After being captured in Africa, young chimp Virgil is sent to Graduate student Teri MacDonald (Helen Hunt) where she trains him in sign language as part of her thesis. When Teri's grant is terminated, the NHF that owns Virgil supposedly relocates Virgil to a zoo in Houston, Texas under protest from Teri. However Virgil actually ends up in the custody of the U. S. Air Force for usage in flight simulation research. Airman Jimmy Garrett (Matthew Broderick), whose brash, rebellious behavior has landed him in trouble with the Air Force Brass is reassigned to the Experimental Pilot Program where he will train Chimpanzees in flight simulators, including Virgil. Virgil and Jimmy quickly bond once Jimmy learns about sign language, but eventually he comes to realize that the flight sim training is only part of more extensive research that is deadly to the Chimpanzee subjects.
Released in 1987, Project X reteams Mathew Broderick with Wargames screenwriters Walter F. Parkes and Lawrence Lasker(albeit the latter in a producing role). The film is a strange mixture of Wargames, Top Gun, and The Barefoot Executive with a premise that starts out fairly realistic only to get stranger and more outrageous as it goes on. The movie is made with clear effort on display as its cast of chimp actors are incredibly well trained with distinguished personalities and moments of both humor and pathos, and while I do recommend people see the movie, it's without question one of the most tonally confused films I've ever seen with a strange mixture of drama, thriller, and animal shenanigans humor that just leaves you wondering "how?"
Matthew Broderick feels fairly miscast unfortunately in this film as he's positioned as this maverick rebel that feels like it was more in mind with someone like Tom Cruise or Charlie Sheen. Broderick feels like he's here purely for the Wargames connection, but in Wargames he was more fitting with the character written for him and with Broderick's wide eyed soft-spoken delivery he just doesn't sell the character he's playing. The movie's tone is all over the map with scenes of drama, humor, and tension transitioned fairly haphazardly from one to another and more often than not the scene transitions end with fades to black that don't create much of a sense of flow.
The movie does do a good job of making the chimp's feel like characters with Virgil well trained in Sign Language and conveying mood and character without the need to overly humanize the apes. The scenes where we see Virgil bond with Teri and Jimmy are well done with a lot of heart felt moments and there's some rich material showing how for lack of a better word human these apes are. The movie stretches credibility in a third act that juggles comic, tragic, and even elements of nuclear paranoia and the climax further stretches belief with an absolute howler of an ending involving the ultimate fate of the chimps. I'd be lying if I said the film didn't keep my attention throughout its runtime (tonal inconsistency and all) but in terms of sheer entertainment value this is without question the most effort that has ever gone into a chimp movie and it certainly feels like it.
Project X is a strange film. It tries to bring attention to the troubling ethics of primate experimentation but it tone that swings uneasily to comedy, drama, and suspense without much in the way of transition makes its message feel somewhat muddled. Most of the cast do a fairly good job, but Broderick feels miscast in a role that would've suited an actor who could convey more brash arrogance. The movie stretches credibility to a near breaking point in its third act, but in terms of keeping my attention from beginning to end I can say Project X never left me feeling bored.
Released in 1987, Project X reteams Mathew Broderick with Wargames screenwriters Walter F. Parkes and Lawrence Lasker(albeit the latter in a producing role). The film is a strange mixture of Wargames, Top Gun, and The Barefoot Executive with a premise that starts out fairly realistic only to get stranger and more outrageous as it goes on. The movie is made with clear effort on display as its cast of chimp actors are incredibly well trained with distinguished personalities and moments of both humor and pathos, and while I do recommend people see the movie, it's without question one of the most tonally confused films I've ever seen with a strange mixture of drama, thriller, and animal shenanigans humor that just leaves you wondering "how?"
Matthew Broderick feels fairly miscast unfortunately in this film as he's positioned as this maverick rebel that feels like it was more in mind with someone like Tom Cruise or Charlie Sheen. Broderick feels like he's here purely for the Wargames connection, but in Wargames he was more fitting with the character written for him and with Broderick's wide eyed soft-spoken delivery he just doesn't sell the character he's playing. The movie's tone is all over the map with scenes of drama, humor, and tension transitioned fairly haphazardly from one to another and more often than not the scene transitions end with fades to black that don't create much of a sense of flow.
The movie does do a good job of making the chimp's feel like characters with Virgil well trained in Sign Language and conveying mood and character without the need to overly humanize the apes. The scenes where we see Virgil bond with Teri and Jimmy are well done with a lot of heart felt moments and there's some rich material showing how for lack of a better word human these apes are. The movie stretches credibility in a third act that juggles comic, tragic, and even elements of nuclear paranoia and the climax further stretches belief with an absolute howler of an ending involving the ultimate fate of the chimps. I'd be lying if I said the film didn't keep my attention throughout its runtime (tonal inconsistency and all) but in terms of sheer entertainment value this is without question the most effort that has ever gone into a chimp movie and it certainly feels like it.
Project X is a strange film. It tries to bring attention to the troubling ethics of primate experimentation but it tone that swings uneasily to comedy, drama, and suspense without much in the way of transition makes its message feel somewhat muddled. Most of the cast do a fairly good job, but Broderick feels miscast in a role that would've suited an actor who could convey more brash arrogance. The movie stretches credibility to a near breaking point in its third act, but in terms of keeping my attention from beginning to end I can say Project X never left me feeling bored.