Project X (1987)

Project X is one of those rare studio films that sneaks a real moral punch into an entertaining, crowd-pleasing package: a warm, funny, quietly furious story about empathy in a place built to suppress it. Jonathan Kaplan keeps the tone brisk and accessible—part buddy movie, part conspiracy-tinged sci‑fi—while letting the bond between Matthew Broderick’s earnest airman and the chimps land with surprising emotional weight, with Helen Hunt adding a grounded, human spark. It’s suspenseful without being cynical, and it finds genuine adventure in the simple act of choosing decency when the rules say don’t. Fair warning: if animal-testing themes hit too close to home, it can be a tough watch—but if you can handle that, it’s smart, heartfelt, and far better than its title suggests.

Project X wants to be a crowd-pleasing mix of Cold War paranoia, animal-rights outrage, and feel-good comedy, with Matthew Broderick as the likable everyman caught in a morally ugly program. The problem is the film leans hard on emotional buttons, and the script often feels manipulative and overly sentimental, asking you to buy plot turns that don’t always hold up under basic logic. The tonal blend can be awkward too: it pivots from cute chimp antics to grim implications in a way that may feel strained rather than seamless. If you’re sensitive to stories about animals being used in experiments or you dislike “tearjerker” storytelling dressed up as a light comedy, this probably isn’t for you, but if you can accept a soft-edged, mainstream message movie, the charm of the cast and the chimps may still carry it.