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A hilarious look at one of pop culture's bygone trends and a tribute to the young men risking shame and ridicule to bring it back.
In an age ruled by beards, goatees, and clean-shaven faces, one man fights to save the mustache from permanent extinction. Jay Della Valle challenges a new generation of men to embrace the stache and face the consequences. As resistance mounts from girlfriends, friends, and family, this hilarious film dares to explore what it will take to bring the mustache back.
The mustache used to be a symbol of a man's entry into the dignified elite. In modern times, however, the mustache has fallen from grace. Still, mustache challenges happen all over the world for sport, charity, and amusement...
Out of the hairy abyss comes "The Glorius Mustache Challenge"-a social engineering experiment designed to rescue the sexy mustache from the pop culture graveyard.
Director and host Jay Della Valle brings us on his quest to raise a revival on the upper lips of our youth. In 2004, he hits the streets with a stack of flyers and a dream. He issues the challenge to men under 30: To grow a mustache for 1 month. No beards. No goatees. Just the lone stache.
Brave young men answer the call. They come from all walks of life, from a radiologist, to a musician, to an airline pilot... to the one high school student willing to take the risk. Some are excited and ready to grow. Others are nervous about the negative reactions of girlfriends and friends. They all face social disgrace to join the budding mustache movement.
As the growing gets under way, we learn about great mustaches through time, in an animated history of the mustache. We discover how something as simple as a little hair on the upper lip can change a man in surprising ways.
Meet Chad, a New Jersey entrepreneur, who grows a little fuzz and loses his business, his friends, and both of his girlfriends. On the opposite coast is Nick, a California surfer who catches more waves, and more ladies, once he starts rocking the 'stache.
After the month is over, the men have mixed reactions. LA actor Peter falls in love with his new mustache persona and vows to make it a lifestyle. Business owner Jeff thinks he might need therapy. Former farmer Walker experiences PSSD, "Post-Stache Stress Disorder." He feels dorky, less confident, and antsy to grow it back.
The stubbly seeds of a revolution have been sewn...
As the movement spreads, we see just how much one man can accomplish with no budget, no backing... just a glorious dream. Jay and his band of mustachial merry-makers hit historic Union Square and stage a protest march for mustache rights. Jay heads out to the New York bar scene to find out just how much the ladies despise mustaches, and tries to change their minds. Later, Jay and his fuzzy-lipped followers bring the message to the masses when they appear on The Today Show and Good Morning America, Glorius Mustache is on the front page of the paper. Staches are sprouting on the lips of celebrities and trend-setters everywhere.
The mustache is back!
In their quest to beat the odds, Della Valle and his 'stache-wearing studs persevere to make the lip hip. They transform from insecure boys into proud mustachial pioneers. Peppered with an original rock and roll score and hilarious graphics, the Glorius Mustache will repulse you, fascinate you, and ultimately, seduce you!
When I first came up with this idea, I became enamored with mustaches and how they provoke such a variety of reactions from nearly everyone. Besides the occasional dirt-stache supporter in high school--I had never seen anyone my age with a mustache, and the thought of me having one made me laugh in a way I never laughed before.
When I sent an email out to a bunch of guys to see who would be willing to take part in this project, no one thought I was serious. Friends shook their heads in mocking disbelief, and women responded to my idea with "please don't." Some guys were excited to participate, maybe because they finally had an excuse to have one and endure the darts of society for a bigger more amusing purpose. Other men immediately rejected the idea of fear of humiliation or how other people would interpret their sudden proclamation of mustachiality.
Either way, I found a few important elements that are essential to the success of an un-chartered idea. I found resistance, laughter, ambiguity, excitement, and repulsion. That was enough for me to get somewhere and have a damn good time doing it. With a good idea, a good message, a lightness of being, and a whole lotta faith, I embarked on a mission, motivated by everyone who participated and everyone else who had something to say about it.
I wear a mustache nowadays. It's not just my mustache on my lip. It's everything I've ever experienced with a mustache. I've grown into a mustache man-and I'm grateful that my quest to get there-has produced a movie for others to enjoy. I hope you laugh. I hope you cry from laughing so hard. I hope you notice mustaches more and develop a deeper appreciation for them and the men that sport them. And if you've never experienced the joy and somewhat bizarre exhilaration of a mustache before, I hope you are encouraged to give it a chance. Just remember this- First it grows on youÖ..then it grows on everyone else.
Rock the Stache!