Film: Project X
Starring: Thomas Mann, Oliver Cooper, Jonathan Daniel Brown
Directed by: Nima Nourizadeh

The party stops here.

Opening today, Project X is the latest attempt from major studios to appeal to the increasingly judgmental and disinterested teen/young adult demographic through sex, drugs, and hip hop. The hijinks are high, much like the characters, but the results showcase nothing more than a cheap thrill disguised in shaky cam teensploitation and boobs.

Project X follow three friends whose names rarely matter as their characters are easily classifiable as the fat one, the cute one, and the asshole, on an adventure to finally become cool by throwing a party in celebration of the cute one’s birthday. As with any film where the asshole plans the event, things quickly go from a small get together to an all-out bash, and crowd control quickly becomes a very real issue. Before they know it, our three friends find themselves amongst hundreds of faces, many of whom are portrayed as being on narcotics or simply hanging out topless, and without any power to control the insanity that surrounds them.

From the earliest ads, Project X hoisted itself onto a platform that few films could ever hope to reach. It was not just billed as a party movie or sex comedy, it was the party of the century, which to me means I should probably leave the theater speed dialing my friends with a palpable thirst for real life raunch. However, at a time where R-rated comedies are frequent and pushing the envelope is a must, X does little, if anything to venture into new territory. Just because you add a shaky cam, or six, does not mean that you have suddenly reinvented the comedy wheel. If anything, it means you captured it poorly.

If you have seen a single commercial, preview, or trailer for Project X it is very likely that you have seen nearly every major twist the movie has to offer. The film gives everything away up front then asks you to sit and watch it be captured poorly while a variety of over-the-top sequences take place around, but almost never directly involving or caused by the leads. Though it has its moments, Project X is essentially like watching three nerds sit out their own party and capture the madness. Sound like fun? Thought not.

Review written by: James Shotwell (Twitter)

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James Shotwell

James Shotwell is the founder of Under The Gun Review. He loves writing about music and movies almost as much as he loves his two fat cats. He's also the co-founder of Antique Records and the Marketing Coordinator for Haulix. You should probably follow him on Twitter.

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