“Snitches get stitches.”

Justin’s rating: I dare you watch it and then tell me the truth about what you think of it. Did I win?

Justin’s review: I know we’ve all said it, but I’m strongly starting to suspect that Hollywood is starting to run out of ideas, especially since it started to dip into the well of kids games for inspiration in the late 2010s. Hide-and-go-seek? Tag? Truth or dare? Escape rooms? You can almost sense the sweaty desperation.

And yet Ready or Not, Escape Room, and Tag were pretty fun films in their own right, so I turned to Nerve with some hope, especially after hearing some solid word-of-mouth on it. Can a movie about that age-old game of honest confessions and risky challenges make for an acceptable plot?

In New York City, a mysterious and “somewhat sketchy” game called Nerve is taking over social media. “Players” are assigned various tasks by “Watchers” in exchange for cash, and if they get caught or squeal, they’re going to get beat up pretty bad. It’s not just a way to get money; Nerve’s key attraction is making the players popular as they stream these challenges live. And in today’s social media climate, popularity is everything.

Vee (Emma Roberts) is one such player, looking to distract herself from deciding her post-high school future. She gets tossed together with Ian (Dave Franco) in a bunch of couple-themed dares, and a budding romance forms. Yet there’s also the growing unease of the game’s operators and what, exactly, they’re doing with all of this information they’re siphoning from all of the participants.

With a heavy emphasis on always-online connectivity and the relentless soundtrack, Nerve is obviously made with a targeted teen demographic in mind — and I’m not it (that much was obvious when I spotted Juliette Lewis as the mom). You probably aren’t either. But the flashy graphics and bouncy tunes don’t really detract from a breezy story about an introverted girl finding her wild side as an entire city presses her buttons.

I guess it’s partially about the idea of facing your fears and getting out of your comfort zone with the help of marketing cookies. Maybe it’s also a cautionary tale of how popularity isn’t worth the sacrifice? Or it’s just about some goofballs engaging in escalating dares for the thrill, the accolades, and the extra cash.

What took me by surprise is that Nerve gradually reveals itself to be, believe it or not, a hacker movie in disguise. And as a big fan of Hackers, I’m down for some friendly rivalries between good-looking people as computer nerds save the day.

The actual game and its rules are too quickly glossed over when perhaps an extra minute to go into some extra detail would’ve been nice. And while this is a mindlessly fun movie with an uplifting ending, it’s often a case of style over substance. Exciting style, yes. But let’s not pretend that social media, technology, and teenage idiocy are the combo that’s going to take us into a future utopia.

Intermission!

• If you get a “cat of the day” email, you’re probably not doing well in life
• So… much… social… media
• Vee only takes pictures of her crush, more or less
• Surprise mooning
• Mmm eating dog food
• Heya Chris Farley
• He spends a lot of time on the Dark Web… why?
• That was a long kiss
• “Yeah it was a miniseries, I got all six episodes.”
• $4000 dress: “Please don’t undress the mannequin.”
• Underwear escape is better than stealing. But why are they running?
• No clowns or snakes for tattoos
• “I’m just doing the Y in ‘daddy.'” “WHAT?”
• The girl driving by Ian and Vee kissing going, “Oh yeah!”
• We have a phone down!
• Maybe don’t lie under trains? That’s a good moral.
• A terrifying iMac in a special punishment container
• This is not a good game if you’re afraid of heights
• “You guys are the dumbest smart kids I ever met.”