Nemesis Game

This is one of the movies that keeps you glued to your seat till the end by weaving too many plot webs but in the end fails miserably to provide some interesting climax. 'Nemesis Game' has a decent basic plot, taut suspense, an interesting central character... but the ending is just meaningless and thus making the whole effort very disappointing. The movie somehow reminded me of the Jude Law starred 'Existenz' but far less efficient in making a story come around. Director Jesse Warn tries hard to give it a cult look, with appropriate shooting locations, good background music,decent script etc and is aided by nice performance by Carly Pope. Yes, the riddles themselves sometimes looked easy, sometimes bizarre which leaves a mixed impression, but they were not enough to answer all the incidents happening in the film. The ending is just too 'cheap' to provide the answers. If somehow that means to keep the viewer occupied with it after watching the film, that's the big mistake. Because without good climax, any such film is instantly forgettable.

Nemesis Game is a mind-bending film filled with riddles, death, mystery, and philosophy. In it's simplest sense the film is about seeking answers and what happens when you've finally found them all. The search for answers leads Sarah Novak down a path that gets darker as it gets more compelling. The final answer seems more dangerous than it is worth, yet Sarah is so close to understanding it all. What would you do if you were offered the ability to finally make sense of the chaos of life?

The movie was written and directed by Jesse Warn. While this was Warn's first feature length film, the movie doesn't reflect that at all, but instead shows polish and an artistic approach to telling the story. Carly Pope was powerful in the lead role and showed a depth of complexity that was fascinating to watch. I would definitely love to see more of her work.

Being based on riddles, this is a very cerebral movie. It's that's your thing, as it is mine, then I totally recommend seeing Nemesis Game. Rating: 4.5/5

"The Nemesis Game" tells of a college student, Sara (Pope), who plays a game of riddles but who can't seem to solve the riddle of her life. The film develops a pair of wispy, marginally intriguing, and converging plot lines; Sara and her riddle game and her father, a cop, and his interrogation of a murder suspect. However, as the story wears on it become more convoluted in its attempt to keep the intrigue going and more muddled in its ability to resolve the issues raised. The result is a frustrating mess with paper thin characters which wallows in it own sense of self importance while failing to deliver anything of substance finally ending with an epilogue much like the punch line of a shaggy dog story. Passable stuff only for the most hard up couch potato. (C)

I originally rented this direct-to-video film because it stars one of my favorite actors (Adrian Paul). I expected this cheesy boring film that would be average. Instead what I found was a movie that kept me guessing until the very end. The film has a superb ending and good acting all the way around. Sarah Novak is a fan of riddles. When she stumbles across a game where riddle after riddle are solved for fun, she gets herself in over her head when the game turns deadly. The 'Nemesis Game' as it comes to be called is supposed to end with one final riddle. If the player gets the riddle correct and writes the answer on the wall, then they are shown 'the design' of the game; a design that is supposed to make them insane. I know, I know the story sounds weird and stupid. But I assure you this is a fabulous film. It opens kind of slow but you must give it a chance to get going. Once it does, it doesn't let go. This very unique plot and inventive ending leave you wanting to know more of story at the end. At the end it leaves you saying 'wow.' This film is highly recommended.

Police detective Jeff Novak (Ian McShane) is interrogating Emily Gray. Two weeks earlier, his daughter college student Sara Novak (Carly Pope) likes to solve riddles from comic book store owner Vern (Adrian Paul). Dennis Reveni (Brendan Fehr) is a spacey delivery guy. Jeremy Curran (Jay Baruchel) is a fellow college student. Sara takes part in a riddle game in the real world when it turns dangerous.

The start is a little slow and a little muddled. There is a little tension in the mystery. In the end, the finale is disappointing. The Toronto locations keep it a B-movie. Adrian Paul only adds to that sense. It doesn't really elevate above that.