The Game Review

The Game is a great movie to watch on DVD.  I first saw this movie at the theatre when it came out.  I was seated between my husband and our friend Len and the whole time both of them were whispering to me. "I'm lost", "who is that?", "what's going on?"  They were confused and I was having a lousy time trying to explain yet keep up.  So it's great to watch this on DVD so you can pause to explain or rewind.

The Game is about San Francisco banker Nick VanOrton (Michael Douglas) who is a rich, kind of uptight loner who gets an unusual birthday gift from his kooky brother Conrad (Sean Penn).  The gift is a game.  Not a board game, but a gift from a place called Consumer Recreation Services which creates individual life specifically created for each customer. 

Nick has to undergo strange medical tests in order to participate in the game and is initially told that he cannot participate in the game, but soon after leaving the CRS office odd things begin happening to him and Nick cannot determine if it's his life getting out of control or if it's the game.  Characters come in and out of the story and it's hard to figure out who can be trusted and who cannot. 

Both the guys with me were a bit confused here and there as the plot twists and turns with each passing minute.  It was very unique, intriguing, and kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time as I never knew what would happen.  A few times I thought I had it all figured out but was proven totally wrong at the end. 

The Game is rated R for language, violence, and sexuality. 

4 stars - very interesting, intriguing, well acted.  You won't fall asleep on the couch watching this one!