Jackass the Movie
Year: 2002
Director: Jeff Tremaine
Starring: Ryan Dunn, Dave England, Johnny Knoxville, Preston Lacy, Wee Man, Bam Margera, Ehren McGhehey, Steve-O & Chris Pontius
Runtime: 87 mins
BBFC: 18
Published: 04/02/22
Director: Jeff Tremaine
Starring: Ryan Dunn, Dave England, Johnny Knoxville, Preston Lacy, Wee Man, Bam Margera, Ehren McGhehey, Steve-O & Chris Pontius
Runtime: 87 mins
BBFC: 18
Published: 04/02/22
If you were around in the golden era of MTV you’ll know just how important the channel was for the music industry, and to introducing people to new music and artists. For some, the creation of MTV was as instrumental as the creation of the actual TV. But as time went by MTV started to cater to more than just music videos and music related news, branching out into what it is known for today…crappy reality TV. But one of the first and most unique non-music shows MTV aired was Jackass. The show gained a huge following each week to see what pranks the guys would pull next, and despite being generally awful TV it was also incredibly addictive. So much so that in 2002 the Jackass gang got their own movie…a bigger screen means bigger stunts, right?
Jackass the Movie is a literal big screen adaptation of the MTV show. It stars Johnny Knoxville, Bam Margera, Ryan Dunn, Steve-O, Wee Man, Chris Pontius, Preston Lacey, Dave England, and Ehren McGhehey along with numerous other guests as they perform life-threatening stunts, outrageous pranks, or just straight up injure each other for our amusement.
However, I feel like the crew missed the opportunity to do something special for the film, perhaps having the stunts tie into each other in some way, or show us more of the behind the scenes work that goes into setting some of these things up. But no, Jackass the Movie is just a long episode of the show. It would even be reasonable to expect larger scale stunts and pranks than on the TV show but other than maybe one or two exceptions this all feels like stuff the guys would have put in the show anyway. One of the few major differences between the show and the film is that now swearing isn’t bleeped out and they certainly take full advantage of that…however that doesn’t justify it existing as a film and not just two episodes of the show.
Jackass the Movie is a literal big screen adaptation of the MTV show. It stars Johnny Knoxville, Bam Margera, Ryan Dunn, Steve-O, Wee Man, Chris Pontius, Preston Lacey, Dave England, and Ehren McGhehey along with numerous other guests as they perform life-threatening stunts, outrageous pranks, or just straight up injure each other for our amusement.
However, I feel like the crew missed the opportunity to do something special for the film, perhaps having the stunts tie into each other in some way, or show us more of the behind the scenes work that goes into setting some of these things up. But no, Jackass the Movie is just a long episode of the show. It would even be reasonable to expect larger scale stunts and pranks than on the TV show but other than maybe one or two exceptions this all feels like stuff the guys would have put in the show anyway. One of the few major differences between the show and the film is that now swearing isn’t bleeped out and they certainly take full advantage of that…however that doesn’t justify it existing as a film and not just two episodes of the show.
Another reasonable expectation would be for the production value to have gone up with the bigger budget allocated for a film…however that too is also a missed opportunity. The film is shot and edited together in exactly the same way as the show, on low quality but portable camera equipment, handled by people who don’t really have much experience using cameras.
Despite all my negativity so far, I must say some of the pranks and stunts performed are entertaining. Stuff like watching the guys do stunt driving in golf karts, start a boxing match in a grocery store, and shove foreign objects up their butts for doctors to find can be funny. But then there’s also a lot of times where I feel a line is crossed, such as defecating in a showroom toilet, or breaking someone’s market stall, or just excessive violence towards each other that drag the film down.
Upon re-watching Jackass the Movie with older eyes, I have to wonder why it even exists. There’s not a lot on offer that wouldn’t have been performed on the show anyway, the bigger budget doesn’t get used in meaningful ways, and the majority of the pranks seem mean spirited. But, the good bits are excellent and among the best the gang has ever produced. Perhaps the ultimate dumb movie?
Despite all my negativity so far, I must say some of the pranks and stunts performed are entertaining. Stuff like watching the guys do stunt driving in golf karts, start a boxing match in a grocery store, and shove foreign objects up their butts for doctors to find can be funny. But then there’s also a lot of times where I feel a line is crossed, such as defecating in a showroom toilet, or breaking someone’s market stall, or just excessive violence towards each other that drag the film down.
Upon re-watching Jackass the Movie with older eyes, I have to wonder why it even exists. There’s not a lot on offer that wouldn’t have been performed on the show anyway, the bigger budget doesn’t get used in meaningful ways, and the majority of the pranks seem mean spirited. But, the good bits are excellent and among the best the gang has ever produced. Perhaps the ultimate dumb movie?