A road-trip comedy co-written by Green Day, with the band popping in for cameos, 'Nimrods' sends three teenagers on a New Year's Eve chase across the country after a cruel prank plants the idea that they've been invited to open for their idols.
Time Out's take on the movie lands somewhere between fond shrug and warm embrace: formulaic, sure, but fun, scrappy, and impossible to dislike.
At a glance:
- 'Nimrods' was co-written by Green Day, who also appear in cameos.
- Mason Thames, Kylr Coffman, and Ryan Foust lead the cast as the trio.
- The plot hinges on a prank that triggers an impromptu cross-country drive.
- The soundtrack leans heavily on Green Day from start to finish.
- It is set for a one-day theatrical run on Aug. 11 in UK and Irish cinemas.
What's the setup?
Three teens who play together under the hilariously schoolboy-misreadable name Analogue Dogs find themselves at a meet-and-greet, where they hand a demo tape to the band. Tommy (Mason Thames), the joker (Kylr Coffman), and the shy one, Chad (Ryan Foust), then get the worst gift of their lives from Tommy's brother Wayne (Keen Ruffalo, son of Mark): a hard-to-believe story that Green Day wants them in California to open a New Year's Eve show. None of them can drive, none of them own a car, and none of them have any practical reason to believe this is real. The road trip starts anyway.
Why does the movie land?
The premise is, by the reviewer's own admission, comfortable and even predictable. What elevates it, per Time Out, is the easy, lived-in chemistry of the three leads. There's no phone in sight for most of the runtime; the analogue framing isn't merely a band name, it's an aesthetic, and it gives the cast room to actually play off each other instead of staring at screens. Foust finds the right note for a teenager caught between parental pressure and guitar-amp volume; Coffman supplies the cannonball line readings; Thames carries the picture.
The reviewer also flags a late scene between Thames and Ruffalo as the film's most quietly effective beat, the kind of moment that hints at a more grown-up version of this story hiding underneath the keg-stand set-pieces.
Our analysis
'Nimrods' is doing a very specific job in 2025: it's the movie you take a group to when the group can't agree on anything. There's no franchise homework, no spoilers to fear, no algorithm-bait cameo to wait for. It's also a film that knows exactly what it is. The borrowed Green Day tracks aren't background dressing; they're the structural material. A couple of bar-set-piece beats feel cribbed from older road pictures, and the runtime is a touch long for a plot this thin, but neither problem registers as fatal.
For nightlife audiences, the more interesting read is what the movie gets right about how young bands actually move. The gear, the van, the bad motel, the gig in the biker bar that goes better than it has any right to — that sequence captures a specific corner of bar culture without romanticizing it. If you've ever watched an unsigned band blow the roof off a dive on a Tuesday, this film will feel like a postcard from that memory.
What it means for you
Say you're putting together a low-stakes night out and want a film that pairs well with a few pints afterward. 'Nimrods' is built for that brief. Hit a venue that still books local punk and power-pop acts, queue up the early-Green Day deep cuts on the jukebox, and you've basically staged the film's natural follow-up.
Bottom line
'Nimrods' isn't trying to be more than a postcard from your younger self. It earns its ending, leans on a soundtrack everyone already knows, and gets out before it overstays. Time Out describes it as obvious but sweet-natured and enjoyable — and that's a fair epitaph for a movie that never pretends to be anything else.
Key takeaways
- Green Day co-wrote 'Nimrods' and pop up in cameos.
- Mason Thames anchors a strong three-lead cast.
- The soundtrack carries the film, closing with "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)."
- It is a small, sincere road-trip movie that knows its lane.
Frequently asked questions
When does 'Nimrods' open?
It screens on Aug. 11 in UK and Irish cinemas only, according to Time Out.
Who stars in 'Nimrods'?
Mason Thames, Kylr Coffman, and Ryan Foust lead the cast as the three friends, per Time Out.
Did Green Day work on the film?
Yes; Green Day co-wrote the script and appear in bookending cameos, according to Time Out.
What song closes the film?
Time Out notes the film ends with a montage set to "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)."
Source: timeout.com
