Pretty early on in *Pizza Movie*, you’ll get a pretty clear idea of what’s in store. Basically, it’s cut from the same cloth as those stoner movies from the 2000s—only this time, it’s not about weed. It’s the typical hero’s journey starring a pair of social outcasts trying to dodge the consequences of their actions; what’s more, they secretly turn out to be way "cooler" than the kids at the top of the social hierarchy—who, conversely, are superficial and one-dimensional.
You’ve got all the usual archetypes: the nerdy losers, the jock bullies, the girl trying to fit in with the popular crowd only to realize the nerds are actually cooler (she called—*Sydney White* wants her plot back), the Asian love interest who is simultaneously cool and esoteric... need I go on? But hey, at least the movie offers a pretty funny, self-aware twist at the end, so let’s cut right to the chase.
Directors: Nick Kocher, Brian McElhaney
Writers: Nick Kocher, Brian McElhaney
Stars: Gaten Matarazzo, Sean Giambrone, Lulu Wilson
Just as Blake—the dorm RA—is about to toss the pizza into a pit of toxic waste (which, coincidentally, happens to be located in the dilapidated study lounge), Snackotron speeds up a ramp and snatches it out of the air—though, in the process, it ends up crashing right through a window. After Lysander—the butterfly—pitches Blake down the elevator shaft in an act of vengeance, it looks like Jack, Montgomery, and Lizzy might catch a brief breather; however, that’s precisely when their "worst nightmares" come to life.
This is because the time has come for Phase Six of the M.I.N.T.S.-induced hallucinations to kick in—a stage where their worst nightmares manifest and proceed to do unspeakable things to them with a chainsaw. In a scene reminiscent of the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man from *Ghostbusters*, Montgomery is chased by the dancing rat from the ballet *The Nutcracker*; meanwhile, Lizzy sees the girl who shattered her dreams of becoming a magician, and Jack simply sees himself—albeit older and looking somewhat "uncool."
Jumping out the window (using balloons to cushion their fall) allows them to escape and, incidentally, leads them to the spot where Snackotron has crash-landed; once there, the creature regurgitates the pizza to return it to them. But when Blake stands in their way one last time, they decide to resort to the "nuclear option": stuffing his throat with multiple M.I.N.T.S.—despite the creator having warned them that this could lead to the terrible fate of being exposed to the "true nature of reality." So, what is that true nature? Breaking the fourth wall, Blake appears in the writers' room and manages to overhear them discussing how stupid the title *Pizza Movie* is; and when they notice his presence, they simply refer to him as "one of the actors."
When Blake returns to "reality," he simply walks away, muttering about how disappointing it is to be inside a movie—and, to top it all off, as a one-dimensional, poorly written character. Unfortunately, that is precisely the true nature of reality in *Pizza Movie*. But finally, the trio manages to eat their pizza, and their respective monsters vanish; this means Montgomery can at last inform Snackotron that they are satisfied with their order, thereby allowing the diligent robot to fade away and rest in peace.
One of the film's most climactic moments occurs when Montgomery tells Jack that he needs to stop constantly playing the victim. He is so self-centered that he fails to realize he is ignoring the needs of others—even those of his best friend—and that most of the problems he gets entangled in are entirely his own fault. The entire incident in which the football team ended up on the sex offender registry occurred solely because he explicitly disobeyed the coach's instructions. Even the current crisis involving the M.I.N.T.S began because he wouldn't take "no" for an answer and, essentially, forced Monty to take the drugs with him. Toward the end of the film, Jack finally begins to value his friends for what they mean to him, and stops placing so much importance on the fact that he has a "weird face." With his friends by his side, Jack is practically invincible; together, they can tell their critics to go to hell.
Montgomery's major problem has been his attempt to project a completely false image of himself in order to win the affection of a girl who, sooner or later, will have to see him exactly as he really is. Jack accuses him of being a hermit, but Monty is actually highly motivated to go out into the world and truly achieve what he desires.
In the climax of *Pizza Movie*, Lizzy devours the pizza and shakes off the lingering presence of that high school girl who had shattered her dreams of becoming a magician. She then heads to the party bus, where Logan and her other jock friends have been waiting for her to show up and foot the bill; there, she finally severs ties with them by delivering a knee to Logan right between the legs, leaving him writhing in pain on the ground. These "friends" had never actually liked Lizzy; they simply took advantage of her to use her credit card, and the naive Lizzy went along with it because, for once, it felt good to be part of the popular crowd.
She had even abandoned her first two college friends—Jack and Montgomery—the moment the opportunity arose, leaving the board game they were playing unfinished. But by the end of the film, she realizes that her old friends were the ones who truly valued her talents and saw her as a person—not as a credit card with legs. It helps that, when she and Jack swapped bodies, Lizzy was able to witness firsthand how Logan and the others talked about her. With Jack and Monty, she isn't a burden, but rather part of the gang; and as the three of them sit down to finally finish their game, the beautiful high from the M.I.N.T.S finally kicks in, making them feel as though they are floating on a lavender cloud.
On several occasions, the M.I.N.T.S induce effects that, in a sense, defy the laws of reality. The mere fact that Jack, Montgomery, and Lizzy share their hallucinations in real time is highly unusual, though it could be explained by the concept of *folie à deux*: a documented disorder in which delusional symptoms are shared by multiple individuals. However, the situation becomes complicated once they reach the hallucination phase known as "Nothing But the Truth," during which Jack and Monty begin to rewind through time, trapped in a brief loop that repeats itself over and over again.
This reaches the point where they manage to investigate the events they are experiencing—only to somehow re-enter the loop, now armed with that prior knowledge. This must mean that, even if the drugs aren't *actually* sending them back in time, they do grant Jack and Monty (and Lizzy, albeit off-screen) some form of precognition that allows them to perfectly predict what is about to happen—rendering the failed "attempts" nothing more than mere hallucinations. And then there is the guy who gets hit by a soccer ball that Jack kicks right at the beginning of the movie.
When Jack tells him they need to use his window to escape, the man slams the door in his "freak face"—which is understandable enough. But, given that this occurs right in the middle of their "Flashback" phase, Monty simply appears and prevents the guy from getting hit by the ball; and the next time they see him, he is extremely grateful. Did Monty actually change the past by interacting with a flashback? Or was he there all along? I think the simplest way to explain all of this is to lean on the fourth-wall break they surprised us with—and simply acknowledge that this is a movie, and that, in reality, none of it actually matters. But yes: the M.I.N.T.S. do seem to alter reality—though it’s nothing that the power of friendship can’t help them overcome.
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