Nerve

This cool, propulsive, neon-bathed teen thriller is something of a mixed bag, combining several exhilarating sequences with a plot that becomes increasingly improbable as time passes. Set in present-day New York, it follows Vee (Emma Roberts), an unadventurous teenager who signs up for a popular smartphone game called Nerve. In order to win large sums of money, players are required to complete a series of risky, time-sensitive dares, all of which must be live-streamed via their phone. After Vee teams up with another player (Dave Franco), the two of them endure a range of death-defying challenges and begin to rise through the game's ranks, but the moral of the story from co-directors Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman (who made the acclaimed social media exposé Catfish) is that by gaining followers they lose control over their lives. Roberts makes for a charming, likeable lead, and she has easy chemistry with Franco, which is key to the film's appeal. While the game itself never feels credible and the climax is weak, the whole thing moves fast enough that many viewers will be swept along.