Exame

Eight people with various skills are brought to a room to vie for a job in a powerful corporation. The Invigilator lays out the task for the group to be completed within 80 minutes. Each person sits at a desk with a piece of paper with the word Candidate and a number. The group struggles to cooperate to find out what the question even is. As each attempt fails, the group turns on each other.

This is a high concept mystery thriller written by Stuart Hazeldine and Simon Garrity, and directed by Hazeldine. It's a compelling watch and a real puzzler. It's a real tight thriller inside one room. In the end, the resolution is a little bit disappointing and a letdown. With a great puzzle, the solution can elevate the whole movie with its inventiveness. This solution is more of a cheat.

"Exam" is a wonderful psychological study of eight people who are the top candidates for an important job with a high-level corporation.

The time period is some time in the future. Eight candidates are put in a windowless room, and an Invigilator (Colin Salmon). They have 80 minutes to answer a question.

There are four rules: don't talk to him, don't talk to the guard, don't leave the room, and don't spoil the piece of paper in front of them.

The candidates find the sheet in from of each of them blank.

One tries to write on the paper and is ejected immediately. After a time, one person figures out that they can talk to one another, and they attempt by various means to see what's on the paper.

Lights, liquids, nothing works. Slowly as the clock goes down, the real personalities of the candidates begin to emerge, and we learn more about them.

One of the features aggravating the situation is that there is a plague, something like AIDS, that is killing people, and this company has come up with medications that can help and are working toward a cure.

One of the women has a partner who cannot afford the medication, which is why she is applying for the job. One of the candidates has the disease.

The stress becomes worse and worse as people not only seek to find out the question, but "White" (Luke Mably) tries to manipulate people to break a rule so they can be eliminated.

This is an excellent film, though one has to take into account that it is happening in the future. At least in the present, no one would go through what these people did for a job, especially with a selection process like that. I would have left after the Invigilator talked. So we don't know what's going on in the world.

The film presents a real puzzle, and getting to the solution is a fascinating process for the viewer.

The acting is very good and intense, with Luke Mably having the showiest role. Colin Salmon, the Invigilator, has one of the best voices in the world and has an incredible presence.

Really enjoyed this.

The film opened up giving me high hopes with an enjoyable slice of cinematography that is reminiscent of other films, however as I continued, bit by bit it chipped away my hopes for the film.

During the film rules are quickly set up, making it clear what the characters are able to do with a set of rules and not other outside rules apply. The characters act understandably at first but quickly just seem to ignore what any normal person would do, the characters are all established to be highly intelligent and also deductive but fail to take notice of blatantly obvious things. Characters also quickly establish themselves as arch types. The male characters are quickly shown to have clear personalities however many of the female characters seem to have had little written for them other then one being an information dispenser who for the majority of the film is just a robot. In general it is well acted however the actors seem to have been given both a poor script and directions.

Even with plot holes ignored and the ending, the film is largely just several strong archetypes having very simple mind games with each other. Several times during the film I was able to call out certain outcomes before they happened as the characters are highly predictable. Without my opinion of the awful story I would describe the film as a 4 out of 10 instead, however with it included I would say a 3.

Below is spoilers for the film and where most of the plot holes or just stupidity of the story is mentioned.

What was the answer to the question? Well there was only one question asked during which was "Any question" and so the answer "No" was correct. My eyes practically rolled out the sides of my head in grimace. The statement of there only being one question which can only be seen through two layers of glass with only two people wearing glasses in the room. Many of these plot holes are just a list of question but I feel ultimately show how the film only works because the characters are written to have it work rather then having any sort of understandable logic to it.

What was the purpose of hiding "Question 1." on the paper when they already said there was one question? Why make it so difficult to see? What would have happened if White stabbed Black in the eye with a pencil to kill him rather then man handling the guard to shoot him? Why would they destroy not only the lights but also the emergency lighting before checking the clock, one of the only clear objects in the room with two distinctive buttons? Were they meant to discover who Deaf was so they could tell him no? They were given no way to reply unless they knew as they were not allowed to communicate with the invigilator. Would Deaf be revealed at the end if they had all just waited and then expected to answer? How did everyone ignore deaf fiddling with the clock, if it did not at least draw attention should they at least be concerned about him messing up the test for them? What would have happened if anyone answered no to the question before the test started? Would it not count as the test had not started yet? Would they be removed for communication with the invigilator even while giving the correct answer?

Take "Saw" and remove approximately 95% of the torture element, then take 8 candidates, sit them in a room and give them an exam presided over by a security officer who oversees all, as they seek to find the answer to the question that they've been asked by the invigilator of a surreptitiously successful organization. Of course, once they actually find the question first that's easy, or... is it?

To some people this movie will be an absolute bore. To others it will be an enjoyable psychological mystery - albeit more 'who wins the job?' than 'whodunnit?'

Direction, screenplay and acting are all admirable. Oh and lest I forget, the Chinese girl "Gemma Chan" is mega yummy - what a stunning girl indeed!!!

Overall this movie's a 7/10. Definitely worth a watch *if* you like to keep guessing... But if you like your guessing to remain on autopilot throughout a movie's duration, then I'd advise you to avoid this movie.

'Exam' is one of those movies that looks smarter than it actually is. The plot is intriguing, but all the details doesn't quite add up. We are given the presumption that all the characters are unique and highly intelligent, yet their actions seem to speak otherwise. Besides the information they say, they don't show any unique skills why they were chosen for this particular test. I can say that the characters were little bit shallow, and poorly developed. The story itself delves into already familiar territory of psychological games and plot twists of 'mind bending movies'. The writers took too big bite and weren't clever enough for themselves to really surprise the 'seen a lot' viewer. Nonetheless, the movie manages to attract and then keep the viewer's attention. Acting is hammy at spots but the pacing is fine and the atmosphere is consistent. The directing is good and one can say, that the visuals are quite stylish.

'Exam' is nothing to get overly excited for, but it is consistent and entertaining enough. 'Turn of your brain' type of movie for a thinking person.