Jackass: The Movie Movie Review

Well that was an experience.

I’m three hours out of Jackass and I still don’t know what to think. I know I didn’t get the idea of Jackass going into the movie, and after some pontification I now think I know what the deal is… but still can’t be sure. Three hours out and the only two things I know are that Jackass doesn’t have a point and maybe, just maybe, that is the point.

Jackass is a solid hour and a half of the worst of humanity. From trying to walk across a tightrope to snorting a line of wasabi to trying out a plumbing store’s toilets, Jackass resolutely aims at the lowest common denominator. Scenario after scenario of absolute insanity packs the theatre for an hour and a half with no real beginning or end.

And, at least this year, I haven’t laughed harder.

Grotesque, stupid, pointless, and funny as hell, Jackass is a bit of a relaxing "screw you" to elitism: Designed to be hated but impossible to look away from. Regardless of how bad you possibly think Jackass can get, it gets far worse. It appeals on a level that none of us likes to admit exists, the level that actually enjoyed America's Funniest Home Videos and the small part of me (yes, even me) that likes Adam Sandler movies.

Jackass is simultaneously a demonstration of how much we love to laugh at idiocy and how much we hate to admit it, of our desire for asinine, pointless comedy and the joy of something akin to Candid Camera at length. Jackass is really impossible to intelligently love or hate. You’ll simply leave the theatre wondering how you laughed so hard and how the same brilliant mind that came up with Being John Malkovich came up with this.

How does a film consisting completely of outtakes have outtakes? Mainly the extra scenes on the Jackass DVD are flubbed lines and aren't nearly as much fun as the film itself. Two commentaries: One from Knoxville, director Jeff Tremaine, and the cinematographer (because, ya know, people are interested in the artistry of Jackass's camerawork) and another from the Jackass cast. Heady stuff, presuming you're a stunt historian.

Before you die, you see Jackass.