Cole claims to know how to manipulate the music in a way that it’ll seize your body and shut your mind off to everything else around you. You wait and wait, but alas, that never happens.

There are parties, indoors and outdoors, lots of dancing, and plenty of gyrating bodies. How much you come away knowing about the music that is moving those people is another matter.

We Are Your Friends is devoid of any discernible rhythm. Straining for kinetic energy, the overall effect of director/co-writer Max Joseph’s first feature is of a tired, overambitious effort.

Romance subplot aside though, we see that Reed clearly has some past issue. This, or the reason behind his fame, is never explained. Surprising, as Reed and Cole are pole characters. Cole learns his lessons but a little grittiness interspersed with the neon party lights and techno flash would’ve made things more interesting. Simply put, you’ll watch it if you’re big fan of Efron or Ratajkowski.

Zac as an aspiring DJ is uninspiring. He’s got a clueless look plastered on his face throughout, quite stoned by the looks of it. His character Cole is seemingly talented, supposedly has it factor, has abs, is a hit with the ladies. Everything Zac is. But in most of his other movies, he’s not what he is in this — terribly boring.

What makes this film mediocre is Jones and Meaghan Oppenheimer’s writing. Taken from a story by executive producer Richard Silverman, the characters are half baked and one-dimensional and the plot surrenders to formula instead of subverting it.