent Story When I saw the trailer, I though the movie was going to be more of a serious thriller. Thankfully, I'm very pleased to report Nerve is a very fun movie filled with excitement, energy, and adventure. Our two heroes start their night out performing tasks and stunts that we only dream of performing for the most part . The dares from the anonymous Watchers are diverse, but mostly remain grounded in the realistic zone. While certainly stupid, and often quite dangerous, our actors looked liked they were enjoying themselves as they became lost in the moment. As a result, I couldn't help but get reeled into the moments with them and enjoyed the fun atmosphere it painted. But then like any good movie, the tone switches and soon the fun evening out develops into something much tenser. Multiple tiers begin to form as the mystery unfolds as to what our couple has fallen into. The story takes multiple turns that leads to some decent character development that fits in well with the overall plot. As more secrets are uncovered, the intensity only builds up until it hits a cheesy, overdramatic fight that is both eye rolling and well done at the same time. Nevertheless, the tale takes a few good twists and plays out in a very morale heavy ending. Pay attention and you can see most of the twists coming. Pay really good attention and the audience may learn something that might save the Internet. Again the story is fun, but the twists help save it from becoming another teenage dramedy filled with thrills, chills, and laughs on the way. And to play out this story is none other than two talented actors who truly brought what looked to be simple characters to life. Emma Roberts portrayal of Venus yeah interesting name was fantastic, developing over the course of the film alongside her character. She brought both beauty and emotion to the role and was certainly a fantastic protagonist to follow on this ninety minute journey. Dave Franco as "Ian" was a wonderful counter character who had poise, pizazz, and a sense of suave that was very welcoming. It's amazing what you can see actors do when they don't act like idiots aka Neighbors . Franco's dynamic acting helped keep his character fun, but also stays in the dark, brooding side that reels you in. The supporting cast was wonderful too, but we need to move onto the limiting factors of this movie. The BAD • Not as suspenseful/thrilling as portrayed • A few character building moments are rushed • A plot point that was kind of worthlessYes I had fun, and the plot did grow darker, but the suspense was much more dilute than the trailers promised. The Watchers certainly were powerful we are talking well versed in the art of hacking , but their power wasn't used to its full potential. This mass media entertainment was a bit underwhelming though, whose bark was worse than their bite. I was expecting such expert computer users to lob more threats at the duo, or perhaps pursue them in some Purge like manner. Instead, they chose to use phones as their weapons and film everything that was happening. Sure the phone angle provided some interesting shots and allowed for integration of famous accidents. In addition, there were some character development moments that also were a bit underdone. Ian himself has a traumatic past, and you would think facing his fears would have a bit more I don't know struggle to it. Instead, his challenges were a bit blown over, washed away in a fast pace that could have been more. Fortunately Venus's drama has more gusto behind it and her obstacles require more bravado to overcome. Unfortunately, she has some plot points that were practically worthless despite the setup at the beginning of the movie. There were few explanations to some of the family dynamics, the struggle for choosing a school wasn't as big an issue, and her introverted nature disappeared rather quickly. Oh well, at least we got plenty of fun thrills and a good morale lesson right?The VERDICTDespite the shortcoming, Nerve is definitely one of the more fun and thrilling adventures I have seen in a long time. The dynamic duo of Roberts and Franco are the shining factor for this reviewer, who really brought the energetic fun vibe to the screen. In addition the multiple levels of the plot also made for some engaging moments, and some rather suspenseful moments. Sure there are some missing/blown over moments, but for the most part this adventure gets a seal of approval for unique fun. Worth a trip to theater? I'm going to have to say yes it is. My scores: Adventure/Crime/Mystery: 8.5 Movie Overall: 8.0

is currently going on with the hand-held devices people are playing Pokemon Go on and also the game itself. I have heard of professional people who have quit their jobs and given up their careers just so they can play this game. One person was so immersed in the game on their mobile tablet that they did not bother to watch where they were going and ended up walking off of a cliff. Also people around the world are showing up at stranger's houses just so they can catch the much desired Pokemon characters and be the winner of this game that will bring you no real fame, or fortune, but instead just bragging rights that will soon fade away as soon as the next technological craze, or game comes along. Also look at how voyeuristic our culture and society has become. I hear of people going to websites to watch real acts of violence, torture, terrorism and other hideous things for the simple reason that they were curious and these horrific videos and images have not been taken off of the web because of so called "free speech" and "freedom of expression". There is certainly a limit to everything and our current culture has certainly exceeded it. Now when I write these things, I am not against people themselves enjoying a video game here, or there although I think there are a lot better things you could be doing with your time , or saying that I am against all technology and social media at all even though I choose not to really use any of it myself . I think that people should just be aware of what they are doing and know the dangers of it. Even the other night it was broadcast on the news that people who post pictures of themselves on social media are actually creating more danger for themselves than they think because cyber and other criminals can and are using other software and websites that can now track where your photos were taken and trace you to where you live, work and otherwise which is now a cause of crimes including breaking and entering and robbery. Again this is not to say that people can not communicate with their friends online, but people should just be very careful with what they are doing. The new film, Nerve shows us these cautions as the characters in the movie are engrossed in a mobile device game of more, or less Truth or Dare. Characters are dared to do embarrassing, risky and sometimes death defying things, all watched by people from around the world in order to make a name for themselves and make some extra cash. Everything seems to be fine at first and to many of the characters it seems like an adrenaline rush that they constantly want more of, but as the film goes on, they soon start to see the dangers in this and how it could consume them, or possibly threaten to end their lives. Nerve was a film that was a lot better than it had any right to be and I mean that completely sincerely. The film will win no awards come Oscar season, but in it's own way it has a lot of merit for it's unique visual style of a very neon lit downtown New York and some of this cinematography and visuals was certainly pleasing to the eye and looked incredible at times. The film's story itself was captivating enough and had plenty to keep me both thrilled and on the edge of my seat at times. The character development was thin and the acting was average, but a film of this kind doesn't need any more than that and it was fine just the way it was. Also it delivers home a thought provoking message and one that our generation is badly in need of discovering and that is also one of the film's strongest points and I thank the filmmakers for pointing it out and also entertaining me while doing so. A better than average film of it's kind that is certainly food for thought and an entertaining watch all the same.