Jackass: The Movie
With its formula of having its crew perpetuate self-abuse in the name of comedy plus playing malicious pranks on unsuspecting marks (which clearly inspired Borat), this 2002 release (based on the cult MTV reality show) cannot clearly be classified as a movie to be reviewed, but rather a series of ever-increasing comedy bits whose value can only be measured by how much (or little) the viewer actually laughs in the duration. Led by Johnny Knoxville, these guys certainly strike awe at just how damn STUPID they are, and it’s a surprise none of them have ever wound up with any long-term health or physical problems (yet). The opening prank, with Knoxville renting a car then promptly taking it into a demolition derby before returning it and telling the owners that they will have to pay for the damages (while admitting that he had been drinking), sets the tone for the movie itself, which features no story whatsoever but is basically an extended and uncensored episode of their show. At times, the film does go too far with what is shown, like having one of them expose their testicles on camera so that electrodes can be attached, or having one character shit his pants only to remove them and hold them up to the camera, that the only true emotion that can be expressed is disgust and revulsion. Other bits though, like having Knoxville done up in old age makeup so that he looks 80 and then having him wander around a store blatantly shoplifting so that the owner can aggressively berate him (“Is that how you treat an old man?”) is undeniably hilarious. Knoxville himself has charisma and presence, and one can see how he branched out on his own as a film actor in recent years, but the others, not so much, as by the halfway point they all seem to have blended together (perhaps the intended effect). When the film is not sinking to the gutter for the worst kind of gross-out humor, it’s actually pretty funny, whether it be bits like Tropical Pole Vaulting, Alligator Pit Tightrope Walking, Off Road Tattooing, The Tidal Wave, The Burglars (who crash through the ceiling of an office as if they’re in the middle of a crime, much to the shock of the workers there), and many more, but having Bam Margera continuously play more elaborate and cruel pranks on his parents (funny the first time with Fireworks Alarm Clock) grows more and more tiresome, and the final bit, an almost indescribable one involving a toy car, caps off the festivities like a rotten cherry on a shit sundae. Overall, it’s funny, and not boring, but it is certainly NOT for the discriminating moviegoer looking for things like story and acting…
8/10