Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
RSVP: Attending! January 12, 2008, a dog squad, helicopters and a police team arrive at the Worthington’s home in Australia. Why? Corey Worthington decided to throw an unsupervised party that resulted in a rampage of 500 teenagers and a $20,000 fine.
Some would say a ‘small’ price to pay for a young teen, now known as an international legend. This may have happened over four years ago, but it inspired a film entitled Project X that today is being labelled ‘best party movie ever’.
Although the appeal and enjoyment of Project X may largely depend on your age, there is no doubt it will still leave you drowning in its escalating bath of havoc. With its lack of plot, the best way to describe this film is a cross between Superbad and Paranormal Activity.
It follows Thomas Kub, a ‘loser’ in high school desperate to be cool, and his three friends, Costa, J.B and Dax.
Costa, a foul-mouthed hormone-fuelled imbecile, convinces Thomas to throw the greatest 17th birthday party ever, when his parents are out of town.
Word spreads and 50 invites snowballs to 1,500. The party eventually spirals out of control and transforms into an image comparable to the recent London riots: the lunatics are taking over the asylum.
We witness the events unfold through the unsteady lens of Dax’s camera, which doesn’t seem to miss any unforgettable moments. Provocative girls, a drug-induced dog, a bouncy castle and a car being driven into a swimming pool are just a few of the found footage.
Nevertheless, the selfish attitude toward rewarding socially unacceptable behaviour comes off as exciting. The film doesn’t pretend to have any morals and the dangerous part is – I believe that’s what left me craving more!
The hand-held documentary aesthetic and use of an unknown cast, like that of Paranormal Activity, ironically throws any sense of realism out the window as the night’s events progress, but who cares? I’m watching it for the party.
Director Nima Nourizadeh, famous for his unique and stylised music videos, sticks to what he knows best – making the film seem like a lengthened Prodigy music video blighted with montages of found footage edited to the beat of loud music.
Yet it is still clear that the influence of Todd Phillips, the producer of Project X, emerges throughout the film. Being famous for directing the Hangover 1 and 2, the humour and characters are comparable, yet being reduced to the high school version, with the addition of the dog and a groin-punching dwarf.
Even the added shock value of the crazy character introduced in the first 15 minutes of the film is destined for reappearance, something recognisable in Phillips’ films.
While vulgar, reckless and in my opinion, outrageous, it left the teenager in me smirking throughout. Those were not tears of laughter but tears of longing to be part of the unholy chaos. If it’s 88 minutes of heedless amusement you’re looking for then you’re set. However, if you’re expecting to be left brooding your existence, then this is not the movie for you.
Showing in Cineco and Seef II
