Synopsis:
Industrious high school senior, Vee Delmonico (Emma Roberts), has had it with living life on the sidelines. When pressured by friends to join the popular online game Nerve, Vee decides to sign up for just one dare in what seems like harmless fun. But as she finds herself caught up in the thrill of the adrenaline-fueled competition, the game begins to take a sinister turn with increasingly dangerous acts, leading her into a high stakes finale that will determine her entire future.
What We Thought:
Nerve is a lot better than I thought it would be. It’s far from great or anything, but it’s a decent enough film caught in the middle of comic book movies and remakes.
It reminded me of Now You See Me in that it doesn’t feel like a summer movie. It has adventure and twists, but it feels more like a spring or fall film to me. There’s nothing wrong with that, but today, summer usually means blockbusters and tent-pole franchise makers. Both also have Dave Franco in them.
Emma Roberts plays a shy high school student who starts playing the latest internet craze, Nerve. It’s like Truth or Dare, minus the Truth. People watch you while try to complete your dare. The more crazy the dare, the more money you make and the more “watchers” you get. Complete the most dares and you win!
Along the way she runs into Dave Franco, a high-ranking Nerve player. Her night is thrown into overdrive when she joins him in the city for a night of dares, but of course there’s more to it as the dares escalate.
On one side, I like the film because it’s not trying to be more than what it is. It’s an adventure film with dares and people going nuts while watching. It has a slight message about anonymity and how far we go with online personas and wanting to be “famous”, but it’s subtle and doesn’t beat you over the head with it.
On another side, it’s everything I hate about today’s world. You can become internet famous for being stupid and doing stupid things. You don’t need talent today. The film shows text messages and geotracking and I can’t stand it. I’m not a youth of today so maybe the youths will like the style of the filmmaking.
As much as I thought Emma Roberts was pretty good in the film, I do think it’s time she moves past high school characters. She’s 25 and sure older actresses have played teens before, but I think it’s time she moves forward. This is one of her better, more believable performances though.
Overall I liked Nerve. It’s better than I expected and is probably better than it has any right being. There’s some internet hacking, some warnings about virtual life and hiding behind screen names. It’s also very timely because of the Pokemon Go nonsense happening right now. I’d say it’s a combination of Mr. Robot and Pokemon Go. Is it a warning about our interactions online? Maybe, but it sneaks that warning into a nice little adventure film.
BETTER THAN EXPECTED!
Cast & Crew:
- Emma Roberts
- Dave Franco
- Juliette Lewis
- Emily Meade
Recommended If You Like:
- Now You See Me
- Mr. Robot
The Nerds Templar 