Exam (2009)

I'm very excited upon seeing the film and sitting through it, for I expected that it would give me an impressive outcome, and I have to say, It did deliver. Exam is a low-budgeted film, which has 8 main character, a guard, and an invigilator. Despite of the said budget, It was able to give me a solid plot, awesome acting and great ending. Though the movie do not have a lot of gore scenes (I guess none at all), nor lots of screaming and killing. It was still great. It will keep you guessing and guessing and, simultaneously discovering the characters background, this movie is not boring at all, It'll keep you thinking and wait to see if your guess is right. This movie, only proved that budget is not a major factor in creating a ground-breaking movie. Exam is one of a kind and I wish to see more of this. 9/10.

Fmovies: I had the pleasure of seeing this pic at the recent Edinburgh Film Festival and it is certainly not The Apprentice. More like 12 Angry Men meets Cube.

Photographed in the impressive cinemascope screen shape and very sharply edited, the director takes us on a psychological journey where the characters, who are at first cagey, gradually open up to reveal their true identities. This manifests itself in various ways as the candidates gradually step up to bat and take each other on in a variety of ways. Some good, some bad, some horrific - but always interesting.

Perhaps a tad talky in the centre section but it builds to an exciting and clever climax that wields a distinct note of hope and positivity.

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 fmovies. Exam (2009)

What a bizarre movie. It's so beautifully filmed, almost virtuosic in its use of focus and close up and light, you almost forget that the plot is a highly contrived package of clever ideas. When you do think about the plot, and the various holes that open up in the logic of it, you are almost forced to enjoy it for the visuals. And for the acting, which has some real high points.

You also marvel at how the entire movie is shot in a single room (with a glimpse of hallway a few times). I suppose you might bow to the film's makers for pulling off so much with so little. The result is intelligent and a little bit suspenseful at its best moments. When it begins it is absolutely fascinating, from the opening scenes establishing the characters to the first laying out of the rules (although there is a drama that reminded me for some reason of "Deal or No Deal" at its tackiest). Then some of the characters break out of the futurist mode and we have normal people vying to win the game, the contest to be hired by the mysterious health products company behind the scenes. (This part will remind everyone of a stylized and a bit false seeming "The Apprentice" even to the point that you might wish for a Donald Trump to appear from behind the dark screen and prod them along.)

By the end, I think most people will either be a bit tired of it all, or mostly incredulous. It pulls out lots of tricks, and we are inevitably a little surprised by the final turns of events. But I'm not sure it lives up to the high standards set at the start. Get sucked in, sure, but be prepared to stick it out with effort.

First the good points. I enjoyed the great idea and was expecting something like the cube. The music was pretty good the setting. Visuals and acting are moderate to good.

The movie pretends to be really smart with smart people acting smart. But this is not true. Basically the characters are pretty stupid and act respectively. But I could live with this discrepancy. A bigger problem is that the movie let you think of a smart storyline with smart evolving and maybe some genius plot twists. Basically just the Idea is not evolving at all till after the end of the movie. The characters just do "stuff" all the time. It is not like "the cube" when characters push a mystery along the story. The mystery stays till the end. The revelation of the "mystery" is really poor and is just working in an artificial setting without normal acting Characters.

I think this movie is far away from what it pretends to be and could not recommend it.

This film is about eight candidates who are in the final round of selection for a prestigious job. They have to answer one question in eighty minutes, but the question sheet they have is blank.

The whole film has the same setting and characters throughout, but it is never boring. Not even for one minute. With every single minute, it gets more suspenseful and engaging.

It is such a superb character study, focusing on what people do in stressful, confusing and even helpless situations. it really gets you to think what is the question, which is so painfully obvious once you realise what is the question.

The best thing is that, there is no flaw in the plot. It is not easy to come up with such an intelligent plot. "Exam" has to be one of the most suspenseful, intriguing, clever, well written and thrilling film I have seen in a long time.