Q.1. What are the biggest influences on Stuart Hazeldine's EXAM?
Q.2. Will the film disappoint those looking for a decent dose of graphic gore?
Q.3. Is there a flashback scene towards the end of the film that 'cleverly' reveals what the hell has been going on?
Q.4. Are there any plot holes/lapses in logic/moments of sheer stupidity that make this film hard to swallow?
Q.5. Express as a percentage the likelihood that the winner in the film will be a woman.
Q.6. If a person infected with the film's virus must take one pill every hour to stay alive, how many pills will he consume in a year?
Q.7. Is this film worth watching?
Q.8. What rating does the film deserve out of 10?
Answers
Q.1. Saw, Cube, TV's The Apprentice
Q.2. Undoubtedly. Although the film suggests that the candidates are competing for a 'job you would kill for', the level of violence is remarkably low.
Q.3. The first film mentioned in the answer to Question 1 is Saw; what do you think?
Q.4. Do bears do their proverbial in the woods?
Q.5. 100%
Q.6. 8760, provided he or she is able to wake up every hour, every night to continue the treatment—which is unlikely.
Q.7. Surprisingly, yes. Although the script is highly preposterous and raises many questions, the movie flows impressively in real time, the cast put in convincing performances, and director Hazeldine maintains a reasonable level of tension and intrigue throughout.
Q.8. 6.5/10 (rounded up to 7 for IMDb)—it's entertaining despite its obvious flaws.
Exam
2009
Action / Crime / Horror / Mystery / Thriller
Exam
2009
Action / Crime / Horror / Mystery / Thriller
Plot summary
Eight talented candidates have reached the final stage of selection to join the ranks of a mysterious and powerful corporation. The enter a windowless room and an Invigilator gives them 80 minutes to answer one simple question. He outlines three rules they must obey or be disqualified: don't talk to him or the armed guard by the door, don't spoil their papers, and don't leave the room. He starts the clock and leaves. The candidates turn over their question papers--and discovers that they're completely blank. After the initial confusion has subsided, one frustrated candidate writes 'I believe I deserve...,' and is promptly ejected for spoiling. The remaining candidates soon figure out they're permitted to talk to each other, and they agree to cooperate in order to figure out the question: then they can compete to answer it. At first they suspect the question may be hidden in their papers like a security marker in a credit card, and they figure out ways to change their environment to expose the hidden words. But light, liquids and other plans all come to naught. Soon enough, the candidates begin to uncover one another's backgrounds, prejudices, and hidden agendas. Tensions rise as the clock steadily descends towards zero, and each candidate must decide how far they are willing to go to secure the ultimate job . . .
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Terrific filming, a small-budget conceit, and a plot stretched to the breaking point
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.
The test of souls
Exam is a kind of self contained film which reminded me of the cult movie Cube.
Eight candidates enter a room for an employment assessment exam for a pharmaceutical company responsible for a miracle drug widely used after a viral pandemic. The candidates sit down at their individual desks containing the exam paper. The invigilator informs the candidates of the rules and failure to follow the rules will lead to ejection.
It turns out that the question papers are blank. One candidate is almost immediately removed from the room for spoiling her paper by writing on it. The seven remaining candidates talk to each other and work together to figure what the one question is and the appropriate answer without breaking the rules. However as they cooperate they develop personality types leading to conflict and worse.
The film starts of intriguingly enough as slowly the candidates character traits are are uncovered and we learn something about each candidate and it turns out some of them are more devious. I can applaud this bottle film as an intense psychological examination but it fails to sustain its intriguing premise and the ending felt rather disappointing as the film became ever more hysterical.