EXAM

HAZELDINE FILMS / MIRACLE 

RELEASED 8 January 2010

It’s always a pleasure to watch a good British movie. ‘Exam’ is a psychological thriller that is set in the near future. Eight job candidates enter a room, one by one. The room is windowless, appears to have reinforced walls, and comes with an armed security guard. The job is for a mysterious and powerful corporation. Upon each desk in the room is a sheet of paper with the word ‘Candidate’ (1-8) written on it. Next to it is a pencil. When the candidates turn their paper over after an introductory talk by the Invigilator (Colin Salmon) that sets a couple of basic test rules, they discover it’s blank. They have eighty minutes to come up with the answer. But what is the question?

A fine cast led by Luke Mably as ‘White’ (who labels the other seven with base terms such as ‘Deaf’, ‘Blonde’, and ‘Chinese’) is bookended by Salmon, and the tension mounts as our group of candidates both work together and ploy against one another to find out what the purpose of the interview paper is. Is the question hidden somewhere? ‘Exam’ would work very well on the stage as it’s a one-room affair with no need for special effects or camera trickery. It’s a fine script by director Stuart Hazeldine, and as with any film that spends the whole running time building up the final ‘reveal’, it’s success or failure very much depends on it being both surprising and making sense. I’m glad to say ‘Exam’ doesn’t let itself down.

THREE OUT OF FIVE