Project X: Who Knew A Bunch of Geeks Could Throw Such a Great Party?

Director Nima Nourizadeh has managed to take what could have been a disastrously dull, tired premise and produce a film worthy of watching again and again.  Who knew the simple concept of an accidentally out-of-hand party three losers in Pasedina, California throw could bring as many laughs and as much nuance.

Premise: 3 high school seniors throw a birthday party that quickly spirals out of control as word of the party spreads.  Result: A hilarious thrill ride that completely exceeds expectations.

It is Thomas’s (Thomas Mann) birthday.  His buddies Costa (Oliver Cooper) and JB (Jonathan Daniel Brown) decide that they will help him celebrate by throwing him a birthday party while his parents are away. Dax (Dax Flame) helps by filming the entire episode.  The hitch is that the group is basically a band of geeks and misfits and it is unlikely anyone will even show to the party, despite being seniors.  So Costa decides that he will try to make this party “epic.”

While the premise is relatively straight-forward, the overall experience is anything but tired or predictable.  Nourizadeh expertly establishes the characters, each with his own unique endearing qualities and constraints and even manages to develop sub-plots, such as Thomas’ parents belief that he is a loser and Thomas’ deep-seeded feelings for childhood friend and now super hot (Kirby Bliss Blanton).

On the surface, none of this is particularly groundbreaking and even borders cliché.  However, the result is an often hilarious crucible of epic proportions.  While at first things look to be less than successful, in only moments the floodgates open and the party arrives.  It doesn’t take long for everything to spiral completely out of the control of Thomas and his motley crew.  Despite hiring some zealous security guards (they are in middle school at best – no issues there right?) nothing Thomas can do keeps the party from raging like a wildfire.  Midgets, body shots, skinny dipping, homicidal drug dealers, tazers – everything that can be imagined seems to come alive. Not to mention a hysterical cameo by Miles Teller that really drives home the absurdity.

The neighbors become powerless and even the police are quickly crushed under the weight of the near-rioting crowds.  And throughout, Nourizadeh manages to use not only the major events as fodder for laughs, but the less visible and perhaps more impactful responses and reactions of the three protagonists. As these three grow on screen, mortified and excited by the madness around them, the film becomes more interesting, more memorable.  This is not simply about a party gone wild, it is about a group of boys whose lives are changing forever, for better or worse it is impossible to say. It is this aspect that helps take this film from simple comedy to a complex film. 

The acting in this film is an important component of what makes it work.  For the humor to work, the characters must seem real, believable and worthy of sympathy.  Mann is perfect in this role, as a young, innocent boy watching his life fall into ruins.  He is equal parts mortified and elated.  Cooper, for his part, is indispensible; he manages to create an aura around his character that will keep audiences watching his every move throughout.  Every line is delivered effortlessly and with great, comedic payoff.  Brown is somehow able to survive the presence of the other two and come into his own.  Brown’s understated comedy is a perfect foil for Cooper’s loud mouth Costa and audiences will not be disappointed.

Overall, Project X was a very pleasant surprise.  Nourizadeh and his talented cast make a film with non-stop laughs that also tells an important story about a group of boys coming into their own.  With any luck, this film will set a trend for similar films that surpass expectations.

Rating: 8 – An expensive red wine and juicy steak