LIKES:
The Story Component To A Bit
-Surprisingly, the movie has a few surprisingly deep moments to the characters past the usual stone comedy.
-The main characters have the aspect of friendship I understand, alongside having great motivations with some surprises along the way.
-I got the brotherhood that we see in the moments, and the tests of loyalty/family.
-I get the love of things and people and appreciated the challenges they had, even if they were worked out too easily.
-And there are some other elements that are a bit surprising and again, sort of work for entertainment and big picture. It teaches lessons, adds devices, and helps to keep the comedy spin on things, but yet elevating to a more engaging piece. So that is awesome for me.
Some of the Jokes Nail The timing and Are perfect
-There are times where I was losing it with laughter. A timed joke that hits the elements of delivery with that right timing
-Several of these jokes have build-up, engaging and setting it up for a time later before laying that haymaker on you to knock you out with laughter.
-Others are just so random and awkward that you can't help but laugh at the delivery and making the simple words really feel like a perfect punch.
-I love the outtakes as well, because it kind of is as silly as the movie itself and even those have just enough teasing to be fun.
-These moments are the parts that helped me enjoy the movie most and get through some of the lesser enjoyable parts.
Two Particular Scenes
-One is about dancing, which you expect at a party. It integrates the talents of the group, adds some great music, brings the mood of the party with it, adds a few cameos, and is just fun.
-That dance scene is the magic I love when they are able to bring comedy, craziness, and all the themes together, and really break out so much in one move.
-The second scene I can't say much, but it's a nice little, if stupid, tangent that offers even more comedic prowess.
-It gets away from the drug humor, and brings a darker twist, that though laughable, uncomfortable, and downright disturbing at times.
-But, it takes a break, throws a curve ball, and adds a few more comedic styles to the mix that make it really, really, really good and once more brings some fun cameos to the mix.
-These two moments are the part that know how to utilize the stupidity of this movie right, and the satire, though a little over the top, is welcome compared to a lot of the other movie's theatrics.
Some of the Music
-The audience I watched this with, really got into all the songs that they blasted through the speakers. I can't say I blame them.
-The songs I knew, that had the amazing beats, were the ones I really loved. Others, not so much, but if you know the attitude and love the songs no matter what type of lyrics or groove they have, you'll love the film.
-Even more, the songs sometimes are used again as a set up for jokes, and twice used for story purposes which only makes me appreciate them more when I see them use it to that level.
The Cameos
-One of my friends who saw this, said it best, "The Cameos make the movie."
-House Party takes all the cameos it can, and runs with them, often timing some of the best jokes with them showing up.
-The casual jokes, the awkward one-liners, the stupidity of the moment just said right, and sometimes more, are what they do with the big celebrities showing up.
-When you see the energy and add the starstruck moments to it, it really helps sell the moment well and poke fun at the entertainment tropes we've come to make.
-Like Family Guy in the early stages, this movie's use of just about every star they could muster, really hits the themes and tone of this movie so well that it sometimes overtakes the rest of the story they were trying to make.
-Still that was enjoyable to me and worth the biggest praise for me in this film.
DISLIKES:
Most of the Characters
-Many of these characters might be "real", but they aren't very likeable, quality, or really enjoyable for me until the end.
-The darker tones of the comedy, alongside the idiocy of their actions make it so that you kind of hope they get busted to stop the reckless behavior.
-And it isn't' until the end that the growth occurs, but it's hasty, simplistic, and pretty much pointless given they don't do much with it and sort of overwrite with the ending montage.
-For those who want characters with a little diversity and compassion, you are going to have few options to be honest, so just be warned if you haven't made the connections or have the hopes.
The Antagonists:
-Many comedies have a good antagonist to enjoy in some form or manner. Home Alone, Goodfellas, Baywatch, even Beverly Hills Cop, have those bad guys that are bad and you know it.
-House Party though, is just sad, stupid and boastful buffoons who are so overacted comedy it does nothing but make for annoying characters to put up with.
-If you latch on to the jokes, you have an angle to like it, but they just do nothing for me and almost have little need for the movie other than again cameos and over the top jokes.
-The attempt at the inclusion and story is kind of pointless, and I would have found more use for them or redesigned their characters to make their purpose needed and worth having to see the few scenes where their mindless drivel was worth it.
Comedy Wasn't Relevant To Me
-There are times where the comedy did so much for me, and had me laughing, but sadly that was few and far between.
-This movie is certainly geared towards a limited audience and does not have the diversity of styles that other movies have done better.
-If you don't have the lingo down, don't know the culture, the music, or the references they are making, then a lot of this might go over your head.
-Drug humor to this extent just goes down rabbit hole of excessive and excessively dumb, almost that you should be high or drunk to really enjoy it yourself.
-While the shallow characters do little to help things out, again making it boring for me as I wait for more jokes to go over my head.
-Fortunately, the farther you get, the farther you get to the better moments that finally break away from this, and give you appreciation for the other stories.
LeBron's Acting At Times
-Again, the man is a sport's star, and I don't expect him to win any Oscars.
-But it's painful at times to watch him try to act, and see the cameos are better.
-That is part of the comedy style at times, but other times, I thought it was a legitimate attempt and it crashed and burned for me.
-And then they had to shovel it in too much, but hey... it's short lived so that's a plus.
Some Jokes Go Way Too Far
-Sometimes it goes way too far as to being inappropriate, a dig that should have been left undug and left for a deleted scene to go and explore.
-Other times it's a joke that is so stupid, you again either have to get everything, like extremes, or be intoxicated to really get the moment when you see the other things they have done.
-And sometimes the jokes just keep going on and without the fresh spin, leading to again... too far.
-This movie is about excess and that's the comedy style you have to like for the most part to really enjoy it.
The Writing Can Be Lazy At Times
-First of all, excessive cussing to me is not good writing. It needs to be timed and selected to dominate the use of it.
-Second, the jokes get stale, the awkwardness sometimes goes nowhere, and the story is so limping, confused and filled with filling that it again shows how this movie seemed to struggle in the storyboard stage.
-Sure, it's stupid fun, but there are other movies that do similar aspects with a better premise to it, and this was one that just seemed to take memes and make a story from it.
-As such, not really worth saying it's good writing, better at times and clever at others, but some will call me stuck-up or pretentious when the theme is supposed to be fun.
The VERDICT:
House Party is what you expect, a very stupid, over the top, in your face comedy that is all about tearing up the theater with so many simplistic, in your face, and often stale tactics to get a laugh. The plus side, the movie does have those little flecks of diamonds in the gold bands of the grill, finding some great scenes and jokes that execute well. Story, characters, music, and jokes all have these grade A moments that showed what the film could have been had it been guided by the minds on these moments and helped polish some of the excessive stupidity away. But if you don't have the culture, the references appreciated, or aren't into excess, this is a comedy that might be too limited. The characters are annoying, the antics simplistic, stale, repetitive, and the direction kind of limited to condense into a timeline. Cameos are there to assist for the most part, but that was the only consistency I enjoyed to help get me through the silliness and aggressive red-brand trailer theatrics we have. If you can do all that, this movie will easily be an 8-10 for you. However, because of the other movies I've seen that do it better, this movie is a bit too geared to specific audience types for me to give it higher points. There is potential, there is fun, and there are again those perfect moments for me like the dance scene. But the excessive tide of in your face comedy does little for me given my past and lifestyle. Therefore, my scores are:
Comedy: 6.0
Movie Overall: 4.5-5.0.
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