This review is a bit complicated, I not only want to review the movie that Shane Dawson directed, but also give a brief overview of the show that led me to the movie The Chair, plus my thoughts on how Zachary Quinto represented Pittsburgh. Please bear with me and try to follow along, but if I lose you the review of the movie is at the bottom in green and you can skip to that.
The Chair was a show that just aired on Starz and was the creation of Chris Moore (he's a super producer) that pitted two film makers against each other by giving them the exact same script and seeing how each makes it their own. Brought on to help produce the show and each film was Zachary Quinto, Cory Moosa and Josh Shader. The entire show and each film were shot in my home town of Pittsburgh PA (another reason I really enjoyed the journey). Through 9 episodes we follow each crew on their journey to make their movie and on the 10th episode we are shown who's movie performed the best.
The Chair was a great show from a teaching stand point, but did paint the two directors in a very unfavorable light. Through out the course of the show your lead to believe that one is a "real" film maker and the other is just a guy who makes Youtube videos. Yet this underlying tone doesn't really hit you until Zachary Quinto flat out calls Shane Dawson's movie a waste of money and that he was so offended that he was pulling his name from the movie.
Here is where I take a quick detour... Zachary Quinto is a great actor and Pittsburgh native, hence the reason of the show taking place in the Burgh, when he made the statement of the film being so bad I knew I had to see 'Not Cool' because Pittsburghers aren't ever wrong. Now imagine my surprise when I watched Not Cool and it's everything BUT a horrible film.
Mr.Quinto was the face of Pittsburgh, whether he likes it or not, on the show and to say the things he said about Shane Dawson's movie not only makes it look like we as a city have no sense of humor, but you trashed a kid who made a decent flick just because you don't "like" raunchy comedy. Someone in your position should show some tact and still support the film you helped make. But the motive for Mr. Quinto's outspoken detachment from the film are a lot less nobel than you would think. The other director on the film had ties to Quinto prior to the show and is the reason why she was even considered for the show. It wasn't Quinto making a personal stand, it was the schoolyard mentality of "my friend is better than you". I applaud Moore and Moosa for standing by the project...Now back to the actual review.
Not Cool is a movie that follows the character of Scott (Shane Dawson) over the course of Thanksgiving break when he returns home from college. Upon his return he is quickly dumped by his girlfriend and left to wallow alone over the holiday break....or so he thought.
What really sells the overall story of the movie is the cast. Each actor really brings a sense of believability to their roles. Having never heard of Shane Dawson prior to The Chair and this film, I wasn't expecting the performance he delivered. His comedic beats were on time, but his ability to deliver during the dramatic scenes is what really brings it home. His costar Cherami Leigh delivers a very memorable performance akin to Rachael Leigh Cook's performance in She's All That, but what really pulls you into the film is the B story of Joel (Drew Monson) and Janie (Michelle Veintimilla). Monson plays the socially awkward, love struck, dorky character to a T and Veintimilla is perfect as the drop dead gorgeous sister of Scott who is far smarter than the "friends" she surrounds herself with. The stars aligned for Dawson on this project when it came to casting.
The cinematography of the movie is very sharp, Frank Paladino did a great job of shooting this and painting the city of Pittsburgh in a beautiful light. One scene that stands out to me takes place in Heinz Field and if you were to walk in on just that scene you would believe this was a Fault in our Stars type drama. Again hats of to this man.
There is nothing offensive at all in the film, it is very humorous with the right beats of dramatic elements to balance. One of the funniest elements comes from Dawson who plays the popular girl
and does this funny over the top valley girl who loves to party. Not Cool is in the same vein as American Pie, Can't Hardly Wait, Premature and a slew of Nation Lampoon's type movies. If you liked any of those, then without a doubt you will enjoy this.
Rating on this one is 7.5/10 stars, it's a solid rental and a buy if you enjoy humor.