Project X

Project X

2012

Comedy

Rated: R

Running Time: 88 minutes

Starring: Thomas Mann, Oliver Cooper, Jonathon Daniel Brown

Directed By: Nima Nourizadeh

Rating: 4.5 out of 10

Outline

3 nerds throw a party that quickly gets way out of control.

Review

Most people have been to a raging house party before. A party that gets a little out of hand due to crowd size or alcohol consumption. Whatever stories you tell on a daily, or monthly, or yearly basis about said party, will pale in comparison to the beast of a party thrown in this movie. Project X is the story of three unknown, and nerdy high school seniors. They decide to throw a party, and film it to put them on the social map. What starts off as a small party, soon balloons out of control into one of the craziest bashes known to mankind.

I feel I should lead with a couple of comments about why I arrived at my rating. This film may be one of the most pointless movies of all time. To call it a movie is even a stretch. The creators of this film are smart and knew they had a gold mine with people who enjoy a mindless watch. Listen, I am not saying this film isn't entertaining, nor am I saying it was hard to watch. What I am saying is that this is a terrible movie. The rating I gave this film was on pure entertainment value alone. If I was to rate it on quality, than it would be closer to a 1 out of 10. The film has a simple formula, and that is to make one of the craziest house parties known to man. The film starts off and you get to meet the three nerds leading this film. Tomas, Costa, and JB are a bunch of guys, looking to get noticed. Their buddy Dax, follows them around and captures everything unfolding, by recording it using a handheld camera. The movie really doesn’t start until a decent amount of people show up to Tomas’s house, and the music starts cranking. To go into detail about this film is pointless as it really just goes from a big party, to the party of the century with no character development whatsoever.

The acting is nothing to write home about but it is not terrible either. The roles are superficial, so the cast of unknowns seem to be able to pull it off. I was able to appreciate the movie more because of the simplistic roles these people needed to put forth. The character Costa, played by Oliver Cooper, was the only person that stood out negatively for me. He is too over the top, and that is coupled with his stupid tough guy personality traits. He will wear on your senses about 15 minutes into this film.

At the end of the day, you have an easy decision to make if you should watch this film or not. This film has a little a bit of everything you would expect from a party, to a lot of stuff you probably wouldn’t expect. Here is a list of things that take place. Fires, puking, heavy drug use, vandalism, small animal torture, sex, cops, angry neighbors, midgets, creepy dudes, kid bouncers, dj’s, and a host of other things I am having a hard time remembering. If these things appeal to you, then this movie will blow you away. If you need any ounce of story, or interesting characters, then stay away because there are none. What characters you will find are mostly naked girls swimming; naked girls in bouncy castles, and naked girls dancing to loud hip hop montages. The film has some fun and some laughs, and goes on an insane spiral that finishes in a crescendo of destruction that won’t disappoint. With so many random things happening in this film, I am surprised Matthew Broderick didn’t show up with a chimpanzee (See what I did right there with that reference. If you don’t watch many movies than this is not a shot at Sarah Jessica Parker, although that also would have been funny now that I think on it)

Director Nima Nourizadeh does a solid job with his directorial debut. He knows his audience and gives them what they want. That is a film with a party that is all rise. He splashes in a great soundtrack and ample montages of people dancing and celebrating to maximum effect. The film is way out there in terms of story but in line with his target audience. Even though this film did not work for me he did a great job, and the handheld camera shooting was a nice touch for added realism.

I cannot recommend this film, however if you are looking for a mindless watch that is very entertaining than this could work. This is a party everyone wants to be at but no one will want to watch.

T Factor + If you like mindless comedy than this could score higher on the rating scale.

T Factor – If you need any sense of a story than this could score way lower on the rating scale.

If you liked this film reel recommendations: Old School, The Hangover