Project X

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Release Date: 2 March 2012

Directed by: Nima Nourizadeh

Starring: Jonathan Daniel Brown, Miles Teller, Alexis Knapp, Thomas Mann, Martin Klebba, Eddie Hassell, Kirby Bliss Blanton, Sam Lant, Nichole O'Connor

It really is a shame that the mystery surrounding films has vanished - that's the price of the internet, really. Yet every once in a while, an enigmatic production shows up apparently out of nowhere. Project X has a very simple urban legend-based concept. A bunch of uncool kids have a party that gets completely out of hand, and the whole thing is filmed by a pal to serve as evidence of their newfound coolness. Playing like the missing bits of The Hangover crossed with Superbad and filtered through The Inbetweeners, this is wonderfully unhinged and consistently hilarious stuff.
Thomas, even by his own father's admission, is not a cool kid. Largely overlooked in high school, he and his boisterous buddy Costa and introverted pal JB plan a social gathering of some of the cooler kids in school. But as more and more people turn up to the party, Thomas begins to panic and the whole street is taken over by rowdy party animals attending what becomes the shindig of the decade.
It's worth pointing out that all of the main cast use their real names, and the vibe here is very much that of a documentary. There are a couple of very slick montages, but for the most part, it's the same kind of execution you've seen in monster flicks (Cloverfield) and superhero movies (Chronicle) before. If you have a sense of deja-vu about the whole thing, you may have seen some of debut British director Nourizadeh's previous work - he directed that Adidas "party" ad with a slew of celebrities. Producer Todd Phillips apparently saw that, and decided he was the perfect man to helm this movie. Having sat through it, his logic is hard to fault.
It's fair to say that Project X isn't exactly a groundbreaking, or even a very good movie. The plot is extremely basic, and the tacked-on friend-that-could-be-a-girlfriend thread is there simply to provide a more amiable ending. But, as a party movie that's main focus is to entertain and amuse, it is an absolute blast and almost ridiculously enjoyable. The three main cast members are note perfect in their roles, and crucially, they actually look like teens. Oliver Cooper, in particular, should see a healthy career bump on the back of his very funny work; he owns the obligatory 'crass friend' role.
The kind of film that will make pre-drinks before a night out much more enjoyable for years to come, Project X is both very funny, and very fun.

Review by Mike Sheridan