Project X

Nima Nourizadeh directs and Todd Phillips of The Hangover produces this tale of teenage debauchery shot through found-footage coverage of the best party in the history of house parties.

Starring Thomas Mann as Thomas, the loser son who has to look after the house whilst his parents are away celebrating their anniversary.  Influenced heavily by Costa (Oliver Cooper), a kid from Queens who has moved to middle America suburbia and finds himself at the bottom of the high school food chain, the boys decide to throw a party for all time.

What slowly becomes a small event to gain acceptance and cool credits, descends quickly into a flash mob of destruction as the whole school and neighbourhood attend the shin dig.  The boys fail to control the event, attempting to keep it solely in the garden and pool, quickly the party comes inside and the sheer level of damage done to the house is mind-boggling.

Whilst the party holds a purpose for the three lame boys to rise up in the ranks, the party holds no narrative thread and instead is just a basis for a string of skits and gimmicks that would be more at home on youtube clips, where people capture the moment or party tricks are shared with the world.

A nice romantic thread is forgotten about quickly, and the boys punishment for such a horrible display of recklessness and fecklessness is nothing more than a slap on the wrists.  In terms of a narrative thrust with traditional cause and effect, what effect does this party have on the community is forgotten about in the wake of having a good time.

In comparison to Superbad, the better attempt of losers attempting to gain some respect in high school, Project X is as lame as the characters it tries to put on a pedestal.

Project X is out on DVD on Monday 2nd July from Warner Bros