THE PHILOSOPHERS

Who has never felt nauseous before an exam? This is especially true for the twenty students of an international school in Jakarta. Their final exam is often considered to be the nemesis of every teenager: philosophy. They expect to discuss the compatibility of Kierkegaard and Lady Gaga, but are instead faced with a perverse experiment concocted by their teacher, Mr Zimit. To succeed their college year, they will have to enter a fictional world threatened by a nuclear holocaust. There’s a bunker, but it can only shelter ten people. Each of them is arbitrarily given a job whose utility in a hostile world will determine the survival of the student. But logical reasoning will soon give way to survival instinct. Shot in the idyllic landscapes of Indonesia, The Philosophers looks like a hard boiled mix between The Experiment and Battle Royale. James D’Arcy ( Cloud Atlas, Exorcist: The Beginning ) plays the teacher who places too much faith in the free will and wisdom of his students, led by Bonnie Wright ( Harry Potter ), Daryl Sabara ( Machete, John Carter ) and Rhys Wakefield ( The Purge ).