First Take: Nerve- don't hate the player, hate the game.

SYPNOSIS:

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”.

Nerve is a rare example of an indie gem that audiences can really uncover and identify with- the UK release has been very low key and quiet, making this one of the unique surprises of 2016.

It’s all mainly down to a brilliant script from Jessica Sharzer, which is adapted from a very well received 2012 novel by Jeanne Ryan. This script is both very well structured, allowing some very good character development as well as a really clever narrative that focuses on the increasing natures of the dares that players have to do, and how they impact pretty much everyone. This is also where leads Emma Roberts and Dave Franco really shine, as they make their characters, Vee and Ian respectively, very believable and well rounded, something which directors Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman (best known for the film that brought us MTV’s Catfish TV programme) have a real talent for- and they also stage the actual dares in a way that makes it look like you are watching it through the game itself. The film is paced brilliantly, with some first class cinematography and a very modern, upbeat score that really resonates with a young adult audience.

THE VERDICT

Nerve is exactly the sort of film we need to freshen up what has been a rather generic summer of cinema- the combination of a unique plot, some great performances and some very slick direction make this one of the must-see films of the summer if you are into social media, and it may have just become a very big contender for my Film of the Year.

RATING: 5/5