Aaron Ploof
Pizza Movie is one of the craziest films that has ever been released. It’s not particularly deep, and its plot and characters don’t always make the most sense, but it is endlessly inventive and hilarious. Like a good slice of pepperoni pizza, it knows that something doesn’t necessarily need to be hearty to be fun.
Gaten Matarazzo of Stranger Things fame shares the screen with Sean Giambrone from TV’s The Goldbergs. The two actors play Jack and Montgomery, respectively, two college kids who are decidedly not living their best lives. Jack spends the opening sequence running from fellow students, due to his sabotage of the football team (don’t ask). Montgomery, meanwhile, is sprinting to the laundromat to orchestrate his own meet-cute with his crush, Ashley (Peyton Elizabeth Lee of the Andi Mack series). Both situations end up going horribly wrong, so Jack and Monty plan to sit back and chug some alcohol in their dorm room. Unfortunately, the bullies catch wind of their plans and ruin their evening.
Soon after, the two buds find a container of drugs on Jack’s desk, which has apparently fallen from above the ceiling. The tin sports a Rick and Morty-like smile and is curiously marked M.I.N.T.S. After doing a bit of research, they come across just one video online. The creator of the drugs, Frankie (Saturday Night Live’s Sarah Sherman), assures the two that they’ll be given an incredible high if they take them. Specifically, they’ll “make [them] feel like [they’re] floating on a cloud of lavender, being sung to by lollipop pixies.” Jack, in the mood for a thrill, convinces (read: pushes) Monty to partake.
The two only later realize in Pizza Movie that unless they manage to get pizza in their system, they’ll be subjected to a series of increasingly bizarre and troublesome stages of the drug’s effects. Desperate to get their paws on a few slices, they order a pie. Unfortunately, to get downstairs to where the delivery robot is, they’ll have to brave patrolling R.A.’s and the ever-increasing insanity of the drug’s effects. Cue the craziness.
Some of these stages have the most creative sequences I’ve seen in film. The ideas that the film runs with are inherently absurd. In fact, it’s probably safe to assume that the writers of the film were high themselves. On that note, the rules of the movie are extremely flexible and stretchy. This allows for contradictions in the writing of the scenarios. Pizza Movie pokes fun at itself consistently, breaking the fourth wall, creating in-jokes, and playing on cliches. Some of the jokes can be juvenile and crude in nature, but most of them are hilarious.
The plot is thin, as are the characters. They do have arcs, but they’re not developed enough to earn strong emotional payoff, though they do grow. Still, Matarazzo and Giambrone have excellent chemistry, and their work throughout the fast-paced action of the film is highly entertaining. As Pizza Movie continues, Jack learns to be less pushy and selfish, while Monty grows to be more comfortable with himself as a person.
Pizza Movie takes digs at the manosphere culture and instead encourages healthy expression of the self through honesty and friendship. These themes tie into Lulu Wilson’s character, Lizzy, a fellow student who abandoned Jack and Montgomery to join the more popular crowd. She also imbibes the M.I.N.T.S., and so is equally determined to get some pizza. Wilson gels with both Matarazzo and Giambrone, making up the perfect comedic trio.
Jack Martin of TV’s La Brea plays Blake, the villain of the film. He’s an R.A. leader whose devious plot is revealed as the movie progresses. Blake makes the most of his role, purposefully playing the character without nuance, and instead delivering a villain that commands the screen through a comedic caricature of evil. Caleb Hearon (Jurassic World Dominion) plays one of his subordinates, Sidney, who makes for a few good laughs.
All of these facets roll together to make one surprisingly good recipe. The climax of Pizza Movie is filled with thrilling action, laugh-out-loud moments, and an ingenious joke that will change your perception of the entire proceeding. With this one joke, the movie excuses itself from making any coherent sense at all, and it’s all the better for it.
Pizza Movie is crazy. Head exploding, hand puppet talking, slime monster swallowing, butterfly talking, kinds of crazy. It might not make sense, but that’s one of its main features. Gaten Matarazzo has a strong future in comedic film and has proven that he’s not just a one-time success. Giambrone and Wilson only add to the fun nature of the proceedings. That isn’t to imply that this film is in any way meant to be taken seriously. On the contrary. So, order a pizza, take a M.I.N.T., watch the movie on Hulu, and experience the high.
