Project X

Released: 2012

Directed By: Nima Nourizadeh

Starring: Thomas Mann, Oliver Cooper

Certificate: 18

Reviewed By: Richard O’Toole

Project X is the story of three high school friends who throw a party which rapidly gets out of hand. Having gone through high school pretty much unnoticed by their fellow peers, Thomas’s (Thomas Mann) friends, Costa (Oliver Cooper) and JB (Jonathon Daniel Brown) decide to throw him a birthday party he’ll never forget. The catch being, the party is at his house and more than one thousand people have been invited, or rather, everybody is invited.

Project X follows a very simple, generic formula: a bunch of teens, a lot of alcohol and an empty house, which very often leads to an entertaining film. This is certainly the case with Project X. If you watch this with the mind set you’re about to see one of the most hilarious teen comedies ever, then you won’t be left disappointed. You will see a hilarious film from start to finish, but there’s something unique about Project X which really differentiates it from other teen comedies I’ve seen. The difference could possibly be because of how it’s filmed. Project X is filmed entirely on a handheld device, well actually devices; apparently lots of handheld recording devices were given to party goers and main characters to record the party scenes from their perspective.

This was a big-screen directing debut for Nima Nourizadeh, who I wasn’t surprised to discover had directed a few music videos before hand. Project X, in parts feels like a giant music video, which is greatly helped by the soundtrack and the party atmosphere. The film seamlessly goes from narrative to party madness and then back to narrative and so on. I wouldn’t class it as the most difficult film to direct, so it will be interesting to see what Nourizadeh follows this up with. I hope he isn’t type cast for music-video-party-genre filming.

The casting of the film was in favour for unknown talent, this in turn would help make believe the party had really happened. As well as this many actors got to use their real names, or abbreviations of their real names, for instance JB who’s real name is Jonathon Brown. Though the acting is not amazing, they pull it off as believable (as believable as drugged up/wasted teenagers can be). The real stand-out characters are the two party security guards, Brady Hender and Nick Nervies, who completely steal every scene they are in.

If you love your random, chaotic teen parties then Project X will leave you smiling and wanting to watch it again, or at least it did with me.