Movie Review: “Project X” — is not for you if you want a film that develops characters

Project X is being billed as “the party you’ve only dreamed about,” but is it truly? That’s a pretty fair assessment, since most of us could only imagine the things that happen at the Project X house. However, what really defines “the ultimate party” is fairly subjective. Assuming most party-goers expect only booze — not gratuitous nudity, wild roof-jumping stunts and drugs galore. I don’t know about you, but all the parties I remember in my high school and college days usually involved some beer, nice radio tunes and girls that kept their clothes on. Sure, things got carried away at times, but not to the point where bras went flying and the host-house turned into 1969 Woodstock.  Is Project X a bit over the top at times? Yes it is, but that’s the fun of it.

Three high school wannabes: Thomas (Thomas Mann), Costa (Oliver Cooper) and J.B. (Jonathan Daniel Brown), decide to celebrate the weekend with a wild birthday bash after Thomas’ parents go away for the weekend.  Now, while we all know a party isn’t a party unless the parents vacate the premises, it’s a bit boring to see the same ho-hum “parents anniversary get away” cliche followed by weak lecture talks that Mom and Dad give Thomas. While Thomas is down for some party action, he’s also apprehensive that this thing could turn into much more than he can handle. And it make sense to be a bit nervous when Costa advertises the party on a local radio station, hires two DJ’s and somehow manages to work in a middle school security team to keep things in check? The security team gives fantastic belly laughs, by the way, enough that new Director Nima Nourizadeh gets a special fist pump from me.  I also like how Nourizadeh chooses to use fresh faces for Project X, actors just getting their starts in the business. For not being a known Hollywood face, they all did a very respectable job.

As much as I like what Nourizadeh does with Project X, including some inventive under-water camera work, he never really makes you want to latch onto any one specific character in the film. Maybe that’s the point, just to make it a simple, crazy party movie, but I still find it disappointing that I can’t really relate to any one character – even the obligatory fat kid. Other than J.B, the fat kid, why is it necessary that everyone else at the party look like a supermodel or someone that  just stepped right out of GQ? Let’s get some real faces in there next time —  thinking Can’t Hardly Wait, my favorite party movie of all time. Also, just because you host the wildest party in the neighborhood ever, that doesn’t mean you’re an automatic superhero the following Monday at school, does it? In this case it did. A bit weak there, but overall a film that makes you laugh hard and itch for more wackiness.

Project X is not for you if you want a film that develops characters wonderfully or displays a plot that digs into the deepest inner thoughts of your mind. However, if you want a fun-filled, ass-grabbing thoughtless film that provokes all that is high school, where life was only about getting laid or finding your next beer, then check out Project X.